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February 2003
Posts: 2177
Location: the BIG Metropolis of TR | Hey Guys,
Now that it's getting colder where most of us live, and the heat is being turned on.....How do you guys that leave your guitars hanging on the wall or out on stands, keep them humidified and happy?
This is the first year that my babies have left their cases and have been hanging on the wall and they seem so tender and vulnerable in the hostle,dry,hot enviroment of my music room!
What type/style humidifier do you use and why? (warm mist vs cool mist?) How often and when do you run your units? Brands and price range of your units,etc.
I built myself a homemade unit :D .......I went up in the attic and ran a flexible hose from the fart fan in the bathroom to a vent in the music room across the hall. Now whenever someone takes a shower,simply turn on the fan and let the warm,moist air circulate into the music room!!.....only drawback is it also make my guitars smell like sh*t :eek: (my wife says it matches my playing style :rolleyes: )
There's gotta be a better way........Help!
(If the women don't find you handsome they should atleast find you handy!) |
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October 2005
Posts: 5327
Location: Cicero, NY | Good question and, if anyone is inclined to pitch an opinion in, specify what you might do differently in SC or say the Great White North of Upstate NY... |
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Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | What ever you do, in the case or out of the case you need a hygrometer. If you do a search, I posted last year how to test them and the kinds I use.
The kind: Any $15 electronic unit, though for about $25 you can get the planet waves unit. I found it was off by 1%.
The test: More fully described before, but basically you put them in a bag with salty slurry and the humidity will naturally hit 75% if I recall correctly.
Good luck |
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February 2005
Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | Well, I don't know about you right coasters, but lack of humidity is rarely a problem here in the upper left corner... Up to now I've been leaving my window open about 1" and letting the moist air from outside blend with the drier air inside. That works fine till it gets too cold outside, then we tend to leave a teapot of water on the woodstove. Feel free to drop by for a cuppa anytime. |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | My MusicRoom is about 9'x16' and I just use a small table-top unit (Honeywell). $50-60, I think.
Find one that comes with hygrometer that you can hang on the wall near the guitars. That'll allow you to monitor the humidity and allow you to adjust the "humidistat" on the unit accordingly.
If your using a woodstove to heat the house, invest in one of those big-ass CAST IRON kettles, fill it with water and keep it on top of the stove (they even make spice packets to throw in to make the house smell nice) . . . |
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Posts: 5327
Location: Cicero, NY | Originally posted by cliff:
(they even make spice packet to throw in to make the house smell nice) . . . So much to say... ;) |
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March 2005
Posts: 12750
Location: Boise, Idaho | Timely topic. I've been thinking about the same thing. Contrary to what Waskel implies, not all of the Northwest is humid. It's rarely above 30% humidity here but my 2 that I've had the longest have no cracks. They are the Matrix and Applause however, and being plywood tops might be a factor. Now that I have some money invested in the others, I am going to do something to increase the humidity in my basement "music room", but my wife's decision to make it into the exercise room has to be factored in. A humidifier might be a good Christmas gift idea. |
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Posts: 13984
Location: Upper Left USA | Reason #57, #58 and #59 -Why they need an Ovation Factory in the Northwest:
Closer to the wood supply, better fishing and the humidity is perfect! |
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November 2003
Posts: 11039
Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | My guitars are out in stands or hanging. I use Dampits, which work well, but you have to check em every few days. If I go away for an extended period, I will put the woodtops in their cases with a freshly charged Dampit. |
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Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | Sorry, Mark. I was talking about west of the Cascades... not the high desert away to the east... |
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January 2004
Posts: 627
Location: Cherry Hill, NJ | I leave my Ovations and electrics hanging on the wall as they stand up pretty well to the changes. Its those all wooden guitars you got to be careful with. In my music room, I plug in my $25 Wal-Mart humidifer, and always keep the room cooler than the rest of the house. As long as the room is not overly hot and dry, the guitars should be fine. |
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Posts: 15654
Location: SoCal | This thread has been interesting, but living in SoCal, all my guitar live out all year long and the only danger to them is when I pick them up.... |
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January 2004
Posts: 338
Location: SE Michigan | If it gets dry where you live (say below 30% humidity) I wouldnt risk it and would take steps to protect my guitars.
I live in Michigan, in the hard winter months it gets really dry indoors. I always use a sound-hole humidifier (Planet Waves) in my wood-topped guitars PLUS I keep them in closed cases when not in use. I recharge the humidifiers after each playing session.
Last winter I used a Hunter 33255 to help humidify my house. It helped but I still used the sound hole humidifiers and kept them in cases.
This spring I bought a new furnace with central air and a whole house humidfier. I'll still probably keep my guitars in their cases for safty reasons (I have young kids), but I probably won't use the sound hole humidifiers.
I do need to pick up some kind of humidity gauge to keep an eye on things. |
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March 2005
Posts: 12750
Location: Boise, Idaho | Gee, Brian, when I lived in Wisconsin, we used a dehumidifier to pump the water out of the air. It must blow across the lake and then you put it back in.
Contrary to what Waskel and MWoody might lead you to believe, most of the Northwest is dry and deserty. There's a little strip along the coast where all the people live where it rains all the time. Ovation can build a factory here, but nobody would want to live here. Oregon is going to go back to putting signs on the California border telling them to stay away and here we just shoot them. (the Californians, not the signs) |
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January 2004
Posts: 338
Location: SE Michigan | In Michigan it's the furnace that dries things out in winter. The cold outside temperature sucks the moisture out of indoor heated spaces.
In the summer, however it is a swamp here and I use air-conditioning and a de-humidifier.
And our problem is with those Ohio people. |
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February 2003
Posts: 2177
Location: the BIG Metropolis of TR | Thanks for all the replies. All you guys (Cliff,Tommy,BrianT) who use the "table top" versions, how and when do you turn them on/off and how long do you let them run?
My music roon is the same sq.footage(12'x12')as Cliff's (which seems pretty enclosed) so a small unit would probably do the trick......I just don't want so much humidity that the strings rust and they're dripping with condensation but on the other hand I don't want them to be brittle and crumble when I try to play them!(slight exaggeration :rolleyes: )
I have central air/heat pump and the heat is extremely dry.....If it's a cool/chilly night the unit seems to run all night.....I just feel like (to my worrying brain) they're in there being cooked! :eek: |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | Get a unit with a humidistat, and it'll turn ITSELF on/off as needed. If the hygrometer tells you that the humidity's a bit too high, y'back off on the humidistat and the unit will cycle on/off accordingly . . . |
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Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | Also, this is a good time to clean and re-oil your fret boards, put on new strings, do a set up, change the batteries if you haven't over the past year in your pre-amps and hygrometers and polish your (guitar) necks. I've settled into doing this complete overall once a year on or about election Day, when the heat is on regularly. And then another minor maintenance in May when I turn off the heat.
PS Good idea on a humidistat unit. I'm going to look into one of those. |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | This one is "similar" to the one I use:
Honeywell Humidifier
I'm sure that there's bigger/better ones available . . .
GET EXTRA FILTERS!
These things work by "wicking" water up through a honeycomb fabric filter. Eventually (especially in "hard water" areas), the filters will get hard, brittle and lose their absorbancy. Y'might get one or two "cleanings" out of it, but eventually replacement is needed. It's best to have 2-3 "on hand" during the season than to try to find 'em after-the-fact . . . . |
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February 2003
Posts: 2177
Location: the BIG Metropolis of TR | Thanks for the link,Cliff. The only possible drawback to that particular unit is under the "product details" it says it's been discontinued maybe/maybe not making extra filters hard to find(?) but still give me a starting place to compair different models/features etc. Thanks |
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February 2005
Posts: 1132
Location: Parrish, FL | with those Ohio people Hey, I resemble that remark. Now in NC where I'm sure the locals hope that I'm just a Yankee and not a Damn Yankee.
Blues |
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October 2005
Posts: 64
| I wish I took care of my stuff as well as you all seem to.
If there isn't cigarette burns in the damn things, then there's leftover donut icing on the fingerboard. |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | Sadly . . . he's not joking.
Rick's idea of "coated strings" is BostonCreme . . .
:rolleyes: |
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October 2005
Posts: 64
| :D
I call them the Tom Scholz signature strings. |
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October 2005
Posts: 400
Location: North Texas | I must admit that I too am guilty of not pampering my guitars. They are not abused, but they aren't hermetically sealed either. Truth is, the ones that had cracks in the finish when purchased still have 'em, and them that didn't, still don't. I imagine if I owned some high dollar, pristine instruments, I'd be more likely to fret over them. Pun intended. The chocolate creme pie filling on the instruments is, however, kept to a minimum. |
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The heat is on.....
