Jump to content
Gibson Brands Forums

Proper humidity and guitar care


fumblefingers

Recommended Posts

In light of a recent thread which apparently shows a dried-out hummingbird, I am a little concerned with how to care for my brand new J-45 Custom. The humidity is VERY low where I am residing right now. In a few months, it will be in a much more humid environment. How do I properly care for this? I could not find anything on the Gibson site regarding humidity. Thanks in advance.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 57
  • Created
  • Last Reply

In light of a recent thread which apparently shows a dried-out hummingbird, I am a little concerned with how to care for my brand new J-45 Custom. The humidity is VERY low where I am residing right now. In a few months, it will be in a much more humid environment. How do I properly care for this? I could not find anything on the Gibson site regarding humidity. Thanks in advance.

Get a kysor sound hole humidifier keep it in the guitar and damp, also a case humidifier (Herco it think it is makes a good one) and keep the guitar in the case when not in use. if you still feel the guitar is drying out too much get a case hydrometer to monitor the humidity in the case, do everything you can to not let that humidity drop below 30%, guitars like 50% so 30% is about the cutoff. There is actually some pretty good vids on YT concerning this subject. I hope this helps, nobody want to watch their J45 crack up.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

JC, that is a very good film. I watch it for the first time and I always love to listen Ren talk. This man has the real tallent to explain things ;-)

 

fumblefingers,

 

I live in a dry flat, especially in the winter because of the heating. I srore all my guitars ( I have 8 at home right now) in the corridor, because there is no hearer there. And the temperature is lower because thete is the front door. The guitars are in the cases, all closed. There are 2 to 3 humidifiers in every case. I fill the humidifiers with water every week.

This works for me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The humidity is VERY low where I am residing right now. In a few months, it will be in a much more humid environment.

 

 

What is VERY low humidity in this case? What part of the world do you live in? There may be others here from the same area who can give you specific advice.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What is VERY low humidity in this case? What part of the world do you live in? There may be others here from the same area who can give you specific advice.

 

I am temporarily in northern NV. It is the driest of US states. The humidity today is actually not low, and the winter is more humid than the summer. But with the heat on I know it is dry. I can't give you an exact reading until I get a hygrometer. Humidity in the summer here has been known to reach single digits. It is a little scary not knowing, but I suppose the guitar will be ok for a time. I didn't even know not to pull it right out of the case after it was delivered by UPS. I should have let it adjust. I'm just used to an old, cheap guitar that I didn't have to worry about.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am a little concerned with how to care for my brand new J-45 Custom.

 

Yes. Better safe than sorry.

 

I could not find anything on the Gibson site regarding humidity.

 

Google seems to work better than the search function here. You can isolate a search for "humidity" to this site by using site:gibson.com humidity

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am experimenting with a Humidipak system at the moment, but I also have a PWaves unit that needs water, and have ordered an Oasis to try....

 

I have evaporative aircon for the summer, and central gas for winter, so winter is the driest - a tip I saw years ago is to put a bowl of water on the mantel!

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have tried many different types of humidifiers and the ones I like the best are the Oasis ones. Humidipaks are ok but not reusable. The Oasis ones are filled with water that turns to gel so no water drips.

 

+1 on the Oasis. One of the issues with the systems with sponges is that if the sponge gets dry it will then start sucking the existing humidity in the guitar out. The Oasis shrivels up and does not take on moisture after it has dried out. It is also visual, in that it shrinks visibly so you can look in the case and see it needs changing at a glance.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

I have evaporative aircon for the summer, and central gas for winter, so winter is the driest - a tip I saw years ago is to put a bowl of water on the mantel!

 

BluesKing777.

 

 

Swamp cooler, eh? It must be pretty hot and dry there in the summer to use that. We had one of those in the Arizona desert a long time ago.

 

You're somewhere near Melbourne?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Swamp cooler, eh? It must be pretty hot and dry there in the summer to use that. We had one of those in the Arizona desert a long time ago.

 

You're somewhere near Melbourne?

 

 

 

South of Melbourne.

 

 

They DO work better in the desert....

 

We get everything, but the Evap coolers are popular here and the modern versions are efficient - recycle the water used over and over and we are told that it runs on the equivalent power of one light globe......well that was the ad. It has been great adding moisture to my guitars on the low humidity days, and it doesn't make my computer eyes itchy like refrigeration air.

 

 

AND

 

 

I got the quietest one ever invented for some reason - we have the 'whispering sea breeze' option....so considerate in a block of total inconsiderates!

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now I don't even want to take this thing out of the case until I get a humidifier.

Get two.

I never put the soundhole humidifier into the soundhole (one time water drops falled into one of my guitars and the stains are still there on the lower side on the inside).

I put these things into the case besides the neck joint - that position works good for me.

Into the case of my J200 I have 3 humidifiers with the guitar and into the case of my J35 I have 2 humidifiers.

Good luck.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Get two.

I never put the soundhole humidifier into the soundhole (one time water drops falled into one of my guitars and the stains are still there on the lower side on the inside).

I put these things into the case besides the neck joint - that position works good for me.

Into the case of my J200 I have 3 humidifiers with the guitar and into the case of my J35 I have 2 humidifiers.

Good luck.

 

 

Are you using the Oasis units?

 

 

 

(My brother lives in a northern Australian desert town and his wooden outdoor furniture (from here) got so dry, it turned to splinters. His humidity would be 10 - 20 % a lot of the summer with extreme temps. So no good for fancy guitars!)

 

 

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Are you using the Oasis units?

 

BluesKing777.

 

I have only one Oasis - in the J200 case. I prefere the usual soundhole Planet waves humidifier that you fill up with water using a seringue. But I don't put this thing into the soundhole - keep it besides the neck joint.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fumblefingers,

I may be the dummy who killed his Hummingbird that you're referring to. (No offense!)

 

My mistake was displaying it on a guitar hanger, in a mile high environment, where weather is known to get dry. I kept an eye on the local online weather reports, which showed up to 60%RH, NOT taking into account that indoors is much drier. The key is to keep the wooden guitar in a hard case with humidifier packets.

 

After watching that video, I have a couple concerns.......but let me say this first...."Far be it from me to second guess the expert guitar craftsmen at Gibson"......

 

Okay, Boseman isn't far from Denver climate-wise. He said they are using misters to get their humidity (RH) up to 44%. Would it be better if they aged their wood long enough to dry it enough so the guitar could survive in average RH? Or is 44%RH necessary to make a quality instrument? Maybe if they left the wood to cure and dry out a bit more before putting it together? He did mention that certain parts were left to dry for over a year. Are they rushing the wood to market? It seems to me that the average indoor humidity, universally, would be much less than 44%. I got my indoor RH up to 35%, it was 31F outside this morning, and I've got a ton of condensation at the bottom of my windows. Much more, and the window sills would rot. (I know, I know, "leave it in the case"!!!)

 

A second concern after watching that video. He humidifies his fretboard with nose oil. Seriously. Watch that video again and see if he doesn't put about an ounce of sebum into the neck during 11 minutes. Ewwwww!!! I don't want to touch that guitar after him. Especially during cold season.

 

I lived in a home that used a swamp cooler, and it was great for getting RH up in warm conditions. The problem here in the Rockies is the cold dry. After my recent experience, I'm glad I don't live up the mountain, in Vail, Aspen or Breckinridge.

 

People pay exorbitantly for older vintage guitars. I was told that it's because the wood and glue has had time to cure, and that the vibrations from playing has settled the joints and seams and wood cells into the perfect configuration for tone. (Is this correct?) Okay, so why can't this be simulated? Can a new guitar be put into a humidity chamber, and attached to an oscillating vibrator, and have the humidity brought down to a set value?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Rick. Thanks for the reply. It wasn't your guitar I was referring to, but now I'm really scared after reading about yours! I was talking about the European gentleman who received a brand new Hummingbird which was already coming apart due to dryness. I'm terribly nervous about this right now because I'm not sure how much I have to baby this thing. I can't make it a full time job to take care of my guitar. My old Matao has been in dry, wet, hot, cold, etc., and it's never suffered any damage in the nearly 20 years I've owned it, and I don't even have a case for it! It is solid wood. Are these Gibsons high maintenance or something?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't be scared, but don't leave it out of the case, either. Just keep it in a hard case with a humidifier packet. There are cheap sponge holders, or expensive climate controller packets, and some people put a wet sponge in a baggie with a few holes in it...it's really easy.

 

I picked up an Ovation Celebrity CC44 for $200 w/case from a pawn shop a few years back, and it's never been a problem, and I leave it out all the time. After a truss rod adjustment, the action is great, it sounds good, and it goes everywhere without complaining. Of course, it doesn't sound like a Hummingbird, either. From what I gather, Gibson uses a better wood grade, better construction techniques, so on one hand the resonance, tone and sound are better, but on the other it has to be babied a bit more. You hear the same exact things with Taylors and Martins. Shops who sell these guitars keep them humidified to about 45%RH.

 

It's the price you pay for a better guitar, and it's not that much.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can somebody help me out with which Oasis to buy? They have so many darn numbers I'm confused.

They make two different kinds. One gets clipped inside the case, I clip it on the lid of the accessory compartment. The other kind is a soundhole version. The only difference in the two versions is the case one comes with the clip and the sound hole one comes with a piece of plastic that keeps the tube suspended in between the strings. I think the one you want depends one how you store the guitar. I keep mine standing up on a rack so the case one is what I use. If it was laying down flat on a shelf then the soundhole one might work better. Now online you will probably find a couple of different colors. All those are just updated versions(newer version). For example the first one I got was a case humidifier, the second one I got is a case plus humidifier. They improved it so it holds more water and doesn't need filled as often. Which ever one you get, get the "plus" version, it should be the newest.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm surprised for the lack of support for Humidipaks. I bought a bunch for my guitars this year and now a bulk shipment of extra paks. I like them because they promise to keep the guitars in the proper zone for low and high humidity, which in the Northeast US, both are serious concerns. I've never dried out of my own guitars in winter, but I've definitely seen the damage of a over-humified guitar in August when everything seems to be bulging and the sound is crap and the action begins to rise. Thus far, this year, I've enjoyed the consistency of playing guitars that taken out of the case always sound like they're at their peak. Very exciting.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I kept thinking the Humidipak hygrometer was showing the humidity reading a bit high, so I put it next to my old Planet Waves hygrometer and the temperatures are identical but the humidity readings are 57 % on my old meter and.... 62 % on the new one!

 

I will have to buy another meter to triangulate!

 

Next I am looking for a "humidity reading app' on my iPhone!

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Swamp cooler, eh? It must be pretty hot and dry there in the summer to use that. We had one of those in the Arizona desert a long time ago.

 

You're somewhere near Melbourne?

 

Why not just spend $10,000 and replace your house windows so you can turn up the humidity unit up without sweating the walls and windows? Seems like that suggestion was made by someone in here to me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


×
×
  • Create New...