how cold can my guitar get

[lantern]

Hi! I have a nice Gibson Songwriter and a Gibson C-1 Classic guitar. I keep turning the heat to 58 degrees at night, my wife keeps turning it OFF. It can get down to the 40s or 50s at night. I also play sometimes in a semi-outdoor setting, where the temperature is in the 50s. My guitar is out for a couple hours. I can put a humidifying thing in the case but not at the gig. Am I hurting my guitar? Will the finish crack? How cold can the guitar get, even with a humidifying thing? Thanks!

[milod]

Guitars obviously get as cold as ambient temperature; humidity from ambient atmosphere also will affect them.

 

How cold, how humid or dry, before damage will depend on the instrument - and one's definition of "damage."

 

I know that's not really an answer, but even two pretty much identical instruments of mine from the early '70s underwent a lotta atmosphere conditions and one cracked a top and the other looks "like new."

 

m

[L5Larry]

It's not simply the temperature that will affect your guitar, it's "extreme and sudden" changes in temperature. The "extreme and sudden" is the important part here. A guitar that receives a gradual change in temp, or is allowed to "acclimate" (usually in the case), should be fine. Acoustic (and hollow/semi-hollow) instruments are, of course, more fragile than solid-bodies, and are more prone to temp/humid damage.

 

Whether it's summer or winter, hot-to-cold, or cold-to-hot, it doesn't matter, here's a few rules of thumb:

 

1. Use the case as a buffer. After transporting for a short trip (like to a gig), allow guitar (in-case) to adjust to it's new surroundings before opening the case. One hour is what I usually shoot for, since I arrive to a gig about an hour in advance for setup.

 

2. Open the case slowly. In extreme conditions I will just crack the lid, flip up the handle and set the lid back down on the handle to leave the lid slightly open for another few minutes. This allows for a slower equalization of temp.

 

3. When returning home, leave the guitar in it's case until the next morning.

 

4. When receiving a guitar that has been shipped to you and has spent a few days in trucks and warehouses, do not open the case for 24 hours. This may be an inconvenience when you've just received a new toy and also need to inspect it for shipping damage, but well worth the wait time.

[capmaster]

It's not simply the temperature that will affect your guitar, it's "extreme and sudden" changes in temperature. The "extreme and sudden" is the important part here. A guitar that receives a gradual change in temp, or is allowed to "acclimate" (usually in the case), should be fine. Acoustic (and hollow/semi-hollow) instruments are, of course, more fragile than solid-bodies, and are more prone to temp/humid damage.

 

Whether it's summer or winter, hot-to-cold, or cold-to-hot, it doesn't matter, here's a few rules of thumb:

 

1. Use the case as a buffer. After transporting for a short trip (like to a gig), allow guitar (in-case) to adjust to it's new surroundings before opening the case. One hour is what I usually shoot for, since I arrive to a gig about an hour in advance for setup.

 

2. Open the case slowly. In extreme conditions I will just crack the lid, flip up the handle and set the lid back down on the handle to leave the lid slightly open for another few minutes. This allows for a slower equalization of temp.

 

3. When returning home, leave the guitar in it's case until the next morning.

 

4. When receiving a guitar that has been shipped to you and has spent a few days in trucks and warehouses, do not open the case for 24 hours. This may be an inconvenience when you've just received a new toy and also need to inspect it for shipping damage, but well worth the wait time.

Agree totally.

 

However, when looking at all the discussions around humidifying, point 4 reminded me of the fact that new guitars and cases come with desiccants. Manufacturers do very well know why. Most people are afraid their instruments would dry out too much, but nobody thinks about condensation and mould growth.

 

Until now I always used to keep silent when it went around that humidifying nonsense...