LeftyDave

They're made of wood right? And what else besides wood floats? "A duck"!
Wait, that's not right....had a flashback there for a sec...lol
Yes, electrics MIGHT need some humidity treatments during the winter months. I know first hand that my SG's neck is highly prone to changes in humidity, so I try to keep the whole house at 50%. It's healtier for the axes that way, plus I can leave them out of their cases and not worry so much about them.

captivate

The UK is much more humid. It's pretty much a BIG island surrounded by water, haha. You should consider getting one, still. But humidity won't be as big of an issue for you than me in Toronto.

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Equipment:
- Art & Lutherie Cedar CW (SOLD! )
- Martin D-16RGT w/ LR Baggs M1 Active Soundhole Pickup
- Seagull 25th Anniversary Flame Maple w/ LR Baggs Micro EQ

Have an acoustic guitar? Don't let your guitar dry out! Click here.

Baby Joel

Since I'm stupid,
I've got a guitar with solid back and top, but mahogany ply for the sides. Still need a humidifier?
Also, I live in London, where it rains every day. Still need a humidifier?

I just don't want to break my guitar.

Silverstein14

The owner of a local music shop here said for a makeshift humidifyer you can take a sponge or cloth and soak it in water, ring it out so its just damp, put it in a ziplock baggy and close it but leave it open a bit. The water evaporates and works. He says it usually gets up to 50%. Pretty cool

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captivate

If you turn on your heater when it gets cold, then yes.

Any guitar with solid wood will usually need a humidifier.

__________________
Equipment:
- Art & Lutherie Cedar CW (SOLD! )
- Martin D-16RGT w/ LR Baggs M1 Active Soundhole Pickup
- Seagull 25th Anniversary Flame Maple w/ LR Baggs Micro EQ

Have an acoustic guitar? Don't let your guitar dry out! Click here.

st.stephen

Anyone from Canada (I'm on Vancouver Island, very temperate and regular 5-20 degree weather) know where I could pick some humidifiers up?

captivate

Any shop that sells acoustic guitars should have some humidifiers. Long & McQuade will have them. I'm not sure if there's a L&M on Vancouver Island though, but yea...

__________________
Equipment:
- Art & Lutherie Cedar CW (SOLD! )
- Martin D-16RGT w/ LR Baggs M1 Active Soundhole Pickup
- Seagull 25th Anniversary Flame Maple w/ LR Baggs Micro EQ

Have an acoustic guitar? Don't let your guitar dry out! Click here.

michaelscofield

This is something I've worried about, great thread. My acoustic (http://www.takamine.com/?fa=detail&mid=2003&sid=524) is usually kept on a 3-way stand along w/my electric, and we have the heat on moderately in the winter. I have a soundhole humidifier similar to the Planet Waves one and I put water from a water filter into it, and I have noticed some little mold growing I thought our fridge's water filter was enough

What would you recommend: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/navi...=humidifier&st= Oh and my acoustic has a gig bag :/

LeftyDave

Yea, I had the same thing happen to mine. I couldn't be bothered to keep buying distilled water a couple winters ago, so used tap water in it's place. Not too long after mold started growing out of the little holes of the humidifier. Case in point, it's just gotta be distilled. There's no minerals, bacteria, metals and so on to get in there to start growing in the first place. I'm not saying that it can't pick it up from the air, but it sure will be lessened by using distilled water.
As for the gig bag, your sorta fubar there. For humidifiers to work well, you pretty much need a hard case, but it's better than nothing. Or just do what I do and humidify the whole house. Your sinuses will benefit as well as your guitars. Oh, I live in Minnesota BTW, so our winters get pretty harsh and dry.

captivate

Is the little sponge removable? If it is, take it out and soak it in some bleach to clean the mold off. Clean the other part of the humidifier as well.

__________________
Equipment:
- Art & Lutherie Cedar CW (SOLD! )
- Martin D-16RGT w/ LR Baggs M1 Active Soundhole Pickup
- Seagull 25th Anniversary Flame Maple w/ LR Baggs Micro EQ

Have an acoustic guitar? Don't let your guitar dry out! Click here.

michaelscofield

Don't think it's removable, I will check when I get home.

I usually leave my acoustic on the stand w/humidifier in the sound hole, is that not enough? Hate to have to shell out for a hard case, unless it's the only route

captivate

You're going to need a hard case in order for it to be useful. The water would just go into the environment otherwise.

__________________
Equipment:
- Art & Lutherie Cedar CW (SOLD! )
- Martin D-16RGT w/ LR Baggs M1 Active Soundhole Pickup
- Seagull 25th Anniversary Flame Maple w/ LR Baggs Micro EQ

Have an acoustic guitar? Don't let your guitar dry out! Click here.

michaelscofield

Damn, well which case would you recommend? I'll swing by L&M's some time this week and get one. Preferrably a pretty inexpensive one if possible lol.

Why is a gig bag insufficient?

Oh also, just to get an idea of timing here, what's a generally okay amount of time to leave the acoustic on the stand if I'm playing it at random points of the day, and how long is maybe "too long" and I should put it in the case? (I do put it in the gig bag overnight always).

captivate

Any hard shell case that fits your guitar will be fine.

A gig bag isn't sufficient because moisture can pass right through cloth without any problems. A hard case, on the other hand, is an enclosed space where it is much harder for moisture to get out.

As for leaving your guitar out... I leave mine out on the stand for a day or two sometimes. As long as moisture level is kept right most of the time, i'll be fine.

Just as a side note to anyone... like Silverstein14 said, if you don't want to buy a humidifier then get a zip lock bag and poke some holes in it and then just stick a damp sponge inside(make sure you ring out as much water as possible). It should keep the humidity at about the right level. You will probably need to re-wet it more often than a humidifier, but it should be sufficient.

__________________
Equipment:
- Art & Lutherie Cedar CW (SOLD! )
- Martin D-16RGT w/ LR Baggs M1 Active Soundhole Pickup
- Seagull 25th Anniversary Flame Maple w/ LR Baggs Micro EQ

Have an acoustic guitar? Don't let your guitar dry out! Click here.

Natrone

Hey, right now I have no need for a humidifyer, but I wanted some info for future reference. How would I go about just humidifying my bedroom? Once my room is repainted I plan on hanging all of my guitars on one of the walls.

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Rest In Peace Stevie Ray

captivate

I'm actually not too sure. You can buy the room humidifiers, but the amount of water vapour coming out of those is a lot more than any case humidifier. I'm also not sure that those would be appropriate to use. You'll definitely need to buy a hygrometer though.

Also, on the subject of hanging guitars on walls... There's another risk that comes with hanging guitars on walls. If it gets cold and your guitar's back touches the wall, you could be in trouble. The temperature of the air hitting the face of the guitar will be warmer than the wall, which will tend to retain a colder temperature. This can cause cracks because of the temperature difference from either side. That's one thing to watch out for.

__________________
Equipment:
- Art & Lutherie Cedar CW (SOLD! )
- Martin D-16RGT w/ LR Baggs M1 Active Soundhole Pickup
- Seagull 25th Anniversary Flame Maple w/ LR Baggs Micro EQ

Have an acoustic guitar? Don't let your guitar dry out! Click here.

lbj273

I keep my acoustic hanging on the wall in my room, will it be ok? also would it be bad to keep my electric on its stand near the heat vent? i live in minnesota if thats any help

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Call me Dom

{Pedalboard Thread Native: The Muffin Man}

captivate

If your guitar is solid wood then take it down and put it in its case for the winter. It would also be better to keep your electric guitar away from the vents. Even an electric guitar can go wonky if it's too close to a heat vent.

__________________
Equipment:
- Art & Lutherie Cedar CW (SOLD! )
- Martin D-16RGT w/ LR Baggs M1 Active Soundhole Pickup
- Seagull 25th Anniversary Flame Maple w/ LR Baggs Micro EQ

Have an acoustic guitar? Don't let your guitar dry out! Click here.

BloodMoon666

So let me get this straight...



I need to put a humidifier INTO my soft guitar case BECAUSE it wouldn't get too hot and dry(and/or cold and moist)?

I'm a 99% noob in guitar accessories and welfare management, so sorry in advance.

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