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Adam

Posts: 1156
Joined: Dec. 6 2006
From: Hamilton, ON

Guitar in humid room 
I moved last month to a house that's a bit older than where I was living previously, and like many old houses in the UK the air can get quite moist. The last few days I've found it difficult to play in my room, it seems like I'm not getting great sound in here and the guitar seems harder to play. Maybe it's psychological, or could the humidity do that? Any tips for how to take care of my guitar in these conditions?
  REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |  Date Oct. 29 2013 23:52:21
 
Sr. Martins

Posts: 3077
Joined: Apr. 4 2011
 

RE: Guitar in humid room (in reply to Adam) 
My hands don't like this weather. They get slow and the skin feels rubbery.

It can be the guitar but you might want to check if it isn't a hand issue before quiting flamenco and buying a drumset.
  REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |  Date Oct. 30 2013 0:00:52
 
keith

Posts: 1108
Joined: Sep. 29 2009
From: Back in Boston

RE: Guitar in humid room (in reply to Adam) 
yes humidity can make it more difficult to play--the guitar sounds like it has a stuffing inside and the skin sticks on skin and the neck. a room de-humidifier will resolve the problem--or, if the problem is not severe, a product called eva-dry will help. eva-dry is a portable de-humidifier one can put inside of a guitar case. i have found baby powder works for the skin issues and it is safe for french polish.

i have found my guitar plays and sounds really great in 30-40% humidity range and tough to play when the humidity gets above 60%.
  REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |  Date Oct. 30 2013 0:57:32
 
timoteo

 

Posts: 219
Joined: Jun. 22 2012
From: Seattle, USA

RE: Guitar in humid room (in reply to Adam) 
Gathering data is the first step. If you find this is indeed a humidity problem, you can easily do something about it.

Buy a cheap digital hygrometer to put in your case. Preferably one with a memory function so you can see what the max/min values were when your guitar was unattended. I paid $14 for mine.

One you have this, you can see if your guitar's sound/playability is correlated with the actual humidity. If it is, then you can take steps to decrease/increase the humidity in the case as needed. (Note that since the guitar spends most of its time in the case, that's where you should deal with the humidity. Don't worry about the entire house...)

I found that my guitar sounds dead if the humidity is high, so I use a cheap silica moisture absorber to keep the humidity in my case between 40% and 50%. In my part of the world we rarely have to worry about the air being too dry :-) I paid $8 for the bag of dessicant - it works for about three weeks and can be "recharged" by putting it in the microwave for 3 minutes on high.
  REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |  Date Oct. 30 2013 3:58:07
 
timoteo

 

Posts: 219
Joined: Jun. 22 2012
From: Seattle, USA

RE: Guitar in humid room (in reply to Adam) 
Oh, and I tried the Eva-dry E-333 like keith recommended. It works as advertised, but it's too large to fit in my case and has a hard shell which can bump up against your guitar. What I use is a product called Pingi, the 250 gram bag. Does the same thing as the Eva-dry but is half the cost and is soft so it won't damage your guitar.
  REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |  Date Oct. 30 2013 4:02:00
 
Argaith

Posts: 481
Joined: May 6 2009
From: Iran (living in London)

RE: Guitar in humid room (in reply to Adam) 
I bought one of these around 2 years ago:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ecoair-DD122FW-Desiccant-Simple-Dehumidifier/dp/B00474K8SY/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1383121736&sr=8-4&keywords=dehumidifier

This is the best gadget I have ever owned.
Still after 2 years, every time I run it and empty its bucket I can't believe that there is some much humidity in the air!
The rooms get really damp (often %80+) during autumn and winter; especially if you dry your clothes indoors (which is the case in most UK housholds).

Although most of us keep our guitars in their cases when we don't play, it is amazing how quickly they react to the humid air once you get it out of the case to play. Plus humidity decreases the life of the bass strings too.

A

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  REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |  Date Oct. 30 2013 7:42:47
 
Rmn

Posts: 308
Joined: May 14 2011
 

RE: Guitar in humid room (in reply to Argaith) 
Depends on the guitar and your nail lenght too.
I dont like my guitar when its dry. I keep it as humidified as possible to get rid of certain midtones that make the sound harsh and also to make the soundboard more flexible (notice it with golpear). Also there is less tention when humidified which i personally like alot more than stiffness. The tone becomes sweeter and there is a nice sustain. It can handel that much damping because my blanca from 2005 is very bright.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Argaith

Although most of us keep our guitars in their cases when we don't play, it is amazing how quickly they react to the humid air once you get it out of the case to play. Plus humidity decreases the life of the bass strings too.

A

Very true about the responce to humidity. The absorb or loose it in a short time (half of an hour gives differences)
  REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |  Date Oct. 30 2013 9:06:27
 
tele

Posts: 1464
Joined: Aug. 17 2012
 

RE: Guitar in humid room (in reply to Rmn) 
I have noticed with humidity that the action gets lower due to neck straightening and/or fretboard expanding and also the sound becomes a bit more dull/bassy after 70% moisture

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  REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |  Date Oct. 30 2013 10:25:00
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