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So to begin with...and in a way an introduction: I live in Alaska. A very cold part of Alaska which when it gets very cold gets very dry.
This is the first Alaska winter for my guitar and this week is bad, -40F the last few days. I have one of these digital hygrometers in the case and it dropped down to 39% over night. I also have a humidifier hanging from the guitar strings inside the body cavity (Oasis) and I put a wet sponge in the case down at the headstock end.
What else can I do? Maybe I should wrap the whole case in a plastic garbage bag?
You could maybe skin a bear and use the fur to keep it insulated ?
(Don't almost cut your thumb off though, like our Manitoba member "c"... )
"Actually One day about twenty years ago I almost cut my thumb off, while skinning a black bear. I have learned to compensate for some loss of movment ... The tendon and nerves never did heal totaly.
That was a long time ago. I dont think it interfears with my playing it really only bugs me when I try to pick up a pin but ya ...... It dont look right
You could maybe skin a bear and use the fur to keep it insulated ?
(Don't almost cut your thumb off though, like our Manitoba member "c"... )
cheers,
Ron
Bears are out of season, and a little hard to find in February, but I suppose if I did bag one and got caught I might end up in the care of the Alaska Department of Corrections who might even have humidified accomodations, but its just as likely they contract out with the private prison "industry" and I would be shipped off to a particularly unpleasant corner of Arizona without humidification.
So to begin with...and in a way an introduction: I live in Alaska. A very cold part of Alaska which when it gets very cold gets very dry.
This is the first Alaska winter for my guitar and this week is bad, -40F the last few days. I have one of these digital hygrometers in the case and it dropped down to 39% over night. I also have a humidifier hanging from the guitar strings inside the body cavity (Oasis) and I put a wet sponge in the case down at the headstock end.
What else can I do? Maybe I should wrap the whole case in a plastic garbage bag?
If you're holding the humidity at 39 in those conditions I'd say you're doing just fine. Your guitar should be ok as long as the humidity stays above 30 although you might notice the frets sticking out from the sides of the fingerboard. What your're doing works much better than those little gadgets in the humicase.
Your memory is much too good Ron,,,,,,and your humor????........ You Love a story
Once, back in the late 70's our rock band was booked every week from monday nite to saturday nite. I worked as a taxidermist during the day, and one monday I cut my index finger almost in half skinning a POLAR BEAR It took 10 stitches ( I have lots of scars) What a disaster.
So on the way to the gig I bought a chrome slide.......that is how I learned to play slide guitar. I had this huge white bandage on one finger and the slide on the middle finger, and faked my way through (had trouble with the chording the first nite but nailed it by the weekend) True story
Anyway, It can get very dry in the cold months in Manitoba I use a household humidifier just to keep the air breathable. It seems to be enough .....(touch wood) I have 3 flamencos ...no cracks...
Your guitar should be ok as long as the humidity stays above 30 although you might notice the frets sticking out from the sides of the fingerboard.
Its maybe worth saying that if the frets do start to protrude, its a simple job to put right. You should be able to live with it till you get to a luthier. Its a once only job, shouldn't need doing again.
It's just that your original mention of skinning a black bear took my brain spinning off at a tangent! It's like someone asking if anyone could recommend a good all-round knife for general Lutherie and someone replying, " I use a really great knife.... I originally bought it for my sport of alligator fighting, but it's really handy in the workshop as well...."
It kinda makes the Lutherie question fade into the background...
Thanks to the insightful replies and moral support of this forum I saved myself the cost of a $300 humicase with a $1.50 blue kitchen sponge!
Its seems that with blue kitchen sponges (as with many things in life) size does matter. Originally I tried using 1/2 sponge but 1 complete sponge at the head end of the case + the oasis humidifier in the body cavity and the humidity now is hovering around 59%.
ORIGINAL: tamoio Originally I tried using 1/2 sponge but 1 complete sponge at the head end of the case + the oasis humidifier in the body cavity and the humidity now is hovering around 59%.
Don't go crazy with humidifying your guitar. Too much humidity can do as much or more damage than too little. Most luthiers try to keep their shops at around 45% so that's the number you should be shooting for.
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