A good all round measure of how a guitar is handling the humidity is whether it stays in tune when it's sitting idle. If it does you are normally good other than your normal house keeping etc.
All our mileage will vary as we all live in varying parts of the globe.
Maybe you can explain this one for me....
Here in my gulf coast empire I'm sure you are aware we are usually hot and humid. No problem, it is what it is. Guitars don't really seem to care. My last gig was outside and it was cold. I tuned up in the climate controlled dressing room about two hours before we played and I left my guitars out on the stand to acclimate to the weather. Right before our set I checked them again and they were all very sharp. Like almost a full half step sharp. Why is that? Seems like the cold would contract the wood which would make them go flat. The other guy's guitars did the same thing. We all went sharp.
Cold will make the metal parts stiffer and less elastic so yeh prolly that played a major part. Wood don't give a fuck how hot or cold it is in practical terms. It's about how much moisture the air will hold. Hotter air = more moisture.
In general terms colder air holds less water so if you leave your guitar out there for a long period ( a few hours is probably not long enough though) then the wood will lose some moisture to the air if it was previously in a warmer (more humid) environment where it would have settled down to an equilibrium in that hotter, wetter air.. Conversely when you take a guitar from a cold store room or workshop or car boot and straight into a warm house it will absorb moisture from the warmer air. Every guitar will behave differently because every bit of wood behaves differently but the principles are the same.
Dehumidifiers and air con are a whole different thing that we don't have to worry about here much. I have gigged in places where they have aircon, festival halls and some theatres etc. they can be interesting places to keep a guitar in tune. Bars, and clubs not so much thankfully.
Every one of my guitars goes sharp while I'm not playing them. I've had that issue through 3 different houses in 2 different regions of the country (muggy Kansas City and dry-as-hell Denver). I've always found it peculiar for that same reason: I'd figure they'd go flat if anything. But nope, every single time I pick one up it's sharp.
Except my Martin. That thing stays dead in tune through thick and thin. Being an acoustic, I'd think it'd be the most squirrely. And my nylon string acoustic...all bets are off. There's never any telling where the heck that thing is going to be any time I pick it up. Sometimes it's sharp, sometimes it's flat, sometimes it's half and half!
My guitars stay in perfect tune here at the house. I can put one away for months and it'll still be in tune when I take it out the case. I just thought it was weird that they'd go sharp in cold weather.
So when I went around looking to see where I got this idea from, all the articles were about the risks of humidity change, accidental damage and having to dust a lot.
Hamg those guitars @WhiskeyJack
Personally I think, if you could pull it off, a cast of a hand give the "up yours" sign would be a great conversation starter...
WhiskeyJack wrote: ↑Tue Mar 08, 2022 12:24 pm
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@muttley humidity changes are huge concern of mine. My space is in a cement basement. We have forced air heat all winter long (6 to 7 months) and then the spring and summer we get the thaw and it can get really damp down here. there is never any sign of pooling water or mold or anything but if i leave it go with out dehumidification for a few days, it can get very basement-y smelling / feeling. So i usually run a dehumidifier keeping it around 50% thru those months. The winters I rely on those little humidifiers you pop in your guitar cases to keep things relatively kosher for the guits. How would i mitigate that drying out risk in the winters were i to hang a few on my wall?
I have to say that if you have wild swings in humidity or constant high or low humidity the best bet is to keep them in cases and use some form of local humidity control. Wood can tolerate extremes of humidity either way but what it doesn't like is rapid changes. Seasoned wood is a sponge. Remember, the hotter the air the more moisture it holds so simply heating your room in an otherwise cold season can dramatically increase the moisture in the air. Thats why you get condensation on cold spots and windows/single skin walls etc.
As an example, I have a massive maple butcher block in my kitchen about 9 inch thick and 24 inch square. It sits between two walnut counter tops and in the winter I can lift the thing out, in the summer it is wedged in there and no amount of heaving will budge the thing. Thats just from the change in the amount of moisture in the air and we hover around 65% all year round.
If you are worried keep your favourite babies in their case and rotate your other instruments round the hangers but keep an eye on them. Things to look for are;
Frets protruding = too dry
Frets popping or sitting high = too wet
Action to stiff = too dry
Action choking = too wet.
There are MANY other reasons for the above so be careful.
A good all round measure of how a guitar is handling the humidity is whether it stays in tune when it's sitting idle. If it does you are normally good other than your normal house keeping etc.
All our mileage will vary as we all live in varying parts of the globe.
Cheers. All stands to reason. I was thinking of getting a little humidifier and hygrometer for in here for in the winter anyways. I put a few plants in here to liven the place up and give me some much needed O2 so they could benefit from the extra little bit of humidity as well. Last i checked I think when the forced air is on as much as it is in the deepest throes of winter it can drop down to about 35-40%. Not great.
RE: Cold weather and sharp guitars. All mine during the winter go sharp as well. All save for that Squire i found at the landfill and my 2004 Epiphone LP. Those two guitars religiously stay in tune all the time always. I can go get them anytime and they are reliably closeenough to E i don't bother fixing it.
Armistice wrote: ↑Tue Mar 08, 2022 6:50 pm
So when I went around looking to see where I got this idea from, all the articles were about the risks of humidity change, accidental damage and having to dust a lot.
Hamg those guitars @WhiskeyJack
Personally I think, if you could pull it off, a cast of a hand give the "up yours" sign would be a great conversation starter...
HAHAHA!!! with the struggles we are having trying to get plaster casts of Calmari's hands and feet i may shelf this idea and be thankful i never see plaster of paris ever again.
I've been in Qld almost a year and the effect of humidity on my guitars is interesting...tuning stability was the give away and then i noticed strings were a little rougher too. I now throw a dehumidifier in the room when it's been particularly wet and bring things back a little. I won't be hanging things though...I have a small walk in wardrobe for the things.
WhiskeyJack wrote: ↑Tue Mar 08, 2022 6:59 pm
HAHAHA!!! with the struggles we are having trying to get plaster casts of Calmari's hands and feet i may shelf this idea and be thankful i never see plaster of paris ever again.
WhiskeyJack wrote: ↑Tue Mar 08, 2022 6:59 pm
HAHAHA!!! with the struggles we are having trying to get plaster casts of Calmari's hands and feet i may shelf this idea and be thankful i never see plaster of paris ever again.
How is the squid anyway?
He is doing really well. Ahead of the game in some aspects and behind in others but he is a little human being and no one comes out hitting home runs right? given how premature he was at birth we are expecting some developmental delays here and there. But he is a real joy to have around. A very happy little guy to be honest thanks for asking Ray!
He is doing really well. Ahead of the game in some aspects and behind in others but he is a little human being and no one comes out hitting home runs right? given how premature he was at birth we are expecting some developmental delays here and there. But he is a real joy to have around. A very happy little guy to be honest thanks for asking Ray!
