• Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 43

Topic: Humidifiers for wood guitars Question

I have this Humidifier you fill with distilled water using a plastic syringe, and force open the D and G strings and hangs on those two strings.. I now see they have the Humidipack which is packets you place in a pouch and drape between the strings ( as opposed to opening the strings and having to stay that way as long as the deice is hanging ...Anyway, anyone using one or the other and does it hurt the sound if those two strigns seem to be in a constant " stretch " ?

Thanks

Jerry

  • From: Pico Rivera, Calif. U.S.A.
  • Registered: 2006-10-26
  • Posts: 785

Re: Humidifiers for wood guitars Question

I have a planet wave humidifier also you fill it up once a month.  I have not seen the other you describe.  Your strings would stretch a bit and you would have to check tuning once you took the humidifier out. But the stress or stretch of the string would be constant so it would be minimal. 


I am not physicist but the continual stress which is stationary would have less effect than when you are playing as adding a download force of strumming. So your strings will stretch more when your playing your guitar.


Food for thought.

Bootlegger

Bootlegger guitars.

  • Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 43

Re: Humidifiers for wood guitars Question

Boot,


Here is the web site for the new one I mentioned.


<a href="http://www.planetwaves.com/pwhumidity.aspx" target="_blank">http://www.planetwaves.com/pwhumidity.aspx</a>


I just picked it up at Sam Ash . 27.00 but it is really cool because there is no water and it works both ways, humidifys and if there is too much humidity , it takes out the excess.. It gives you an amount thsat it can hold and and let out, .. and they say it keeps very close to 45% RH as long as you store it in a closed case.


But what you said about the string stretch makes sense, I will use that one on my Ibanez..


Jerry

  • From: Montreal
  • Registered: 2007-03-16
  • Posts: 312

Re: Humidifiers for wood guitars Question

O.K. so here's the deal as an "old timer" sees it. I play a Norman B20 with a spruce top and cherry sides and back. I have owned this guitar for 15 years.I try to practice about an hour a day,so it does get plenty of playing. I keep it in a solid case with a little silica bag to absorbe moisture. I clean my strings and fingerboard with "Fast Fret", I pass a dry rag on it to dust it off every so often. And that's it! My guitar keeps sounding better as the years pass. It is ageing just as I like.

My concern is this. I am fairly new to this site.... I really love this site and the interaction with other musicians.... but I can't help feeling that many people are spending so much time fretting ( pun intended ) over all the latest equipment that <b>manufactuers</b>  are telling us that we need. Unless you live in a very dry or extreemly humid enviroment I do not see the need for such a gadget. Also if you do live in such an enviroment wouldn't your home already have either a humidifier or dehumidifier. Doesn't your guitar share the same enviroment? I live in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Our tempuratures vary from +30 and very humid in the summers to -30 and very dry in the winters.I have never felt a need to worry about my guitar.

So are all these gadgets nessesary or are we products of our <b>commercial enviroment</b>?

I may be goin' to hell in a bucket babe