Humidity and leaky packs
 

Hi

Guitars, eh? A constant worry.

I live in the UK. I have never considered humidification of a guitar case to be essential where I live ( near London ) however having spent a small fortune in guitars lately I am reconsidering.

I'm trying the Planet Waves 2 - Way Humidipaks for my acoustics but I have heard of people having leakage problems. I had hoped that the newer packs would have some sort of waterproofing but the ones I bought don't seem to have waterproof bags - just thin cloth ones. I'm a bit nervous that the pack might leak inside the guitar sound hole and now I'm wondering if I should just stick one in the case at the neck instead.

Anyone have any views?

I'm sure others will weigh in but I think they resolved that problem some time ago. I've used them for a while now without any issues.

Have used them for years with no problems.

Never had a problem with the humidipaks.

+1 on that.

Thank you for your reassurance. I have noticed in the past several people complaining of leakage from the packs. Hopefully they have sorted the issue out. I would feel a little bit more reassured if they had goretex or similar packs though.

The leakage issues were apparently resolved years ago and they concerned the first generation product.

I'm not an expert but I wonder if something waterproof that you mentioned, like neoprene or Goretex, would prevent the paks from 'getting at' the water in the air (humidity)?

Goretex is supposed to let water vapour through without letting liquid water pass. This is why it's called a water proof breathable membrane. The Oasis style humidifiers must have some type of Goretex membrane.

I have a few of the Humidpaks here, all of which show darker, saturated areas that look like leakage, but I can feel no moisture or anything slimy to the touch. Not sure if it's a precursor to leakage, or a normal thing?

https://hollowbamboo.net/misc/IMG_20..._052643886.jpg

Another thumbs up; 3+ years and no problem.

The inside of the new thin, cloth bags that the OP describes is a water proof breathable membrane, as are the shells of the Humidipaks themselves. When D'Addario came out with the new bags they had a video where they poured water into the bag to show it was leakproof, even under that extreme condition. I have used these for years and have never had a leak. I recharge and reuse the packs, in some cases for years, and i have had a couple of packs develop small pin prick holes in them where they got creased over time, and a small crusty area formed on the outside of the pack. No leaks even in those cases.

I have not seen that before, and I would be hesitant to continue using that pack.

With my own eyes I have seen the new Humidipaks leak. I would never allow them anywhere near my guitars.

https://i.imgur.com/eQKDTzL.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/6Q5ahH7.jpg


Don't waste your money.
Use a real humidifier with distilled water.

https://d295tia4p901kn.cloudfront.ne...kaging_116.jpg

Boveda
 

There is a new "leak resistant" holder. Even though I've never had a problem, switched out to these for safety.

https://bovedainc.com/store/music/bo...-pouch-holder/