Ordered D'addario Humidipaks and Hard Case - Humidity at 35%

[yell03]

I love to hang my guitars, but since acoustics are more susceptible to damage at low humidity I had to give in and order something for my new Yamaha A1M.

I needed a case anyway so I ordered that and I went with the D'addario Humidipaks. I did not want any chance of somebody moving the case and spilling water on my guitar.

I have never even thought about humidity affecting my guitars, this forum thankfully educated me.

If I see the humidity dip lower I will do something for my electrics, most likely a whole house humidifier. I would hate to have to put all my guitars in their cases, they look so good and are so convenient to grab hanging there.

[SalFromChatham]

Maybe you should curse the forum, and not thank us!

Seriously we educate each other about some things, but we also make each other neurotic with other things.

Ps 35%...if that’s the worst it gets in your house, you are fine. 35-40% is a rounding error. Lower than that, and you do need to humidify the wood. Also, some guitars are much more sensitive and in danger of cracks than others, and that’s mostly related to the lightness of build.

[chitz]

My guitars sound best @ 35%.

But I don't let em stay there because I'm scart they might explode and burst into flames.

[yell03]

Originally Posted by themissal

Maybe you should curse the forum, and not thank us!

Seriously we educate each other about some things, but we also make each other neurotic with other things.

Ps 35%...if that’s the worst it gets in your house, you are fine. 35-40% is a rounding error. Lower than that, and you do need to humidify the wood. Also, some guitars are much more sensitive and in danger of cracks than others, and that’s mostly related to the lightness of build.

Thanks, makes me feel better.
Also, the laminate sides and back give me a little breathing room also.

35%, but the weather is in the 40s-50s, it will get a lot colder and drier, so better safe than sorry. I don't have to put it away, but at least the option is there. I have my trusty hygrometer to keep tabs on things.

Originally Posted by chitz

My guitars sound best @ 35%.

But I don't let em stay there because I'm scart they might explode and burst into flames.

They really sound great and I want to keep them that way. If it gets any lower than 35% I am prepared.

[Long Road Home]

I think you'll be happy with the Humidipaks (I use the Boveda packs, and they make the D'Addario branded ones).

One thing to be aware of is that it might take a little while to "condition" the new case, especially if it is wood, which can absorb a fair bit of moisture before it becomes stable at +/-50%.

Now that it has dipped down into the 30's at night around here, I also run a humidifier (an Essick MA12010, if that matters) in the same area that I keep my guitars. It is close to the HVAC return upstairs, so it does a pretty good job of keeping the room and, to a lesser extent the whole house in the 35-45% range, depending on the weather. I find that helps the Humidipaks do their magic and last longer.

They also do a good job of keeping the humidity in the cases close to 50% in the warmer, more humid times of the year.

[yell03]

Originally Posted by pax238

I think you'll be happy with the Humidipaks (I use the Boveda packs, and they make the D'Addario branded ones).

One thing to be aware of is that it might take a little while to "condition" the new case, especially if it is wood, which can absorb a fair bit of moisture before it becomes stable at +/-50%.

Now that it has dipped down into the 30's at night around here, I also run a humidifier (an Essick MA12010, if that matters) in the same area that I keep my guitars. It is close to the HVAC return upstairs, so it does a pretty good job of keeping the room and, to a lesser extent the whole house in the 35-45% range, depending on the weather. I find that helps the Humidipaks do their magic and last longer.

They also do a good job of keeping the humidity in the cases close to 50% in the warmer, more humid times of the year.

Thanks for the info, they just arrived, now I am just waiting on the case

[Arthur Blake]

Originally Posted by yell03

Thanks for the info, they just arrived, now I am just waiting on the case

Boveda makes a "case conditioner" humidipak for initial use. They are higher humidity to help avoid sucking the moisture out of the standard packs on the idea that a wood case will absorb about 2/3rds of the moisture released until they reach equilibrium.

[KenL]

I live in the High Rockies, and as soon as furnace season began the RH in the house fell to about 25%.

I wish I could keep my guitars out and handy, but it's just too dry up here, even in the warmer months. So they stay in their cases with Planet Waves humidifiers that I have to refill every 4th day.

I bought a good-sized humidifier for the house, and it has been running night and day now for a week, and the RH in the house is only up to 30%. But we have lots of wood (floors, ceiling, and the usual doors and woodwork) that is probably soaking it up; at least the floors have stopped creaking.

The humidifier, BTW, is a Vornado that I bought from Costco.com. I'm happy with it.

[yell03]

Originally Posted by Arthur Blake

Boveda makes a "case conditioner" humidipak for initial use. They are higher humidity to help avoid sucking the moisture out of the standard packs on the idea that a wood case will absorb about 2/3rds of the moisture released until they reach equilibrium.

Thanks for the info

Originally Posted by KenL

I live in the High Rockies, and as soon as furnace season began the RH in the house fell to about 25%.

I wish I could keep my guitars out and handy, but it's just too dry up here, even in the warmer months. So they stay in their cases with Planet Waves humidifiers that I have to refill every 4th day.

I bought a good-sized humidifier for the house, and it has been running night and day now for a week, and the RH in the house is only up to 30%. But we have lots of wood (floors, ceiling, and the usual doors and woodwork) that is probably soaking it up; at least the floors have stopped creaking.

The humidifier, BTW, is a Vornado that I bought from Costco.com. I'm happy with it.

My humidity seems to stay around 35%, never lower than 32% (so far) or higher than 40%.

I still might buy a whole house humidifier, I had one, but it stopped working.

[beninma]

OP I seem to be having the same issue with my D'addario Humidipaks that I started using about 2 weeks ago.

Not sure what's going on. How long should it take, to normalize? None of the packs feel dried out or anything like that but they are struggling to get the humidity in the cases up to where they claim they should be.

I keep seeing 35% in the case, sometimes I see 35% in the case when it's 40% in the room.

My cases shouldn't be dried out, they were living in a room that was 45% for the last 6 months till the winter hit.

I'm not sure how much wood is actually in my case. I have a Taylor hard case for my Taylor and a Gator ATA case for my Tele. Maybe the Taylor case has some wood in it but I'd be kind of surprised if the Tele did. The Tele is actually worse, the Taylor case seems like it's coming up closer to 40% range like it should.

I have a furnace mounted humidifier.. it is not actually that dry in my house, but if it hits 35% in the room I'd expect the Humidipaks to be able to maintain 40-45% in the case. It's not like it's 15% in the house. (Which it would be in the dead of winter without the furnace humidifier.)

[yell03]

Originally Posted by beninma

OP I seem to be having the same issue with my D'addario Humidipaks that I started using about 2 weeks ago.

Not sure what's going on. How long should it take, to normalize? None of the packs feel dried out or anything like that but they are struggling to get the humidity in the cases up to where they claim they should be.

I keep seeing 35% in the case, sometimes I see 35% in the case when it's 40% in the room.

My cases shouldn't be dried out, they were living in a room that was 45% for the last 6 months till the winter hit.

I'm not sure how much wood is actually in my case. I have a Taylor hard case for my Taylor and a Gator ATA case for my Tele. Maybe the Taylor case has some wood in it but I'd be kind of surprised if the Tele did. The Tele is actually worse, the Taylor case seems like it's coming up closer to 40% range like it should.

I have a furnace mounted humidifier.. it is not actually that dry in my house, but if it hits 35% in the room I'd expect the Humidipaks to be able to maintain 40-45% in the case. It's not like it's 15% in the house. (Which it would be in the dead of winter without the furnace humidifier.)

I have not measured in the case yet.

I most likely will do a whole house humidifier in the long run

[Sonics]

My understanding of the Humidipak system is that it's a maintenance system. That is, your guitar should already be in the ball-park with regards to humidification.

If you have a dry guitar, then use a damp sponge humidifier and check it everyday or every other day. If the sponge is dry after this period, then you re-dampen the sponge and repeat. Somewhere between a week and 10 days you will open the guitar case and the sponge will still be damp. At this point your guitar is correctly humidified, so remove the sponge and introduce the Humidipak.

No hygrometer is necessary, unless you insist...

[yell03]

Originally Posted by Sonics

My understanding of the Humidipak system is that it's a maintenance system. That is, your guitar should already be in the ball-park with regards to humidification.

If you have a dry guitar, then use a damp sponge humidifier and check it everyday or every other day. If the sponge is dry after this period, then you re-dampen the sponge and repeat. Somewhere between a week and 10 days you will open the guitar case and the sponge will still be damp. At this point your guitar is correctly humidified, so remove the sponge and introduce the Humidipak.

No hygrometer is necessary, unless you insist...

good info, thanks

[yell03]

Checked today, in case humidity was 44%, house 34%.

[Bluesidae]

Just picked up a humidifier. My guitar room is 12' by 12' and has French doors. RH is 40%. Guitars are hanging on the walls. So far, so good.