I'm learning to humidify my guitar, need help.

[LeDave]

So I see these packs at Music Go Round, is there anything else I need and how do I use it? I am going to pick some up, I live in Minneapolis and the winters here are extremely dry and brutal. The weather can drop from 30 degrees to minus 30 in as quick as a day. This is the first winter my guitar and I together will face.

[Gabby84]

Originally Posted by LeDave

So I see these packs at Music Go Round, is there anything else I need and how do I use it? I am going to pick some up, I live in Minneapolis and the winters here are extremely dry and brutal. The weather can drop from 30 degrees to minus 30 in as quick as a day. This is the first winter my guitar and I together will face.

I live in New England, dry here in the winter. I use the boveda brand guitar packs. they make the ones you are looking at. as extra insurance, i use an oasis humidifier during the worst of the winter months in addition to the boveda packs in my hardshell case.

[LeDave]

I see this often while researching and am skeptical now.

[pagedr]

The Oasis soundhole humidifiers work better than the Humidipaks in my experience. Also haven't heard nearly as many horror stories of things leaking into guitars with the Oasis. You'll also want to invest in a couple hygrometers - one for the room you keep your guitar in, one to keep in the case. Knowing the humidity levels is half the battle.

[LeDave]

So I found these. From a review, shows mold on sponge. Is it safe to just soak the sponge with soap? Can you use any sponge with this? Thanks!

[Rockysdad]

First, you need a hygrometer, otherwise you'll not know where the relative humidity is at.
I've had one in the room, and one in each guitar case.
If you do a search here within the forum you'll find countless threads on humidification techniques.
I myself, used the wet sponges, in soap dish with holes drilled in the top, and the plastic holders that hang in the soundhole between the strings ( I lived in the desert in far west Texas, very dry. Don't need them anymore as I've moved to the Houston area where the relative humidity is great for guitars.
Do the search, everyone has their favorite methods. You'll soon see after reading a few of the threads.
Good luck.
Just saw you found the Music Nomad ones I was referring to,.... use ONLY distilled water!

[pickinray]

Hi Dave,

Here is a video that explains how the D'addario humidification system works:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QUBfEOGJ3g

The picture you showed is for the replacement packs. To start with, I recommend this:
https://www.daddario.com/products/ac...ipak-maintain/

You also might want to get a humidity sensor to go with it:

https://www.daddario.com/products/ac...rature-sensor/

Given that you will be in very dry conditions in the winter, you might also have to consider getting an external humidifer for the room where you keep your guitar. Otherwise, you might go through the humidpaks quickly and it will get expensive buying replacements. If I lived in a climate like yours, I would use a room humidifier in combination with the in-case humidifier.

A cheaper alternative to the humidpaks is a simple sponge-type soundhole humidifer like this:

https://www.daddario.com/products/ac...umidifier-pro/

These also work well. The only disadvantage is that you have to manually add water to it, probably every day in your climate. To keep your guitar healthy, you want to maintain the relative humidity at around 45-55%.

[LeDave]

Thanks so much! I'll go with the sponge method.

[pickinray]

Originally Posted by LeDave

So I found these. From a review, shows mold on sponge. Is it safe to just soak the sponge with soap? Can you use any sponge with this? Thanks!

Some of the humidifiers come with special "hydrophilic" sponges which supposedly hold more water, but you can also use a regular sponge. The key is to not over-wet the sponge. After you hydrate the sponge, you want to squeeze out as much water as you can before you put it in the holder and into your guitar. You just want the sponge to be slightly damp. This will help to prevent mold. Just use distilled water. No soap or anything else.

[jcpharm]

i have used all the ones mentioned already and here's my take:

D'addario sponge unit:
Pros:
- inexpensive
Cons:
- you'll need a tad bit of headroom in your case or else the top of the case will push down on it too much
- the sponge dries out fast so you will be re-wetting it every 4-7 days depending on the RH in your geographical area (dry winter in Northeast i was doing it every 5-7 days)

D'addario Humidipaks (or Boveda packs - pretty much the same thing):
Pros:
- set it and forget it (put in pouches: 2 in soundhole and 1 for case headstock) and only need to replace every 2-4 months depending on RH of your area
- even cases with little to no headroom there is nothing really sticking out of the soundhole to prevent closing the case
Cons:
- probably most expensive since the paks are $2-3/pak and you need to change every 3 months or so so that can be $40-50 per year

Oasis:
Pros:
- seem to last longer between refills (1-3 wks depending on the RH in your area)
- middle ground expense ($20 for the unit...water refill is free but may need new crystals every year?)
Cons:
- still need to refill regularly
- will stick out of the soundhole so tight cases may not close all the way (for example, i have a Martin 630 hardcase for my 000-28 and it won't close all the way with this kind so i have to use the humidipak/boveda system)

this doesn't take into account the possibility of leaks/defects in the product itself....assumes everything works as expected. in terms of humidification i don't see huge plus/minuses as to which works better. FWIW, i use the humidipaks for my Martin and Oasis for my other two guitars.

[aeisen93]

I've been using Dampits for about 10 years... They seem to work well... I checked Musicians Friend and Guitar Center, they are both sold out online... but here's a link so you can learn more about it...

https://www.musiciansfriend.com/acce...idifier/h94679

[Rixtoy]

Some lesser traveled options . . .

[Jeremy]

Originally Posted by LeDave

I see this often while researching and am skeptical now.

The early Humidipaks exhibited those issues. These days it's the exception, not the rule. I've been using them for 10 years without incident. Just don't use them for more than a few months at a time, check them periodically, and don't "recharge" them - they're meant to be single use for a finite period of time.

[Rev Roy]

Originally Posted by LeDave

I see this often while researching and am skeptical now.

How old was that review? The leak issue was basically solved long ago. Even the pouches you keep the packs in are now leak proof. I’ve been using them for years with no problems. If you used them according to the manufacturers recommendations you probably won’t have any problems either.

The only down side, as others have noted, is the cost. That’s why I recycle mine twice before tossing them. The manufacturer doesn’t recommend it...so if they fail it’s on me. But so far so good...

[Silly Moustache]

Originally Posted by LeDave

So I found these. From a review, shows mold on sponge. Is it safe to just soak the sponge with soap? Can you use any sponge with this? Thanks!

I generally like D'addario/Planet Waves products but I bought one of these and a Music Nomad version, and found the latter far better designed and more effective, however, it is recommended that only distilled water is used, and rehydrated regularly.

It is also important to have a hygrometer in the case too.