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I know there has been a good amount of threads on the subject in the past, but was just wondering if there were any new room humidifiers out there that guys have tried recently.
My humidifier crapped out on me at the end of last year and I see the humidity levels in the room starting to get into the 30s. I've got a medium sized room, maybe 15×12. Hoping to find one that will ease another winter of worry.
Thanks in advance!
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11-13-2018 12:51 PM
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Just wanna throw this out there. For those who own their own home, whole-house humidifiers are quite reasonably priced. (They are pretty simple devices.) And if you are skilled/experienced in such things, you can install one yourself. (But if you are not, don't try.) And you never again have the constant task of filling a humidifier with water.
Aprilaire Model 700 Whole House Humidifiers | Sylvane
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Has anyone else checked these out?
For Wood Instruments - Boveda(R) Official Site
I do a lot of traveling, so I can't rely on just an in-home humidifier. They gave me a few packets to check out 2 NAMM's ago and I've had great results with them since.
PK
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I'm 67 and have never used a humidifier, is that not crazy? Been playing since I was 10 yrs old, that would be 1961. I can't count the guitars over the years and the weather conditions they've endured and to my knowledge I haven't seen any affect not having a humidifier has caused, don't even know if there was such a thing as a humidifier in the day or maybe I was just lucky?
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This is actually a GREAT topic!
Our babies need moisture.
I use a large Essick unit. Avoid the ultrasonic type. Get the one that uses a wick. Change the wick once a month for $13. You will be happy with this one.
https://aircareproducts.com/humidifier-831000.html
These units are easy to fill. And thats important because if you have forced hot air and returns in the room you are supplying moisture to, you will pump alot of moisture into the air. In the middle of the winter, I am pumping 6 gallons of water out of the unit each day. Two 3 gallon bucket fulls every day is all it takes. With this unit, you simply fill up the bucket and pour it into the front of the unit. Set the humidistat to 45 degrees and forget it. Cant be easier.
If I sealed off the return vent and reduced the airflow out of the supply vent in the Guitar room, I would probably use less water. I might try that this year.
Joe D
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True!!!
Originally Posted by Max405
I just meant it wasn't a very sexy topic. I appreciate the response, Joe. It looks like that unit is a real humdinger. That's a pretty good amount of water. I have closed the vent in the room where I keep my few guitars. I gotta believe it helps, but the room does get cold.
Btw, did you receive a PM I sent? Not sure it went thru.
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That unit is very simple and effective. Originally Posted by DMgolf66
I will check my PM. I've received quite a few PM's in the past couple of weeks. Probably more than I can keep up with!
JD
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Here in AZ we don't use a furnace, and we're off the grid and don't want to leave a humidifier running, so....
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Joe, Originally Posted by Max405
Did you see this?
WARNING : This product can expose you to chemicals including benzene, which is known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. For more information go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov.
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Always fascinating to see the threads here and on woodworking sites about the horror winter's low humidity.
In western Oregon, we're reversed. Our summers are very dry with lower humidity, and winters are very high humidity. Outside humidity right now is 53%, a low figure for this time of year.
I don't worry about my wonderful expensive chunks of cast iron on my big woodworking tools in the summer. But in winter, if the shop isn't pretty sealed and heated, they'll rust immediately.
Different places, eh?
Neil
Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
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I don’t know if it's in the antibacterial additive or what just be careful...
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Florida has not banned or generated consumer warnings that Cali has, yet we have similar cancer rates. I don't think I'd trust their warnings as a barometer for whether or not a product is safe. But I don't live there and I do not have to pay attention to those warnings. Originally Posted by wintermoon
At any rate, I use two O-Cell-O sponges in a tray full of water to hydrate my git storage... maybe I should check to see if Cali has banned O-Cell-O sponges? Nah definitely not! :-)
Map of cancer rates in the United States - Business Insider
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When I made a trip cross country I needed to keep my guitar from drying out in the desert.
I always used distilled water but I ran out. We were staying in a lodge in the hills of Colorado so I used tap water. We didn't drink the water.
A few days later I opened the case to be greeted with the smell of dead fish. It was the humidifier.
Not knowing what I was going to do I shook out the excess water put the whole thing in a coffee cup and boiled it in the hotel microwave. I did this about 6 times. A couple of years later I still have a slight odor but it is ok.
The lesson I learned is to only use distilled water.
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We don't need humidifiers down here on the third coast, neither winter nor summer, nor the two weeks making up spring and autumn. Dehumidifiers, yes, now and then. When we have a dry spell the humidity sometimes gets below 50%, but not for long, and not much below. The catchphrase is "It's not the heat, it's the humidity". And the humidity is always present, so it would be harder to sell humidifiers here than to sell refrigerators to Eskimos.
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I like them because they control humidity in both directions. They will either give off moisture or capture it depending on the humidity level. Initially, though, I was going through them about every two weeks, far more frequently than what Boveda advertises (I live in the southwestern part of the U.S. - very dry most of the year). So, I called them and they told me that it is best to first "season" the case interior and instrument with their 72% packets instead of the 49% packets for a couple of weeks and then move on to the 49% packets. The case and instrument will take on the needed moisture during the initial two week period. And, they also suggested using door and window sealant foam tape that you buy at the hardware store to line the interior lip of the case lid, so that the case is somewhat air tight. Both suggestions helped extend the frequency between packet exchanges. Originally Posted by paulkogut
I also like the Oasis humidifiers. They come in a sound hole configuration that sits inside the guitar between the strings and a case configuration that's appropriate for archtop guitars with f holes only. And, they make two different types of humidifiers in those configurations; one that provides a normal amount of moisture and one that provides a larger amount of moisture for drier conditions. I put a case humidifier by the headstock and one by the guitar body in the case. Over the long run, they are cheaper to use than the Boveda packets because you just refill them with distilled water, but a refill doesn't last as long as the Boveda packet. And, they don't absorb excessive moisture with higher humidity levels.
And, if you have a number of guitars and want to monitor the humidity (and temperature) levels inside their cases, I find the SensorPush monitor very handy. It's a small device that sits inside the case that transmits the levels via a WiFi connection to an app on your smartphone. I have found them to be more reliable and more accurate than the similar D'Addario Humiditrak devices.
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This reminds me, I better go check the case humidifiers.
Thanks John
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Another thing to remember with the Oasis humidifiers is that you've got to replace the crystals when they fall below the required level needed to humidify the case. Originally Posted by Bill Eisele
I just got a replacement bag of crystals from Oasis, and I emptied out the old crystals, and filled the containers with the new crystals.
I leave the humidifiers out of the case during the summer, because Oasis said they can do some damage to your guitar if water leaks out.
Now that the heat is blasting again, I've got to refill them with distilled water after two days, which is a PITA with three guitars, but it's gotta be done. You've got to be careful not to overfill them with distilled water, because that can cause the crystals to spill out. Oasis says it's essential to maintain the exact amount of crystals that you had when you first bought the unit. They include a measuring spoon for the crystals in the replacement kit. I picked one up for only six bucks.
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Here in Vancouver, BC the weather is fairly kind to guitars. Humidity doesn't get crazy high in the summer so just leaving the guitars out of the case periodically (playing them and keeping them around during practice sessions seems to do it) is enough in that season, spring/fall are mild and only require a minimum of common sense, so that just leaves winter.
In the winter I keep any non-laminate guitar in its case together with some sort of humidifier...nothing fancy. I have an Ameritage case for my main carved archtop and it has the storage pockets for humidifiers; I just picked up one of those magnetic-tube-with-clip type humidifiers for another carved guitar that I keep stored upright in a Mono Vertigo gig bag...I plan to sew a little piece of fabric into the gig bag so that I can always keep this magnetic tube type humidifier in there (the magnetic part includes a clip, hence the idea for a piece of fabric to attach it to). I suspect that guitars kept in gig bags are the ones that are not as well humidified and I was pleased to discover these magnetic-tube-with-clip type humidifiers for this application (although not the exact intended application).
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I've been doing the sponge /distilled water deal in the case pocket for my too large collection for years. It is a major PIA for me. Also the low humidity levels in my home (gas forced air heat) is uncomfortable in general and has had effects on the comfort and health of my family and I. Also, the office where I work has very low humidity which exacerbates the situation for me.
I'm ready to bite the bullet and have a humidifier installed on my heating system and be done with it.
Any recommendations on brands are welcome. I wont attempt it on my own for several reasons.
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I ordered one of these and paid for the two day shipping should arrive tomorrow. Evap40 Evaporative Humidifier – Vornado
I think I may need two to really do the job here.
I am in a small 2 bedroom raised ranch. The music room is in the lower level (700 sq feet). Upper level is closer to 900 sq feet. I have older small humidifier running. It's 9 degrees F at the moment and my humidity is at 30. I guess should go and try and find my case humidifiers.
A whole house system humidifier does not seem to be an option here. I have one of those new compact gas forced air units in the attic, with a pull down stair case. I no longer have the strength and flexibility to move around up there myself. I talked with a friend who works in the HVAC industry. He recommended against it.
I find it difficult buying anything these days. Seems all to often you go on line and read unhappy reviews about product failures, noise, leaks, and performance worse than expected.
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Do you know what happens if the crystals are not maintained properly? Do you get over humidification? Originally Posted by sgcim
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Joe, I was wondering how long you have been using this. (I put a post up today in this thread, indicating a problem with a different AirCare product. I was reluctant to order another AirCare product. I assume some of there products must be OK. It seems to be the main brand stocked at retail stores.) Originally Posted by Max405
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I feel for those of you in the northern climes, but I can't quite reach you. Down here, the temperature this week has ranged from 45 (brrr!) to 61, mostly in the 50s. And (gasp!) the humidity went below 50%, barely, for 2 hours on Monday. I've had to put my shorts and flipflops away temporarily, and even wore a jacket a couple of times when going outdoors. Actually, we got colder earlier, and had some frost in the far northern suburbs. A freeze warning is panic time down here.
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The directions page says that "there should always be .3cc's of crystals in the humidifier. Originally Posted by DanielleOM
Too few crystals will leave liquid water sloshing around inside the humidifier.
Too many crystals will over absorb water, reducing the evaporation rate."
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.....Ugh!
Left last Thursday night to head to Florida for a few days to celebrate Dad's 75th. Left NJ without leaving humidifiers on and left my ES-125 out of its case. Returned home Sunday afternoon and humidity was 21%. I picked up the guitar and started playing and was getting buzzing on more than a couple stings and frets down the neck.
I've got the humidity back up to over 40%, but it doesn't seem that much better. Any suggestions other than just waiting a few days with a stable humidity level?
Thanks in advance
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