Guitar Collector Forum

I hear a lot about humidifiers for acoustic guitars, but am ashamed to admit that my modest collection of Martin and Taylor guitars just lives in the "spare room", with the heating turned down in that room.

Should I be raising the humidity of the room, or putting humidifiers in each guitar? I vaugley understand that I should not let the wood 'dry out' too much, but beyond that it's a mystery to me. Is it really important for 1960s -to-date guitars, or is it just older vintage guitars that need humudifiers? Can I measure the humidity in the room, and if so, what is a good humidity (and temperature) for keeping guitars in good condition?

Any advice greatfully received!

B

Taylor give the following advice on humidity and guitars...


See here for full pdf document from Taylor guitars: http://www.taylorguitars.com/global/pdf ... difier.pdf

So... unless you live in a climate that has naturally high humidity and no need for heating, get a humidifier!

I've been looking at the Planet Waves guitar humidifier... looks a bit more "user-friendly" than the long tube types, but would it need topping up more often?

If you've got a number of guitars in storage (rather than in regular use), then you might be better off buying a room humidifier for your guitar room instead of guitar humidifiers in each guitar's body or case. Room humidifiers have much more water capacity and you don't need to go around refreshing individual guitar humidifiers.

The most important thing though is to know what the humidity level is... either within the guitar (case) or within the room. You can get a hygrometer for measuring humidity for a few bucks. (And I beleive Planet Waves have reacently started selling a new guitar one that fits in the soundhole? Anyone tried these??)

(But room humidifiers still need maintenance! Tehy can get slimy growth on the casing if you don't clean them)

JB

Thanks... it looks like I need to do a bit more research before I start buying humidifiers!

First step - get a humidity merasuring instrument

Quality guitars need controlled humidity! Don't skimp on this, or you'll regret it... maybe not soon, but one day you'll get your favourite guitar out of its case and discover it's not quite what it was. At best, the action will change, but at worst you can get frets lifting and damage to the finish. In severe cases you can even get cracks - especially if you have a wood-burning stove and like your house hot! Wood-burners are renouwned for drying out the air... and your guitars.

To be honest, most of it really depends on the weather where you live. Guitars are vulnerable to sudden changes in humidity, so if you live some place where the humidity fluctuates, like I do, I would definitely recommend using a humidifier. I use an Aprilaire humidifier, and have had great results with that.