Guitar Humidification

The winter heating season is getting near and it is time to start thinking about the proper humidification of our beloved instruments.  This article is meant to make owners of wooden instruments aware of the dangers of the lack of proper humidification and some possible solutions to maintaining a safe level of humidity for their instruments.

The safe range for an instrument is 40% to 55% relative humidity which can be a difficult level to maintain in the coldest part of the winter in Michigan.  

Lack of proper humidification can lead to problems ranging from inconveniences such as sharp fret ends or too low an action resulting in buzzing to costly structural damage such as loosening of the bridge and braces and cracks in the top or back of the instrument.  

Pay attention to your instrument, it will tell you when it is drying out by the following symptoms:

Sharp fret ends:  This is one of the first signs that your instrument is getting dry and it is easy to catch because you can feel it when you play.  The wood of the fingerboard shrinks as it dries out but the metal frets do not causing them to stick out.  Some shrinkage of the fingerboard is normal as an instrument ages and sharp fret ends can be dressed down.  What we are more concerned with is a sudden onset of sharp fret ends.

Collapsed top:  When a guitar dries out the normally convex top becomes flat and eventually concave.  This condition can be checked by sighting across the guitar between the sound hole and the bridge by laying a straight edge across the guitar.

Lower action:  Sudden lower action and new buzzing caused by the bridge becoming lower or the neck pulling backwards.

Steps to keeping your instrument safe: 

1)   Invest in a hygrometer - You can get an inexpensive hygrometer at most hardware stores.  This helps you keep tabs on the humidity level in your guitar storage area.

2)   Invest in a Room Humidifier - I believe that it’s best to humidify the room that the guitar is kept in, not just the guitar. Many people use only the small sound hole humidifiers, and while these units do work they contain only a small amount of water and can be totally evaporated within a short period of time. These units should be checked and filled accordingly in areas of extreme cold and low humidity. I like the fact that you can set-and-forget the room humidifier and you can easily tell when it is low on water as most of them have clear reservoirs.

3) Keep your instrument cased - This can buffer your instrument from environmental changes and circulating warm air currents.