My music room smells like an old basement.

[WoodBlues]

It was strongly suggested to me to keep my guitars in a room that's humidified.
I got an humidifier and got the RH from 21% to 50%. Yay!

Now my office smells.... humid.

Do you guys have any tricks to avoid that?

[rmp]

a dehumidifier????

I know, I'm sorry, I'll let myself out..

[bufflehead]

Originally Posted by WoodBlues

I got an humidifier and got the RH from 21% to 50%. Yay!

For starts, dial that thing back to between 40% and 45%.

[Kyle215]

Is it an evaporative humidifier? The filters need to be changed every few weeks on those. Might need to clean the humidifier, too.

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by bufflehead

For starts, dial that thing back to between 40% and 45%.

That's the first thing I'd try.

[TTiimm]

Humidity doesn't have a smell.

Mold and mildew are what we actually smell and could be hiding in the filter.

Open a window and pull back the curtains occasionally? Mold and mildew don't like fresh air and sunlight.

Always do the easy and cheap thing first.

[peteathome]

As a new humidifier user too, I have to say that I haven't run into that issue. I keep mine set at 45%, and here in the upper midwest where it has been below zero quite a few times in the last month, it struggles to make 45% in my room, but it hasn't smelled that I noticed. I also have super hard water and while I'd prefer to use distilled water in there, I get tired of running to the grocery every few days so I just suck it up and burn through filters. I bet you could put some sort of scented oil in your water too to help with the rainforest smell, but I just burn incense.

[czgunner]

When I bought my house last summer with a basement, it was musty.
I bought an ozone generator and that killed all of it. Don't leave your guitars in the room. It kills anything organic and may damage wood.

[Brent Hutto]

I agree it is either incipient mold or some kind of minerals from the water you are likely smelling. We used vaporizers (steamers) instead of evaporators to minimize any chance of mold, to which I am allergic. The vaporizers are electricity hogs but provide the cleanest humidification.

[EZYPIKINS]

Quick trick for the smell. Ozium air sanitizer. Just a little squirt will do ya.

Yeah you may have over shot the mark a bit at 50%..

Do you have no air exchange in the room?

Should have air leaving the room as air enters. Otherwise you are trying to blow up a balloon.

[dnf777]

Old basements are good things.

Even could be a Guy Clark song.

But a shot of Ozium (and nowadays, Febreeze Air) should help.

[SalFromChatham]

I let the filters go too long before replacing them in my Evap40. About three years back, maybe further.

Pulled the filters out. Yikes. Shame on me. And yes… that smell.

Since then, I replace the filters often, and I use that bacteriostat capful in each after refill.

[rstaight]

Yes, the joys of correcting one problem only to create another. As suggested, check your filters and maybe some Febreze.

[musicman1951]

I use bacteriostat and find that changing the filters regularly, along with a quick wash with a little white vinegar added to the water helps.

[srick]

I hate to mention this, but any chance that you might have a roof leak and mold in the walls? Also, what's above this room? Is it adjacent to a bathroom where there might be a leak? How about any windows, are they tight? Sometimes you can figure it out by getting out a small stepladder and sniffing around the walls.

This stuff can blossom into more expense than you ever want to know, but ultimately, it has to be fixed.

Hopefully the simpler solutions above are all you need.