sensitive to humidity changes

[mtdmind]

Are some of you finding some guitars more sensitive to humidity changes? I have a Guild all mahogany that soaks up moisture when I put a wet sponge in the case to the point where the string action gets raised. The action goes down from 7/64 to 6/64 at the bridge saddle after I "air it out" for afew days. Learning not to over humidify this one.

[abn556]

I just had two electrics with SS frets in the shop for fret sprout. Most of this happened before I started controlling the humidity. From my experience the drying of the air by the heaters in winter is worse for guitars than too much humidity. I try to keep my music room at 45%, but living in Houston when someone stands in the doorway for 10 minutes talking with the door open the humidity shoots way up.

[CharlieBman]

It really depends on how a guitar is built. I have an older Breedlove that I never took care of and never had any problems...but it's built like a small tank. On the other hand, I have a Martin classical guitar that lived through the same neglect and cracked in 2 places. I've gotten a little smarter since getting some better quality guitars and keep them all in a humidity controlled room that stays around 45% RH. Sounds like you may need to control your humidity level a little more.

[BlueBowman]

Originally Posted by CharlieBman

It really depends on how a guitar is built. I have an older Breedlove that I never took care of and never had any problems...but it's built like a small tank. On the other hand, I have a Martin classical guitar that lived through the same neglect and cracked in 2 places. I've gotten a little smarter since getting some better quality guitars and keep them all in a humidity controlled room that stays around 45% RH. Sounds like you may need to control your humidity level a little more.

Yep. IME, the lighter built the guitar, the more sensitive it is to changes. I have an extremely light built custom guitar that I swear goes out of tune if the AC from the vent blows on it! And I'm only half joking

[Mandobart]

I keep 25 wooden stringed instruments in my basement music room. Assorted fiddles, mandolins, ukulele, guitars, an upright bass. The relative humidity stays between 42% and 46%, and the temperature is maintained ~68 - 72 F. Pretty much all the instruments stay right in tune and stable action just hanging on the wall or on stands.

I go to a few jams each week bringing at least two instruments - my bass and something else. Sometimes we play inside, sometimes outside. The environment is always different than at my home.

I don’t find any one of them exhibiting any change in action or to need much in the way of retuning in its new environment.

[PassingThru]

I wonder how Woody Guthrie and Cisco Houston handled humidity? Also, how does Rambling Jack handle it. I always thought they just played them.

[Joseph Hanna]

Originally Posted by PassingThru

I wonder how Woody Guthrie and Cisco Houston handled humidity? Also, how does Rambling Jack handle it. I always thought they just played them.

Ha. It is my firm belief that humidity issues are all eye rolls, giggles, and a hardy traditionalist nod to wives' tales.


Until it isn't.



I have receipts wandering well over $1300.00 if that sheds a modicum of light on the subject.

[Bob Womack]

I've got one guitar, a Carvin electric, that has an extremely slim neck. I used to use it as my gigging guitar and felt like every time I pulled it out of the case I had to do a quick truss rod tweak. the first time it happened was at a river-side party in the heat and humidity of summer. Tweaked it for the gig and had to tweak again when I got it home.

Now it sits in its case in a climate controlled studio all year 'round. I'll pull it out for a session and there's a good chance the strings will either be down across the frets or so high that they make fretting hard. When I first got it I invested in a custom truss rod cover for it but it sits in the neck box unused because it has to be tweaked so often and it just saves time to leave it off. It seems to shift at least once per season.

Believe!

Bob

[Draft Guitar]

Most all of my dreads stay pretty well in tune through humidity shifts. My 000-15SM goes all out of whack with the slightest humidity change.

The best is my Martin D-222. It almost never goes out of tune.

[Mandobart]

Originally Posted by Draft Guitar

My 000-15SM goes all out of whack with the slightest humidity change.

I’m just lucky I guess. My 2021 000-15SM is just as stable as all the other instruments I have. It is almost the lightest guitar I have - the Sel-Mac copy is even lighter.

It seems that lighter, more responsive instruments could be more susceptible to changes in RH. But my old fiddles are if anything more stable than my guitars and mandolins.

[Draft Guitar]

Originally Posted by Mandobart

I’m just lucky I guess. My 2021 000-15SM is just as stable as all the other instruments I have. It is almost the lightest guitar I have - the Sel-Mac copy is even lighter.

It seems that lighter, more responsive instruments could be more susceptible to changes in RH. But my old fiddles are if anything more stable than my guitars and mandolins.

Who knows? I was surprised how sensitive it is, but I still like the guitar for fingerstyle, just have to spend some time tuning it before playing. I do keep it tuned down a full step, but it did that when I kept it at standard tuning as well.