Official Luthiers Forum!

Strangely enough, my basement shop, which is tough to keep dehumidified during the wet seasons, makes it easy to maintain a nice balance during the dry heated season. Not sure why. Having a space that is really well-balanced is crucial and you've GOT to take measures to keep things stable.

Buy a good portable fan-forced humidifier and keep it in the shop. Change the wicking material when it needs it. I have a nice portable unit, but it requires filling the stupid reservoires constantly. Due dilligence will help you there. You have to stay on top of it.

If you've got some serious cash to put toward one, there are humidification units that you can connect a water line to, that run constantly with the use of a humidistat. I believe David Berkowicz may have one of these.

As far as the other direction, I have an LG dehumidifier that connects to a condensate pump so I never need to empty it. Those kinds of things will help immensely. My shop has been a constant 45% since getting that unit.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Sounds like your problem is the reverse of mine. Here in East Texas our humidity is opressive in the summer. I have a de-humidifer and an AC installed in a well insulated and sealed room I built over my main shop(12'X 24') and I hold it at 45-50 %. That has cured my humidity problems but has not done my utility bills any good! I understand your frustration. I tried to ignore humidity but found myself doing lots of repairs . One Christmas I brought a completed body in the house for the night. The next morning the back was sucked in about a half an inch! I had to replace it. That`s what made me decide to build "the room"!

Mid 30's should not have caused a loud crack. Yes, it is low, but if you seasoned the wood and built at 42-45%, it will survive at 35%.

Maybe you built when it was a bit too high?

at any rate, the only way to control is to humidify when dry, and de-humidify when wet. Simple <bg>. Vapor barrier is the key, as well as a tight shop area. If you work with open windows on warm days, forget it. This business requires sacrifices...

You may want to stop working until you can close off a portion of your basement and make it into a shop. Building instruments in a poorly controlled environment will lead to nothing but more and more frustration. Take the time to make yourself a "shop" and control it.

A "whole house" humidifier is what you're using also, correct? Little table top gadgets won't cut it at all. You need a large console machine. Sears has decent units at reasonable prices that are also pretty quiet. My home takes about 10 gallons a day in its humidifier in the depths of winter; my shop can use up about 5 gallons on a cold, cold day. You need a large enough humidifier that can put out the numbers when needed.Mario38675.5128125

I bought a commercial de-humifidier for summer months and it has a guage that automatically starts and stops based on humidity. Think I paid $600 on eBay but it is a $1,200 unit.

For winter I have real problem as humidity will drop to 10% and as I am in the cellar, I dont think the house humifidier is working for me.

Anyone know of brands that are console or portable that hook to a water line??

Back in my "collector" days, I had the HVAC company install one of those whole house units that connects to your water line. Worthless, totally worthless...at full scream it still couldn't get the house above 35% in the dead of winter.

I eventually had to decide that my basement office would be the ticket, and bought a Holmes unit. It'll keep the humidity ok during all but the coldest days...but I fill it constantly.

When I start building my kit, I'm planning on doing exactly what Don (and now Mario) has suggested. Build a dedicated shop area, and keep it properly humidified. All that said, WHAT IS the exact proper humidity level to build at????

Bill

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Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

45%
I think that's about what we all shoot for.

WHAT IS the exact proper humidity level to build at????

42-47%

By "whole house" I meant a console humidifier that can handle a couple thousand square feet. I didn't mean those units that go onto the furnace's plenum. I agree those suck...

Rich, any unit can be connected to a water line. There are kits available at any hardware store for connecting those furnace units, or for connecting the ice makers and such. Get the one that has a float, needle valve and lines, and you're off and running. $20 gets you connected. If you go this route, build an overflow into it, too. Just install a line at the top of the holding tank or whatever and run a hose to the nearest drain. If possible...

Mario38675.6027083333

I use one of the Kenmore console humidifiers from Sears like Mario is talking about and it works great in my upstairs bedroom shop. On the coldest days where the heat's running constantly, I have to add about 4-5 gallons every day. That was a pain at first, but it just got to be part of my morning routine before heading to work.

I think I'm going to buy another one for the living area downstairs, which is where I am whenever I'm not building, just because it's more comfortable and better for my sinuses when the air's not so dry.

In the summertime Arkansas is pretty humid, but the AC usually takes care of the humidity well enough to keep it below 50% RH.

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Jonathan Kendall, Siloam Springs AR

Todd,
I also use one of the sears console units like the other talk about. I'm in a situation where I have to add humidity all year around. They work pretty well and typically last a couple of years for me at least.

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Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com

If the guitar's for you, and not for sale, I'd keep it. You'll now learn to repair a crack, and you'll have a long term test mule for the effects of humidity swings. Use it for educational purposes. Besides, a dry top in tension sounds better than a swollen wet one, so this one will think it is dry most of the time. If it gets bad at any point, replace it then....

If you're selling it, then yes, new top, no question...

Around here I remove up to 4 gallons of water from my shop in the summer and add up to 4 gallons in the winter. In my house I do have one of those furnace humidifiers and even in our extreamly dry winters I can keep the house above 38%. Windows are wet mind you and I have the furnace set for continuous run.

The water required to maintain this level of humidity will drop in the enxt few days. Once the entire house and its contents reaches the RH you want, everything acts as a buffer; all your clothes in the closets, the beds, the carpets, the woods, furniture, everything. So, while it may seems to take a lot of water right now, the usage should drop then stabilize.

By "warm, dry place", they mean the environment that it was built in! Bring your humidity back up, or yes, you will hear that cracking sound....