The Chamber of Death!

[woodrat]

Here is a great demonstration of how low humidity can spell death for a guitar....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eusLzn9ZhCE

John

[Kev3]

A weekend in my shed at the moment would fix that !

[ozziebluesman]

My shed is like Kev's shed! No guitar building will be happening here for a few weeks except Kev and I may have a competition to see who can achieve the highest RH reading We are having some much need rain for the catchment though

Cheers

Alan

[woodrat]

Hi Alan and Kev....we could use some of that moisture down here....all the lawns are crispy dry and the dams are very low....I hope some of that monsoon weather gets down south....

Cheers

John

[Kamusur]

Its that bloody dry here the weeds are struggling to survive Its a scalloped top guitar John.

Steve

[Tod Gilding]

That video surprised me John. If that is what can happen at 7% with wind after ..What 7 day's ? then we have no problems here, I can't remember more than a few hours under 50% for years on the mid nth coast our problems seem to be the reverse

Thanks for sharing

[Taffy Evans]

It's crazy here. We had 50mm rain over the weekend, and so I set up he dehumidifier but did not get a chance to use it, as by Tuesday I was spraying as it was down to 50% MC. Two weeks before that I was adding moisture to the shop.

[Tod Gilding]

Hey Kev, You Don't leave anything to chance do you . I haven't seen that many hygrometers in one place ever

[simso]

90 percent humidity, what the heck,

Have you got leaks in your roof and the heater going

[Tod Gilding]

Steve, those of us that live close to the pacific ocean ( I'm about 200 -300 mtrs ) we live with high humidity constantly where I live @ South West Rocks I Have The Pacific Ocean 300m to the East also 200 m to the north and the Macleay river (where it meets the pacific ocean) 400 mtrs north I have no hope

[simso]

Hey Tod, I know exactly where south west rocks is, my first few years after leaving home (over 20 yrs ago actually closer to 30) I lived at Nambucca Heads

Surprising your humidity levels, but understandable.

I lived in the Northern Territory for a few years as well (Katherine), you've got almost there type of weather, completely useless, and mould grows over everything

[Kev3]

Hey Kev, You Don't leave anything to chance do you . I haven't seen that many hygrometers in one place ever

nope ! if somethings worth doin' - it's worth doin' obsessively !

[Taffy Evans]

Hi Kev, you got all the gear to tell you what the weathers like, but how do you control it.
I look out the window, fine day [its dryish], if I'm sweating its humid. Only joking, I've only got four of those gizmo's.

[Kev3]

Thats the problem Taffy - I can't control it - I just have this strong desire to torture myself watching nature laugh at me

Seriously - not that paranoid, half of those belong to Alan the ozziebluesman plus the psychrometer and data logger I borrowed from an air-con systems guy. I got a bit carried away with trying to see how accurately I could calibrate these things and chart systematic changes between them.

[Taffy Evans]

An instrument taking on moisture [within reason] is less damaging. I was in Alice Springs NT for 30 years an declined a couple of commissions from Sydney and the like as I thought my guitars would suffer in their environment. Often the meter would not register as the moisture content was so low. When I had the same opportunity from people in Katherine and Darwin, and could monitor any changes through them I started sending instruments to these more humid environments.

I had no comebacks of a structural nature and only one comment that a Martin undersaddle piezo pickup would not work up there, I traced that to the fact that slight swelling of the bridge pinched the saddle too tight and caused a bad contact. I eased the fit of the saddle no problems.

There was a major moisture problem with the guitar in Katherine. During a flood the owner put the guitar in its case on top of the wardrobe, but the water got that high and the guitar was floating. Even though the back and top had separated from the rims the owner wanted it repaired, so I said I would and it was sent to Charters Towers. that was a big job.

[Kev3]

There was a major moisture problem with the guitar in Katherine. During a flood the owner put the guitar in its case on top of the wardrobe, but the water got that high and the guitar was floating. Even though the back and top had separated from the rims the owner wanted it repaired, so I said I would and it was sent to Charters Towers. that was a big job.

well - now I've got stupidly high RH - maybe I should aim for an underwater guitar build ! Or perhaps one purely for use in the sauna

[Allen]

I've hit 98% a few times this year in my shed. And when that's in the high 30's it's mighty uncomfortable.

My dry room has a new dehumidifier running 24/7 and keeps it just perfect. Had to plumb it in permanently as I was getting tired of having to empty the reservoir out twice a day.

[charangohabsburg]

Kevin, I hope you have not glued up your wooden hygrometer strip with fish glue, or it may "de-calibrate".

BTW, you have a nice hobby... collecting hygrometers.