Discussion: Humidity and Instruments
It is that time of year in Chicago again. Soon the radiators will be clanking and snow will replace the rain. The air will be getting drier, and that means it is definitely time to humidify your instruments. We like to think humidifier season in Chicago runs roughly from beginning of October to the end of May. But, a solid wood instrument should be monitored (humidity-wise) throughout the year. Although all wood will be somewhat affected by humidity, instruments made with solid tops and instruments that are all solid wood will be affected most. The health of your instrument is a factor that is directly related to relative humidity, which is the amount of water the in the air at a given temperature. Different climates have very different relative humidity throughout the year: the southwest is often very dry with regularly low relative humidity, while Hawaii may have consistently higher relative humidity. But no matter where you live, at some point in the year almost everyone will need to address humidity (be it high or low) with their solid wood instruments. (Caveat: This is especially true if you go from one of the extreme climates to another. If your Ukulele has lived its whole life in Hawaii and you move to the desert in Arizona, or the sub zeroes of North Dakota, your instrument is in for a big shock and likely needs to be monitored and humidified.)
There are two very important tools you will need to make sure your instruments are correctly humidified.
The First tool is a humidifier. Not a room humidifier that you can buy at a pharmacy, but a specifically made instrument humidifier. (Both would be the best!) All humidifiers generally do the same thing: They store water to be released slowly into the air. Instrument humidifiers range in scope and price from the zero cost homemade "sponge-in-a-plastic-travel-soap-holder" to the two-in-one digital hygrometer/humidifier style that can cost as much as $75. There are plenty of well functioning humidifiers in the $15-$25 range. Generally an instrument humidifier will go in the sound hole of your instrument or sit inside the case. As the water from your humidifier "seeps" into the air and the case, the relative humidity in your case increases. This allows your instrument to draw the water it needs from the air. After a time, the humidifier will dry out and need to be refilled.
The Second is a hygrometer, A hygrometer is an device that measures the relative humidity in the air. The best place to keep a hygrometer is in an instrument's case. The hygrometer allow you to easily see if the relative humidity in and around the instrument is at the correct level. There is some debate about the correct level of humidity, and each instrument will have its own perfect spot. Generally though, the safe zone for musical instruments is between 45%-55% relative humidity.
Diagnosing some problems with humidity are easy and obvious, others are not so easy to see or understand. Instruments are made of many parts, some that respond to changes in humidity very quickly, and others that barely change at all. Most solid wood instruments are constructed in temperature and humidity controlled environments and will respond. And most musical instrument stores will have a well regulated humidity system to insure that instruments do not dry out too quickly. So when you take your instrument home from the shop, you can be very sure it has spent most of its life in the correct humidity range. When it leaves the shop it is in your hands, and a simple inexpensive tool can save you tons of time and money in the long run.
Some quick signs to help you with low humidity

* Metal frets stick out and scrape your fingers (neck and fingerboard wood is shrinking, the metal is not)
* Weather changes and all of a sudden your action is low and your guitar is buzzy (The top of the instrument is dipping)
* You can see the grain on the top more pronounced (if you run your fingers across the grain it may even feel bumpy)
* Obvious cracks (drastically low humidity)
* Bridge may begin separating from the top (again this is the end of the spectrum you don't want to be on)
* The obvious look at the hygrometer
* Finally a sure fire way to know if you should humidify: If you and your skin feel dry and need some moisture, your instrument probably does too.

Feel free to stop in the store with your instrument and we can help you assess what you'll need to keep your instrument happy.