cheap diy humidifier solution

spookelele

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So today, I ordered a Pono (yey!)... and I'm going to need a humidifier, because it's winter, and it's dry. But it seems to me that water is so low tech, that I should be able to make something without spending much money.

In a nutshell, we want water that doesn't leak, but evaporates right?

I see people using sponges/foam on youtube, and that seems less than ideal to me. Sponges can leak, and in order for them not to leak, they have to be partly dry, which is working against the goal of putting water in.

So, I think the water holding material to use would be sodium polyacrylate. It's a kind of plastic that absorbs water and locks it in. I think this is what oasis uses but I guess only they'd know for sure.

But, you know what else uses it? Diapers. It's also used in floral gel, water crystals, "smelly jelly", and "water balz". All of those are cheap, and easy to find at Michaels, ebay, or amazon if you can't find a new parent to bum a diaper from. When you water it, it swells, and when it dries it shrinks.

You don't want loose bits of water crystals wandering around, so you need to contain it. But you'll need to re-water it when it dries out. So... put the gel/crystals in a tea strainer ball, or a nylon stocking and tie it off so you don't have to sew. If you need to re-water, just sit it in a cup of water for 5 minutes, and shake off any excess water.

But, you still don't want any of this touching anything in your case because it's still "wet" and you want to protect your stuff.

So.. there's this material called Tyvek. It's used for lots of things, but most familiar is for wrapping houses as a water barrier. The stuff is water proof, but breathes water vapor. It's how your house keeps water out while still letting things dry so the wood doesn't rot out. It's also tear resistant.

Sounds perfect right? Unless you know a home builder, it's kind of expensive to buy at like Home Depot, which does sell it.

But.. do you know who else uses it? The US post office. (other countries probably have similar) They have free envelopes that are made out of tyvek and you should be able to find them in the lobby, or near the self-shipping kiosks. It feels like slippery paper, but isn't paper.

So, put it all together: wet crystals, inside mesh, inside tyvek envelope = next to free humidifier that holds alot of water, doesn't leak, but still evaporates. You can make it however big or small you need it to be.

All the pieces are non-organic so it should also discourage mold, and if it does get funky, you can make another one for next to free.
 
Good, creative thinking, yes.

But, I've never understood why people bother with instrument humidifiers.

First, they only do their job if you keep the instrument in its case. As soon as you open the case, and take out the instrument to play, even if only for a short while, you are subjecting the wood to a (potentially) rapid change in humidity. Why have an instrument at all if you need to keep it locked away in a case until the weather changes?

Second, you need to open the case to check the humidity level every few days, and to replenish the supply of water. You do have a hygrometer in there as well, right? Otherwise, what's the point? Again, just the constant, required maintenance of the humidifier risks damage to the instrument by disturbing the environment inside the case.

You would be surprised to know exactly how fast a dry room will suck all the moisture out of wood that has been humidified, even when the temperature is exactly the same. The bigger the humidity difference, the faster the change/greater the risk. Right here where I am, we just went through a January cold snap. The ambient humidity two days ago was 20%. Now it's back up to 40%. An instrument humidifier could well keep the level at 60 or 70% inside the case, but I would not dare to open it until ambient was within 10% of that!

No, instrument humidifiers are really only helpful for short-term insurance when you are shipping an instrument to a different climate (or travelling with one). They are no good for "crack insurance" on an instrument you play in a climate with fluctuating humidity levels. The only solution there is a room humidifier (or better yet, whole-house climate control).

I'm sure someone will say "I use instrument humidifiers and never had a problem". That is not a meaningful rebuttal, as you would be attempting to prove a negative. It is safer to use no humidifier at all than to artificially increase the humidity far beyond the ambient level. And, of course, every piece of wood is individual, like a snowflake. Some will shrink and expand many times without cracking, others will not - with or without a humidifier.
 
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But, I've never understood why people bother with instrument humidifiers.

Hmm.. to be honest, although I've thought about it, I don't know. I like tinkering though, and if I can make one for pretty much free and it does nothing, I've lost nothing.

But the conclusions I came to were:
1) If I forget to fill it, and it dries out, I'm no worse off than if I didn't have it at all.
2) It can't really hurt as long as the water doesn't get out of it's container in liquid form.
3) If I feel better by doing it, and it's free, that's a win situation even if it's just mental.
 
Hmm.. to be honest, although I've thought about it, I don't know. I like tinkering though, and if I can make one for pretty much free and it does nothing, I've lost nothing.

But the conclusions I came to were:
1) If I forget to fill it, and it dries out, I'm no worse off than if I didn't have it at all.
2) It can't really hurt as long as the water doesn't get out of it's container in liquid form.
3) If I feel better by doing it, and it's free, that's a win situation even if it's just mental.

I understand, but my point was that it actually can cause more damage than not using one at all. Ultimately, it's up to you. I did like the creativity and ingenuity of your thinking!
 
I use a sponge in a short piece of vinyl tubing that I drill with holes. Put a cork in one end and a string on the other end. Soak in a glass of hot water. Shake out the excess and dry it off with a towel. Then put it in your instrument. I re-wet mine once a week. So far I have not seen any water spots inside and I do check for them. I think humidifying a solid bodied instrument does make a difference and I can even tell when mine is starting to sound "dry". My laminates don't get himidifiers, especially since they do not get cased. My one good solid bodied uke is always in it's case. You could probably use the vinyl tubing with the water crystals as well.
 
I had meant this to be a conceptual thing, because there's so many ways to implement this to suit what you're trying to do with it. But I'm concluding that it will be better for alot of people to have a visual example for ideas on how to implement it.

I will try to make a video this weekend of my current solution, and how I made it because describing it is hard, but seeing it will make perfect sense.

I'm using a 5 hour energy bottle, a 5 cent pipe screen, a diper, and a piece of tyvek envelope.
It's not nearly as ghetto as it sounds... and the finished project is pretty clean and tidy.

It sits in the body with the water part inside the body suspended between the c/e strings by the cap.

I guess wait for the video if you can't visualize it, but it's pretty slick for a DIY, I think.
 
Good, creative thinking, yes.

But, I've never understood why people bother with instrument humidifiers.

First, they only do their job if you keep the instrument in its case. As soon as you open the case, and take out the instrument to play, even if only for a short while, you are subjecting the wood to a (potentially) rapid change in humidity. Why have an instrument at all if you need to keep it locked away in a case until the weather changes?

Second, you need to open the case to check the humidity level every few days, and to replenish the supply of water. You do have a hygrometer in there as well, right? Otherwise, what's the point? Again, just the constant, required maintenance of the humidifier risks damage to the instrument by disturbing the environment inside the case.

You would be surprised to know exactly how fast a dry room will suck all the moisture out of wood that has been humidified, even when the temperature is exactly the same. The bigger the humidity difference, the faster the change/greater the risk. Right here where I am, we just went through a January cold snap. The ambient humidity two days ago was 20%. Now it's back up to 40%. An instrument humidifier could well keep the level at 60 or 70% inside the case, but I would not dare to open it until ambient was within 10% of that!

No, instrument humidifiers are really only helpful for short-term insurance when you are shipping an instrument to a different climate (or travelling with one). They are no good for "crack insurance" on an instrument you play in a climate with fluctuating humidity levels. The only solution there is a room humidifier (or better yet, whole-house climate control).

I'm sure someone will say "I use instrument humidifiers and never had a problem". That is not a meaningful rebuttal, as you would be attempting to prove a negative. It is safer to use no humidifier at all than to artificially increase the humidity far beyond the ambient level. And, of course, every piece of wood is individual, like a snowflake. Some will shrink and expand many times without cracking, others will not - with or without a humidifier.

I don't agree with you.

A relatively dry (10-20%) room will, in fact, dry an instrument out but it takes time for that to occur. If a person keeps their instrument humidified in a case, gets it out to play for a while, and then replaces it in the case with a humidifier, chances are slim to none that the instrument will crack due to dryness.

I assume that you live in Oregon which I believe is fairly humid all year around so you probably don't have to worry much about humidity levels with your instruments. If so, you are fortunate.

I will continue to humidify my instruments in their cases and highly recommend that all owners of solid wood instruments who live in dry environments do the same or provide some other form of humidification for their instruments.
 
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I cut up regular old kitchen sponges to fit inside Pez dispensers. They do the trick for 5-7 days in a closed case.
 
I cut up regular old kitchen sponges to fit inside Pez dispensers. They do the trick for 5-7 days in a closed case.

Watched Aldrine's video, huh?

I use floral beads inside a plastic container with holes drilled into the top. Lasts for weeks.
 
The reason I prefer sponges over floral beads (I have used both) is the sponges can be rehydrated in seconds. Soak, partially wring out, re-insert in container, done. The beads I've used need to sit in water for several minutes to absorb.

And I also will continue humidifying my instruments in their cases.
 
I don't agree with you.

That's okay. Sometimes I don't agree with me, either. :)

A relatively dry (10-20%) room will, in fact, dry an instrument out but it takes time for that to occur. If a person keeps their instrument humidified in a case, gets it out to play for a while, and then replaces it in the case with a humidifier, chances are slim to none that the instrument will crack due to dryness.

Well, I have seen it happen more than once. It all depends on the wood species and the humidity differential. But, it can and does happen. Quickly.

I assume that you live in Oregon which I believe is fairly humid all year around so you probably don't have to worry much about humidity levels with your instruments. If so, you are fortunate.

Yes, I'm in Oregon. I don't worry because the whole house is humidity controlled. But, as I said above, the outside humidity dropped below 20% the other day, which is very dry for this region.

I will continue to humidify my instruments in their cases and highly recommend that all owners of solid wood instruments who live in dry environments do the same or provide some other form of humidification for their instruments.

I wholeheartedly agree with the "providing some other form of humidification" part.
 
None of these "quick and easy" humidity fighters ever mention hygrometers. I suppose they have them but never say much about them. If one doesn't know what the humidity level is, what good are all the precautions? I looked up hygrometers in different places, and most of them seem to have raised many negative comments, so i don't know how accurate they are.

I asked how many members of the UU had Ukes cracked by the weather, and very few answered in the affirmative. As I stated before, I've had a Uke that I think is solid hanging on different walls for fifty years. It is cracked, but the kids usta play with it and may have cracked it. It still plays and sounds okay to me.

I have one solid Uke and one solid topped Uke, and they're both hanging on the wall. I'm not buying anymore solids. Many of you have stated many times that "it's no trouble" to humidify, but it sounds like a hassle to me. Especially if most Ukes don't crack anyway.

I also asked if cracked Ukes still play well, and I think most answered that they did. Also, repairs are usually possible. I know that many of you are worried about resale problems, but I never buy anything, even cars, that way. I carefully pick something out, use it and then store it away in the garage like everyone else around here does.

I have a completely off the wall theory that building Ukes from exotic foreign woods, and then bringing them here to a completely different weather situation is what causes at least some of the problems.

Anyway, from now on, it's plywood, carbon fiber or metal for me. :eek:ld:
 
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The reason I prefer sponges over floral beads (I have used both) is the sponges can be rehydrated in seconds. Soak, partially wring out, re-insert in container, done. The beads I've used need to sit in water for several minutes to absorb.

And I also will continue humidifying my instruments in their cases.

I agree conpletely with this. I have tried, and dislike, floral beads and, thus, Oasis humidifiers. Sponges in freezer bags for me.
 
I'll add to the above that hygrometers are a must. It is very easy to overhumidify with these DIY options because they all work only one way - salts, beads, sponges emit humidity not absorb it.

To store my class ukes over long breaks/weekends I have 4 plastic "condos" that hold 8 ukes each, humidified with water storing crystals in a container. I have a hygrometer in one of the containers, and have them dialed into 45% RH
 
None of these "quick and easy" humidity fighters ever mention hygrometers. I suppose they have them but never say much about them. If one doesn't know what the humidity level is, what good are all the precautions? I looked up hygrometers in different places, and most of them seem to have raised many negative comments, so i don't know how accurate they are.

I raised this point in an earlier post, but nobody commented:

You do have a hygrometer in there as well, right? Otherwise, what's the point?

Cheap, dial-type hygrometers can be off by 30% or more. Cheap digital ones are better, accurate to about 10%. That's generally close enough for this purpose. In any case, humidifying without a hygrometer at all is a pointless, dangerous (to the instrument) exercise.

I also asked if cracked Ukes still play well, and I think most answered that they did. Also, repairs are usually possible. I know that many of you are worried about resale problems, but I never buy anything, even cars, that way.

Cracks don't usually affect the sound of an instrument adversely, and can usually be repaired. But, that's not the only damage that can be done by humidity changes. A much more serious problem is warping and twisting of necks. That is something that can often turn a nice instrument into firewood. And then there is separation of joints, cracking or separation of braces, etc.

I'm like you - I buy my instruments to be played. They are out and available to me. An in-case humidifier just doesn't work. What happens when you get five or six instruments? Or eight or ten? It will get mighty expensive to buy all those hygrometers, and you will have no time left to play because you'll be babysitting all these little homemade climate-control systems.
 
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