Well, today's the first day of summer. Did anyone's Ukes suffer drying out warps or cracks or splits or seam lifts? Did all that humidification keep everyone's ukuleles safe and sound? Does it still have to be done during the summer?
I'm just wondering if all those anti-drying out threads worked--did they? ld:
I haven't used humidification with my ukuleles. None have cracked so far. I do monitor humidity in the room where they live, though, and if it got too dry, I'd throw in a humidifier. But I live in a rural area of Germany in a house that is surrounded by lots of greenery of all sorts, and I water the potted plants in the ukulele room.
Humidity is usually around 50-60% in the room, slightly lower in the winter. If I used a humidifier in summer, I'd worry about mold in the cases. (The other week humidity spiked at 70% after a storm.)
I live in Maine. The RH inside can go down to the 20s in the winter (with the heat on) and over 90 in the summer. I humidify and dehumidify, trying to keep everything at 50% year round. It's a process, but worth it to me as I worry about these things. No problems thus far. Thanks for asking!
Yes, my ukes survived winter and are hanging on the wall since the beginning of May. I dont want to take them down for winter, it makes me feel good to see them above my computer ...but anyway, that's a problem for an other day!
Mine made it safely through the winter and even during the driest of times in the house, didn't drop below 40% humidity. Now my Oasis humidifiers are shriveled up and dry (is it OK to let them do that?) but the current humidity level in the house is at 49% so I don't have to worry about humidifiers again until winter/heating months.
Humidity in winter is BC can get down to <20% and with central heating in winter and air conditioning in summer....... its a MUST IMHO. I humidify three tenors and have been using Oasis with great success. You need to "feed and water" your ukuleles weekly but that's fine and give you and excuse to pull some out that perhaps you haven't played for a while and take it for a spin. Last winter I took January and went for a month holiday and was worried about the two solid wood ukulele I was leaving behind. I purchase to of the Planet Waves ( DAddario ) two way humidification system. Basically three humidipack in pouches which maintain the case/ukulele inside it at about 45-50%. I must say they work great and now I keep them in all my ukuleles and even have Oasis is sound hole. I would NOT be without the both.
A small trick I picked up from a member's post on line a UU forum was after the humidipacks start to dry out, pull them from the pouches and put them inside a tupper ware container with a lid on it. Put a smaller tupper way container inside the bigger one, put a couple of inches of water in the bottom and leave the humidipacks in there for a week or so. They actually re charge themselves. I'm on my second or third re charge just by using this trick. Great system.
Mine made it safely through the winter and even during the driest of times in the house, didn't drop below 40% humidity. Now my Oasis humidifiers are shriveled up and dry (is it OK to let them do that?) but the current humidity level in the house is at 49% so I don't have to worry about humidifiers again until winter/heating months.
Once I take all the humdifers out of the ukes for the summer I fill them up then put them in a ziplock bag. They stay full for months and I keep the bags on my shop bench, a quick glance every now and then confirms they are still full.
I have hygrometers around the house to monitor the humidity levels and this winter it did not get below 40% so everything came through just fine. I actually kept three solid wood instruments out on stands all winter this year with no issues. It sure is fun to just walk up grab one and start playing.
I threw my Oasis humidifier in the sound hole of my uke and shut the case for whatever time we were in the states and running the furnace this winter. So my ukulele didn't crack, separate, or warp. I didn't put multiple humidifiers in strategically located places throughout the case though. But did it not crack because I stuck that Oasis humidifier in there? We'll never know. My question, did anyone have their ukulele crack, separate, or warp this winter despite keeping them humidified?
My home studio has a hygrometer to measure the humidity. I keep both a humidifier and dehumidifier in there and i let them battle it out. But here in Chicago it is definitely dehumidifier season right now.
I converted a bookshelf into a humidity controlled display case. Sealed all the inside edges with weather stripping tape, had plexiglass doors made, use two trays on the bottom shelf with covers that I slide to control the humidity using a digital and an analog hygrometer. It stays between 43% and 57% humidity all the times. I was prompted to do it a couple of years ago when here in Los Angeles the humidity went down to about 10% and my monkey pod Lanikai cracked from the bridge to the tail.
We are actually in winter here in Perth, Australia. It is raining and going down to 8 degrees (C) at night and only 17 degrees in the days, very cold and wet. Its so cold I have had to find a jumper and wear shoes all the time. Humidity is not an issue at the moment, unless the instrument is in the lounge room in front of the fire or the heater.
I purchased a used curio cabinet to house and display my ukes. Hygrometer gets check (mostly) daily. A bowl of water is my humidifier. I have 2 older instruments that I want to protect. The others are just there for show.
I purchased a used curio cabinet to house and display my ukes. Hygrometer gets check (mostly) daily. A bowl of water is my humidifier. I have 2 older instruments that I want to protect. The others are just there for show.
Winter is over here, and the Oasis humidifier, (along with room humidifiers, to keep the living beings comfortable, too), are not needed now. What is the best thing to do with the Oasis humidifier for the non-use time? The shriveled up humidifier is still in the case, but I don't know if it needs other care for the non-use season.
Winter is over here, and the Oasis humidifier, (along with room humidifiers, to keep the living beings comfortable, too), are not needed now. What is the best thing to do with the Oasis humidifier for the non-use time? The shriveled up humidifier is still in the case, but I don't know if it needs other care for the non-use season.
Is there an explanation of why you need to keep them in a baggie full of water when not in use?
I guess I don't understand how they work? (Didn't think it would be that complex, but there must be something more to it than add water when using, and off you go.)
ld:
