Do you worry about dryness levels when it comes to your solid wood ukuleles?

callmemario

callmemario

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I have over 10 Ukuleles of various prices. But I must admit, weather changes are really getting to me. Winter dryness, down to 35% Humidity levels/Summer humidity levels up to 70%!! Humidity levels are constantly changing and are a threat to your Solid wood instruments. Laminates?!...not a worry in the world. In case "pill bottles" humidifiers for the winter(2 to 5 per case) and In room dehumidifier for the summer. As an example, this winter I got lazy with with my OHANA solid wood SK18M Sopranino by leaving it out in the open so that I could have the pleasure of admiring it and playing it whenever I felt like picking a few chords. Results?...fret ends sticking out, sound table purfling developing small gaps here and there. Surface behind the bridge being "sucked in" on the inner wood bracing. I could actually SEE the shape of the inner wood bracing where the top dried up!...Constant DAILY check-ups on my in case Hygrometers to maintain inner humidity levels to a minimum of 50%. Seems to be more time consuming than my African Violet collection... wink emoticon How do you manage it all?...or maybe you don't really care about humidity levels? Please let us hear your thought on this. Mario
 
First of all, you live in an area that is going to be harsh on any wooden instrument, not just ukes. I also notice from your list on the family of ukes that all of your wooden ukes are imports and sometimes solid wood import ukes are not made with the best seasoned woods. Once they get into an environment where the humidity levels are different from where they were made, the wood is gong to move, that is, dry out most of the time. Unless you know the person who is making the uke and are sure it is made under the right condition from day one, you are going to experience wood shifts in the climate where you live. Good luck.

callmemario said:
I have over 10 Ukuleles of various prices. But I must admit, weather changes are really getting to me. Winter dryness, down to 35% Humidity levels/Summer humidity levels up to 70%!! Humidity levels are constantly changing and are a threat to your Solid wood instruments. Laminates?!...not a worry in the world. In case "pill bottles" humidifiers for the winter(2 to 5 per case) and In room dehumidifier for the summer. As an example, this winter I got lazy with with my OHANA solid wood SK18M Sopranino by leaving it out in the open so that I could have the pleasure of admiring it and playing it whenever I felt like picking a few chords. Results?...fret ends sticking out, sound table purfling developing small gaps here and there. Surface behind the bridge being "sucked in" on the inner wood bracing. I could actually SEE the shape of the inner wood bracing where the top dried up!...Constant DAILY check-ups on my in case Hygrometers to maintain inner humidity levels to a minimum of 50%. Seems to be more time consuming than my African Violet collection... wink emoticon How do you manage it all?...or maybe you don't really care about humidity levels? Please let us hear your thought on this. Mario
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Thank you for your reply BlackBearUkes. Yes, it definitely will make a difference "where" the uke was built and if care was taken to kiln dry the wood. Agree. I just "know" from experience with ukuleles, that Laminates do a fine job in just about any climate, the only thing that I will notice are the fret ends might get a little sharper, if "left out to dry". Quite a different story with solid wood ukuleles...
 
I live in Chicago. I have a Fluke and a Blackbird Clara. I got enough other things to worry about. ;-)
 
Just so you know, the best woods for building string musical instruments are not kiln dried, but air dried in a controlled environment. Also, laminates can also be affected by low or high humidity, they just don't crack because they are laminates.

If a uke is made with the right woods in the right environment by the right builder, they are not as nearly problematic when it comes to humidity. Of course, they will cost more.

callmemario said:
Thank you for your reply BlackBearUkes. Yes, it definitely will make a difference "where" the uke was built and if care was taken to kiln dry the wood. Agree. I just "know" from experience with ukuleles, that Laminates do a fine job in just about any climate, the only thing that I will notice are the fret ends might get a little sharper, if "left out to dry". Quite a different story with solid wood ukuleles...
Click to expand...
 
Thank you BlackBearUkes for these interesting informations. I wonder after all these years, why I have always been told by various kinds of Luthiers that all the wood used in the building process of a wooden instrument had to go through the kiln oven first, so that if it has to warp or crack, it will happen in this process. Does make sense to leave the wood one is going to use at room temperature. :)
 
Now that I live on the coast I have no worries (uke or otherwise) but when I lived in Ontario I had a Kala laminate that I left out to noodle on. Everything else when not being played was kept in case and in a cupboard with damp sponges and humidity monitoring.

Even kiln dried wood will want to move in response to changes in humidity level and if is thin and has been glued in place so it can't move, then it will crack.
 
I don't know why a luthier would tell you kiln drying is good, it ain't, actually it should be avoided if possible. All the wood I have bought in the past was from suppliers who did not kiln dry. Even then, I let the wood acclimate to my shop for about a year before I build with it.

callmemario said:
Thank you BlackBearUkes for these interesting informations. I wonder after all these years, why I have always been told by various kinds of Luthiers that all the wood used in the building process of a wooden instrument had to go through the kiln oven first, so that if it has to warp or crack, it will happen in this process. Does make sense to leave the wood one is going to use at room temperature. :)
Click to expand...
 
Who knows!... :-( I guess you would know, you're the Luthier. But nevertheless, The wood is left in your shop for a year and stabilizes in your environment till it's assembled and shipped to "wherever"...then we're back to square one. That is, controling the "micro climate" environment in which the ukulele will spend most of it's time.
 
Well no, we are not back to square one. The best thing a luthier or any builder/company can do is to get things right from the start. So, if you build with quality woods, and they are acclimated to a correct building environment, built with excellent design principles, etc., only then does your uke or guitar stand a chance of staying together with proper care in almost all climates and conditions. If this were not true and proven from years of standard practice, then there would be no vintage instruments that are doing well. Sorry to say, that many of the imports do not follow the industry standards and hence they have troubles down the road. I see this every week in my shop from import instruments falling or coming apart after a short time. Not all imports are bad, some are good but most not so much.

callmemario said:
Who knows!... :-( I guess you would know, you're the Luthier. But nevertheless, The wood is left in your shop for a year and stabilizes in your environment till it's assembled and shipped to "wherever"...then we're back to square one. That is, controling the "micro climate" environment in which the ukulele will spend most of it's time.
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To answer your question yes I go through all the same steps you do. I leave outside of Toronto so our winters are cold and dry. I own 7 hydrometers that all read the same and I have them in the areas I play and store my ukes. I will also rotate them in and out of my uke cases to check the humidity levels inside. Each uke has a hardcase and that is where they stay when not being played, they all have Oasis humidifers and supplemental pill bottles.
 
Perhaps what we who live in the high latitudes need is for a Canadian company to start making ukuleles. Godin Guitars, are you listening?
 
Hi Kayak Jim, I live in Montreal, QC. I guess "there are no other alternatives" than to keep them safely tuck away in their humidified cases. Kinda sad in a way, because I end up playing "all the other ones" that are just left out in plain view. Mario
 
Exactly the very same thing for me DownUpDave!!!. Every day I also flip the case cover open a second or so to let the air in so it can breath a bit. It's like owning exotic tropical plants! ;-) I have four I need to do this with. Mario (Montreal, Qc) The "funny thing" is that I know a few solid wood ukulele players that don't care about these factors. Their mentality is, if I leave it all the time in it's case, I'll never play it....but then again, maybe these people live in England or B.C where humidity levels are higher...
 
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BlackBearUkes said:
First of all, you live in an area that is going to be harsh on any wooden instrument, not just ukes. I also notice from your list on the family of ukes that all of your wooden ukes are imports and sometimes solid wood import ukes are not made with the best seasoned woods. Once they get into an environment where the humidity levels are different from where they were made, the wood is gong to move, that is, dry out most of the time."

Point taken! I do agree that "imported" wooden instruments and the way their wood was cured will most probably affect the stability of the instrument once it get to it's new destination. But in any event my solid wood imported instruments are kept very stable in their controlled humidity cases, and as you said, "any wooden instrument" will be affected IF not taken care of properly. After all, "wood is wood!" ;-) Mario

BTW...is Black Bear Ukes on Facebook! I have posted some of your beautiful Sopranos(From your Gallery) in our Facebook "Soprano Ukulele Lovers Group" :)
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callmemario said:
Every day I also flip the case cover a few times to let the air in so it can breath a bit. ....

The "funny thing" is that I know a few solid wood ukulele players that don't care about these factors. Their mentality is, if I leave it all the time in it's case, I'll never play it....
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Maybe you were just kidding, but opening the cases just so they can breathe is a mistake! You're trying to keep the humidity in and this is counter to all your other efforts.

And ukes in cases can easily be played lots- open case, take out uke, close case, play to your hearts content, reverse. It's really no trouble. Besides, at least half the ukes in your collection are laminates (or plastic) so care is much less critical.
 
In Australia (Victoria), it is not a common practice at all to humidify instruments.
No one I know, pro or amateur, seem to do it like some of you do here on UU.

I even went to a large music store selling hundreds of guitars and ukuleles and asked if they had a humidifier in stock.
They scratched their heads and did not know why one would humidify their ukulele or guitar.

They eventually found a dusty old box that contained a "dehumidifier" !!
 
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