Humidipak

[Brad Little]

When they first came out, I purchased a couple of Humidipaks, but then when the recall came out, I never used them nor returned them for replacement. This winter, during the height of our low humidity season, I purchased replacement inserts.Inside of a week or so, they seemed to do their job as they hardened up and I assumed the moisture was going to the instrument. Now that humidity is returning to our area, they seem to be absorbing it as they are now getting soft again. My conclusion (totally non-scientific) is that they do what they are meant to do.
Brad

 

[TonyT]

My experience this winter was that they got rock hard in about 2 weeks. I was told by my luthier that they should last 2 months. At $18 a set, I decided they were just too expensive. They clearly work, just not very economically.

 

[Brad Little]

I was told by my luthier that they should last 2 months. At $18 a set, I decided they were just too expensive. They clearly work, just not very economically.

Well, I always take those time lines with a grain of salt, and even the manufacturer suggest a longer period, up to 5 months, so I'm going with a staggered schedule of six months with each set getting changed a month or so apart (I have four). I figure it's still cheaper than a visit to the luthier.
Brad

 

[TonyT]

Yeah, I wasn't sure about the 2 month thing, but 2 weeks is too much. I do have the sleeves that hold the packs if you or any one else can use them. Gratis, of course.

 

[Taylor Martin Guild]

I'm a bit confused here.
Are you saying that you only added water to the pack once in 2 months, or the pack has to be replaced every 2 months.

The reason that I ask is that most guitar humidifiers run out of water in 3 days to a week and then need to be refilled with fresh distilled water. This process goes on as long as the relitive humidity is below 40%.

I may have told this story before, but when I purchased my used
D-55 last year, the guy that I bought it from said that he had a humidifier that came with the guitar. [Dampit Brand]
It was there inside the guitar but never hasdwater added to it.
It was his understanding that all you needed to do was to place the humidifier inside the guitar.
Nobody told him that it needed water added for it to work.

The sad reality to this, is that on my way home with my new guitar, I had to stop and leave it with my Luthier to have the lifted saddle re-glued to the top.

 

[cjd-player]

No offense to those who use and like the Humidipak, but to me it seems like a solution without a problem; and a complicated and expensive solution at that.

From everything I've read over on the AGF, you can't really "trust" a Humidpak alone because they seem to work differently in different environments, such as in typically high versus typically low RH. So you need to have a hygrometer anyway, and monitor the Humidipak. Plus the lingering fear that it will somehow leak and ruin your case or guitar, like the originals did before the recall.

Since there is a need for a hygrometer and frequent monitoring, I just prefer a cheap $8.00 Dampit for each guitar. Can't get much simpler, in my opinion.

 

[Brad Little]

I'm a bit confused here.
Are you saying that you only added water to the pack once in 2 months, or the pack has to be replaced every 2 months.

The Humidipak is a sealed pack that has a chemical that absorbs or dispenses humidity as needed. I did monitor one of my guitars with a hygrometer and when the room humidity changed, the case humidity stayed in the comfort zone. I like its concept better than a regular humidifier because our climate varies from 20-25% humidity in winter to well in the 90s in summer. Although, to be honest, the only time I experienced any problems was when my F-212 was at my ex-wife's house one winter and kept near a radiator (out of ignorance, not spite ). The binding separated a little bit at the waist, but went back when stored in a more normal environment. Maybe it's overkill or overprotective, but I'll keep using it for a while.
Brad

 

[TonyT]

I'm a bit confused here.
Are you saying that you only added water to the pack once in 2 months, or the pack has to be replaced every 2 months.

The reason that I ask is that most guitar humidifiers run out of water in 3 days to a week and then need to be refilled with fresh distilled water. This process goes on as long as the relitive humidity is below 40%.

I may have told this story before, but when I purchased my used
D-55 last year, the guy that I bought it from said that he had a humidifier that came with the guitar. [Dampit Brand]
It was there inside the guitar but never hasdwater added to it.
It was his understanding that all you needed to do was to place the humidifier inside the guitar.
Nobody told him that it needed water added for it to work.

The sad reality to this, is that on my way home with my new guitar, I had to stop and leave it with my Luthier to have the lifted saddle re-glued to the top.

You don't add water to Humidipacks. They are closed packets with a gel-like material in them, and are supposed to keep your guitars at a RH of (I think) 45%/. In the winter, the packs add moisture, and as they do, the gel hardens up. Once they are "rock hard", you have to replace the pack. In the summer, as Brad as seen, they absorb moisture. My issue was simply that I had to replace the packs last winter far more often than I anticipated. Plus, I was advised to keep the guitar in the case in order for the packs to work properly, and I like to keep mine out on its stand as a constant reminder that I need to play more.

Or what Brad said

 

[Taylor Martin Guild]

Thanks for the answers.
With all the other humidifiers that I have tried over the years, I have had to rehydrate them at least every other week, or even sooner.
I wouldn't feel that I could trust one to last for 2 months without adding water to it.
I'll pass on the Humidipak.

 

[Bill Ashton]

My beloved got me the Planet Waves set that includes the regular (water to sponge) humidifier and the electronic monitoring pod...two, actually. During the winter, they kept the average humidity around 40%, with some low swings, even into the 20's...though I think perhaps one of the meters wasn't quite right.

My luthier (Steve Sauve) doesn't seem to be too keen about that style, and prefers the sponge-in-a-soapbox style tucked inside the case. He said I could stop using almost anything about a month ago, for as I understood him, you should be concerned about low humidity over a long period, not spot dips. In fact he said at some point you should leave you case open and let it "dry out." Makes sense I suppose, trapping moisture concentrated in it all winter cannot be good.

All this said, my Gibson J-30 which I got 15-16 years ago never saw a humidifer until this Christmas, and it has always been very stable and her finish fine as a guitar that old could be expected...looked very similar to a Sauve-built beauty's of about the same age.

 

[Qvart]

When I went to Acoustic Corner in Black Mountain (to check out the New Hartford D55 \m/-_-\m/) the guy there recommended the Oasis sound hole humidifier. It worked great and I had to add water about once a week during the height of the dry season this past winter. I bought a hygrometer at Lowe's and hung it in the closet near my guitars (it also displays inside temperature and has a sensor wire to run outside so it can display outside temperature as well. Even has an LED light for the display, and it was pretty cheap). Right now the humidity is 48% so I'm not using the humidifier and as long as the RH stays where it's at it should be all good. Once in awhile I drop the hygrometer inside the sound hole and close the case to make sure the conditions inside match outside. All I can say is the D35 appears to be pretty healthy, and I'm so glad I'm not in southeast Ohio anymore. That's like a swamp!

(my humidifier did not include the hygrometer seen in the pic and so cost about $18)

 

[Bernie]

Yeah, I wasn't sure about the 2 month thing, but 2 weeks is too much. I do have the sleeves that hold the packs if you or any one else can use them. Gratis, of course.

I've just bought Humidipacks, but the shop I went to sold me only the 3 packs, without the holding parts !! They said it was complete this way, confirmed there was a system with recharges, but that it wasn't with D'Addario !! So here I am, not knowing how to do (they didn't have the all-in-one pack I think)...Unfortunately, I am in France, and I suspect shipping would cost quite a bit...Would take yours with pleasure (would even pay up to $10 I think, but still probably too complicated I bet). And too, you probably found someone already (just read the thread was older than 4460 days or so !!). Tanks anyway...

 

[chazmo]

Holy necro-thread revival, batman!

Bernie, you might want to author a new thread if you're looking for advice or components for the Humidipak system.

 

[Westerly Wood]

I live in a dry climate. Even in monsoon season, we have A/C going all the time so house still dry. I still use Kyser lifeguards as that is what I always used. For decades. I soak them 1x/week. My guilds sit out on stand 24/7. When not played, the lifeguards are in soundhole. Seems to do the trick. While I wouldn’t want to test this theory, I don’t believe my ‘71 D25 needs a humidifier. I think the wood is so settled, nothing could wreck it. I would probably be wrong.

 

[chazmo]

^ Yeah, don't test that theory, Woody!

 

[wileypickett]

You can recharge the two-way Humidpaks when they dry out; you needn't discard them and buy new ones.

There are different ways to do it. I put a damp sponge inside a soap dish that I've drilled holes in. (You don't want the Humidpaks to get wet.) I then put the soap dish and however many H-paks need refreshing -- I usually do six or eight at a time -- inside a 10" X 10" resealable plastic bag.

In two or three days your Humidpaks will be ready for another couple months of service.

Considering how many guitars I have, it'd be quite an expensive proposition to be constantly replacing Humidipaks. Thanks to someone here on LTG, who posted this tip a few years ago, I don't have to. (Thanks, whoever you were!)

 

[gjmalcyon]

You can recharge the two-way Humidpaks when they dry out; you needn't discard them and buy new ones.

There are different ways to do it. I put a damp sponge inside a soap dish that I've drilled holes in. (You don't want the Humidpaks to get wet.) I then put the soap dish and however many H-paks need refreshing -- I usually do six or eight at a time -- inside a 10" X 10" resealable plastic bag.

I do something similar - I wrap the Humidipaks in damp paper towels and put them in Ziploc back - they're usually good to do in a week or less.

I put a Humidipak up in the headstock end of the case and an Oasis humidifier either in the soundhole or attached to the case near the upper bout.

 

[Bernie]

What about using Humidipacks without the parts that are supposed to hold them, since that's what I got sold (only the recharge bags then - the guy from the shop had said it was complete this way ! -). Any good idea on how to use them and what could do the job for a while without damaging my guitar (it's very dry some days here and i'm supposed to go away for a while - no time to order new ones-). Where could I put them in to protect them from damaging guitar ?