Humidifiers in gig bags????

[RBSinTo]

Question that just ocurred to me.
Is it a good idea to humidify guitars stored in gig bags like guitars in hard cases?
Please and thanks.
RBSinTo

 

[Rocky]

Acoustic guitars with solid tops should always be humidified in the dry months - In TO, end of November (American Thanksgiving) through around Easter/Passover. A gig bag would probably need to be checked more often to refill, as it's more porous.

 

[fronobulax]

The guitar benefits from being in a properly humidified environment. If it is too dry outside of the gig bag then the guitar should be humidified while it is in the gig bag.

I could construct a scenario where a sound hole humidifier in a guitar in a gig bag damages the gig bag (or humidifies the bag and not the guitar) but if that is a realistic fear then the gig bag should be replaced with a HSC or the storage are humidified.

 

[Rocky]

The guitar benefits from being in a properly humidified environment. If it is too dry outside of the gig bag then the guitar should be humidified while it is in the gig bag.

I could construct a scenario where a sound hole humidifier in a guitar in a gig bag damages the gig bag (or humidifies the bag and not the guitar) but if that is a realistic fear then the gig bag should be replaced with a HSC or the storage are humidified.

FWIW, one of my guitars has a 'hard' (closed cell foam) gig bag, and it's actually more humidity-tight than my hard shell cases. No issues with mold/mildew. I use a travel soap dish/box with some holes drilled in it and a kitchen sponge as a humidifier, tucked into the headstock region.

 

[chazmo]

RBSinTo,

Just depends on room humidity. But, yes, gig bag or HSC you should take care of business when needed. I had two heirloom guitars in my house for a long time before I understood the effects of (in my case) low humidity in winter. One was in a chipboard case, the other in a crappy HSC. One all-mahogany; the other mahogany with a spruce top. Both cracked badly because I was ignorant of proper procedures.

Even though I've since had those guitars fixed, I warn people of my first-hand experience and would spare them the (ongoing) pain of stupidity such as mine.

 

[wileypickett]

RBSinTo,

Just depends on room humidity. But, yes, gig bag or HSC you should take care of business when needed. I had two heirloom guitars in my house for a long time before I understood the effects of (in my case) low humidity in winter. One was in a chipboard case, the other in a crappy HSC. One all-mahogany; the other mahogany with a spruce top. Both cracked badly because I was ignorant of proper procedures.

Even though I've since had those guitars fixed, I warn people of my first-hand experience and would spare them the (ongoing) pain of stupidity such as mine.

I learned the hard way too.

 

[chazmo]

I learned the hard way too.

 

[RBSinTo]

Thank you all for your comments.
I recently purchased an inexpensive gig bag for the classical guitar I just built from a kit. During the winter months when I was unable to work on it, I placed an Oasis humidifier in the kit's carton, so it seems logical to continue humidifying the finished guitar, hence my question.
There is no provision in the gig bag for securing a humidifier, but I will be sewing in a small nylon cloth sleeve to house the metal clip that will attract the humidifiers magnetic strip, and solve the problem.
RBSinTo

 

[Ross]

I use an Oasis humidifier in my gig bag whenever the central heating is on. It's the kind of humidifier that hangs into the sound hole, held by the 3rd & 4th strings. It needs refilling weekly.

 

[RBSinTo]

I use an Oasis humidifier in my gig bag whenever the central heating is on. It's the kind of humidifier that hangs into the sound hole, held by the 3rd & 4th strings. It needs refilling weekly.

My Oasis humidifiers need refilling weekly, with the greatest evaporation rate ocurring during the cold, dry winter months.
On any given Friday, when I re-fill them, the order from greatest to least water-loss per humidifier is always the same, apparently based on the quality of the guitars' containers (one in a gig bag, and five in guitar cases).
RBSinTo