The dry season is upon us - humidity question

[Jazzman]

I control humidity in my own home. It is always between 46% and 51% all year round according to my hydrometer. Similarly, it is always between 68 and 74 degrees Fahrenheit. My last bass saw an untimely death due to a few factors - one of them being damage possibly caused by repeated seasonal changes. (I couldn't afford to repair the bass.) However, I do not attribute this to the conditions in my house.

My question is, when on a gig, how do you control humidity? I keep my bass in the bag until 45 minutes before the set, and it goes right back in after the set. What else can you do? Will Dampits do anything? I am open to suggestions...even if it is to say, don't worry about it.

[Suggestion: Somebody should start produce humidity controlled bass bags. ]

[musicman5string]

It's dry season for sure; my hands are totally dry and chapped....and my bass has never sounded better.

The sound is focused, clear, warm, punchy.....just great. I don't know who came up with the theory that humidty is good for uprights, but it's not for me.

[drurb]

Originally Posted by musicman5string

It's dry season for sure; my hands are totally dry and chapped....and my bass has never sounded better.

The sound is focused, clear, warm, punchy.....just great. I don't know who came up with the theory that humidty is good for uprights, but it's not for me.

Well, the possibility exists that your bass responds better after the sound post tightens up in the cooler, dryer conditions.

[sibass89]

The humidity in your house is way too high if you take the bass out of the house frequently, especially during dry season.

If you gig frequently, you want to keep the humidity around 30%, close to 50% is way to high and is a huge shock for the bass.

Also, just like yourself the bass needs time to adjust to temperature and other changes. Start by letting it sit at the place of about 10 minutes before taking it out of the bag. Then open the case for a couple of minutes and then take it out of the bag. And do the same thing when you get back home.

Dampits are fine but don't use them when you perform. If you play arco, they dampen the sound significantly, and if you play amplified it will mess with the pick up because it dampens the vibrations.

[Jazzman]

Originally Posted by sibass89

If you gig frequently, you want to keep the humidity around 30%, close to 50% is way to high and is a huge shock for the bass.

I did not know that. I thought 35% got into the "danger zone" for the bass (cue music). So, I should adjust the humidity in my home to somewhat reflect the outside humidity? For example, keep it where I usually do in the summer, but lower it down to 30% in the winter to lessen the shock when I go to a gig?

[I was trying to keep a constant, "idea," all year round. Oops...maybe that is why my old bass's top fell apart. ]

[billyfalconer]

Originally Posted by Jazzman

Will Dampits do anything?

Yes, they can help, but l've heard luthiers say they didn't like them because some people will not shake out the excess water when putting them in. This can lead to the dampit dripping, soaking a piece of the body, and leaving water rings.

[musicman5string]

Originally Posted by drurb

Well, the possibility exists that your bass responds better after the sound post tightens up in the cooler, dryer conditions.

Which is something I've asked Gage about. Whether he set up my bass so the soundpost tightens up in the colder months, I don't know.....I would say about 6 months out of the year is cooler weather here. In the spring I'm going to get another soundpost put in. I've always noticed this before, but this year seems to stand out more.

[musicman5string]

Originally Posted by KSB - Ken Smith

Like 'musicman5string' mentioned, when his hands hurt his Bass sounds best. Well, that's something to work on because I want to play more when that happens as far as the sound goes but more important here, WE can feel when it is too dry or moiste. We are walking humistats. If it feels good, it is. If not, it isn't!

Lucky for me I like to use some moisterizer on my hands before I play anyway. I got that idea from Dave Holland.

[drurb]

Originally Posted by musicman5string

Which is something I've asked Gage about. Whether he set up my bass so the soundpost tightens up in the colder months, I don't know.....I would say about 6 months out of the year is cooler weather here. In the spring I'm going to get another soundpost put in. I've always noticed this before, but this year seems to stand out more.

Well, it's not a matter of how he set it up. If you have a carved bass, then the sound post tightens up in colder, dryer conditions. For some basses, the difference is insignificant and a year-round post is no problem. Many players do not and do not need to change their posts at all. As you might suspect, if you are going to have a year-round post it is better that it be a touch loose in the summer so that when the winter comes, it will not become too tight and potentially produce a crack. So winter seems to be a good time to fit a post. Trust your luthier's judgment.

[Marc Piane]

Originally Posted by billyfalconer

Yes, they can help, but l've heard luthiers say they didn't like them because some people will not shake out the excess water when putting them in. This can lead to the dampit dripping, soaking a piece of the body, and leaving water rings.

From what I understand they only help if you leave the bass in the case. They are no match for a dry room. I used to use them all the time but I got a very stern taking to by my bass dr. He feels like the bad outweighs the good.

[christ andronis]

Originally Posted by fingers

From what I understand they only help if you leave the bass in the case. They are no match for a dry room. I used to use them all the time but I got a very stern taking to by my bass dr. He feels like the bad outweighs the good.

I've used two of them every winter and never had a problem. I think the most important thing is to make sure they are wrung out so they don't drip inside the bass. From everything I'm reading, it seems to be a matter of opinion, and you know what they say:Opinions are like ***holes, everybody's got one!

..just my .02

[Eric Hochberg]

My luthier suggests 38% humidity in the dry season. On my last trip to Minneapolis, the temp was well below zero and I came back to my hotel room to discover the thermostat was stuck and the temperature must have been 95 degrees in there (and dry!). That night, the first few notes I played on the gig, I could tell something was wrong with my sound, and sure enough, I had a rib crack and open seam. Maybe they would have helped, maybe not, but I've been using Dampits ever since.

[Jeremy Allen]

Originally Posted by christ andronis

I've used two of them every winter and never had a problem. I think the most important thing is to make sure they are wrung out so they don't drip inside the bass. From everything I'm reading, it seems to be a matter of opinion, and you know what they say:Opinions are like ***holes, everybody's got one!
..just my .02

Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but in terms of bass maintenance I tend to trust the opinions of luthiers over those of non-luthiers. I've always wondered about dampits and I've asked every luthier I've been to whether they do any good, and none so far has said they're effective at protecting the bass (except in cases where the bass is left in the bag almost all of the time). One can use dampits and never get a crack, but that doesn't prove that they prevented the crack; I've never used them and I've never gotten a crack (knock, gently, on wood), but that doesn't prove that they don't work either.

The beauty of the dialogue on TalkBass is that this would be a great point for a professional luthier I've never met to weigh in and say "Well, I for one think dampits work." Anyone?

[standupright]

Out here in the armpit of h311, it's dry, all the time (except for avery small portion of the year). I wouldn't dream of not having dampits in my bass. I see what this climate does to all of the other wood in my house. For me - Dampits....Always.

>>>Paul Haley

[christ andronis]

Originally Posted by Johono5

The beauty of the dialogue on TalkBass is that this would be a great point for a professional luthier I've never met to weigh in and say "Well, I for one think dampits work." Anyone?

Actually, I think this has been discussed at length. For example: here!

[Jeremy Allen]

Originally Posted by christ andronis

Actually, I think this has been discussed at length. For example: here!

...and the two luthiers contributing to that thread both had only negative things to say about dampits. I was fishing for more of a positive response from a professional luthier, since I've yet to see that.

[billyfalconer]

Originally Posted by Johono5

...and the two luthiers contributing to that thread both had only negative things to say about dampits. I was fishing for more of a positive response from a professional luthier, since I've yet to see that.

I'll bet Dampit could supply one :-)

[drurb]

Dampits only humidify your bass if it is in the case. Think about it. If the humidity is 30% in the room and you stick a dampit in your bass, the humidity will follow the gradient. That is, it will not stay in your bass. Rather, because the air in the bass is contiguous with that in the room, you will be essentially trying to humidify the larger space with a dampit.

Check out the attached recent newsletter on humidification from Kolstein.

DAMPITS ARE DANGEROUS EVEN IF USED VERY CAREFULLY.

Read this.

Then read this.

[Marc Piane]

Originally Posted by drurb

Dampits only humidify your bass if it is in the case. Think about it. If the humidity is 30% in the room and you stick a dampit in your bass, the humidity will follow the gradient. That is, it will not stay in your bass. Rather, because the air in the bass is contiguous with that in the room, you will be essentially trying to humidify the larger space with a dampit.

+1!!!