Humidity???

joel kelsey · #1 10-10-2006, 02:43 PM

Hi everyone, (not sure this the right spot for this question)

What is the ideal humidity for care of a carved bass? I have done some searching in other threads and got mixed responses. between 30-70%. Is this accurate? Seems like a wide range. I have also heard between 40-60%. Any advice would be helpful, as this will be my first winter with a carved bass. Would I want the indoor humidity closer to the outdoor humidity because I am taking the bass out of the house almost every day? Is there an ideal % for a bass that stays in one place? Would that % be differnet for a bass that gigs in lots of different places (higher than the "standard" humidity % in the summer, lower than the "standard" %in the winter)? Or am I overthinking this? Should I just try to keep my house at certain % and TRY not to worry about it? I hope my post makes sense..........

Joel

toman · #2 10-11-2006, 02:55 AM

My opinion, for what it's worth is this: If your bass (particularly if it's anywhere close to new) doesn't stay together, it's not you, it's the bass. An instrument needs to be able to stay together in it's regular playing environment, and if it can't, it's not a viable instrument.

joel kelsey · #3 10-11-2006, 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toman

An instrument needs to be able to stay together in it's regular playing environment, and if it can't, it's not a viable instrument.

Hi,
How do you define close to new? The bass in question is a flatback Juzek from around 1950. The bass has it's fair share of repaired cracks on the top and back. The person who owned it before me assured me that all of the big cracks have been on the bass since before he had purchased it in the early 80s. Though it was his "backup" bass (he is a symphony player) he had taken the bass to Europe as well as played it outdoors with nothing happening to it. I figure, since it has lasted this long, I probably don't have that much to worry about. I am still a little concerned about "gigging" it in the winter though. Would I need to worry about warming up the car before I put the bass in?

Also, do flatbacks tend to crack more on the backs in general? I would assume they would due to the way the wood is bent, but I don't know.

toman · #4 10-11-2006, 11:29 AM

I don't think an instrument like that is likely to be a problem, but then I'm no luthier either. When I say "new", I mean more like within 20 years or so. And I think flatbacks do tend to crack more often, but that doesn't mean they're no good...

drurb · #5 10-12-2006, 12:53 PM

The killer is rapid changes in humidity and temperature. They should be avoided. During the winter months, in addition to my whole-house humidifier that is part of the forced-air heat, I run a dedicated evaporative humidifier in the room with my bass. Using a digital hygrometer (which I highly recommend), I keep the humidity at around 40-43%.

I have found that the spring can be really surprising. Here in Conn. we get those crystal clear dry days and the humidity can drop into the mid 30's without a humifdifier! The humidifer is quite important then as well.

During the summer, I am also able to maintain the humidity at around 45% or so. Over the past few weeks, I noticed that the humidity climbed into the 65-70% range. My bass seemed to love it and I don't consider that a problem because it occurred over many days. Too dry seems far more dangerous than a bit too humid.

That's my $0.02, anyway.

**Chris Fitzgerald** · #6 10-12-2006, 01:04 PM

The rub - for me, at least - is that humidity in the air makes my bass sound like a slug, whereas a dry environment seems to let the sound travel with less resistance. Keep in mind, this is coming from someone who lives in the the Ohio valley and is used to having to make swimming motions just to make any progress walking down the street in the summer...I'm sure that folks from drier climates might envy the us moisture in the air.

At any rate, I try to keep my music room between 40 and 60% humidity all through the year, meaning trying to lower it below 60% in the summer and raise it to above 40% in the winter.

joel kelsey · #7 10-12-2006, 02:05 PM

Thanks for the help guys! I purchased a hygrometer from Radio Shack last week. The bass room is between 45-60 so far. But winters here are dry (Indiana). Question: Would a humidifier in the living room work throughout the house?

drurb · #8 10-12-2006, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joel kelsey

Thanks for the help guys! I purchased a hygrometer from Radio Shack last week. The bass room is between 45-60 so far. But winters here are dry (Indiana). Question: Would a humidifier in the living room work throughout the house?

Not sure what you mean. Humidifers usually give some indication of the square footage they can humidify. Depending on the size of your house, one of the mammoth console humidifers might just serve the entire interior. I'd put the humidifer in the bass room and let the hygrometer guide you. Whatever benefit the rest of the house receives is icing on the cake. What's in the rest of the house? Personal belongings, furniture, people? Ah, those can suffer-- it's the bass that must be protected.

During the winter, I keep the evaporative humidifier several feet from the bass in my living room. The room is open to the rest of the house but because the bass is in a corner away from the opening, the humidifier does the trick. If I didn't also have a whole-house humidifier that might not work so well.