Boveda Humidity Control
Boveda Humidity Control
Boveda Humidity-Packs
Maintaining your instrument’s humidity year-round can be quite a difficult thing to do. Here at Northfield, we have found a good solution that’s relatively easy to use. We now carry the Boveda 2-WAY Humidity Control Packs that help to maintain a 49% relative humidity in your instrument’s case.
We all tend to think of humidity maintenance during the drier winter months; however dryness can be a year-round issue. Dry air will suck the moisture out of your instrument and case. It can be caused by many factors, including but not limited to: natural climate, heaters, furnace, fireplaces, AC units…
Yes, less commonly thought of, AC units can impact the humidity levels and consequently impact the humidity health of your instrument. It’s important to monitor your instrument and its environmental conditions year-round. Dryness is more commonly the concern, however, we mustn't forget that too much of anything can be a negative thing—including moisture. Too much humidity will swell, bog down an instrument, and its sound. Boveda Humidity Control Packs will work both ways, letting moisture out or taking it in when needed to maintain 49% Relative Humidity.
We also find Boveda Humidity Control Packs extra helpful when gigging and traveling with instruments. They are simple, straightforward, and effective—a Mando’s travel necessity. A small thing that makes a big difference, whether traveling or not.
Please scroll down for additional important information.
Here are some tips to keep your instrument properly humidified, whether it’s in a dry or humid environment.
Dry Environments:
If you live somewhere where the winter months can be very cold and dry, the rule of thumb is that you should begin humidifying your instrument when the heat comes on in your house, and the air begins to dry out. This dryness will affect your instrument causing many changes when the wood begins to shrink. One of the changes is that the top begins to shrink causing the string action to lower and buzzes to develop from strings being closer to the frets. Another sign is that the fret ends stick out as the fingerboard begins to shrink. Additionally, if the instrument gets too dry, cracks in the wood can develop as well. When the heat goes off in the house at the end of winter, you can usually stop using the Humidity-Packs until the following winter. Please monitor your Instrument’s environment; you may even need humidity support in the summer months. AC units can dry the air and is often less considered, but an important thing to remember when running your AC unit(s).
Use Recommendations & Tips [please read carefully]
We recommend using 2 of the Boveda Humidity-Packs at a time for Mandolins, and 4 packs for Octaves. To use the Humidity-Packs, remove them from the plastic wrapper, being careful not to cut or puncture the Humidity-Pack itself. Place them into the cloth sleeves and put one in the area of the case under the headstock (see photos below for reference). You can place the other one under the strings between the tailpiece and bridge (Mandolins) or On top of the strings, just above the bridge (Octaves). Please be careful that there is no pressure on the instrument top, bridge, or the Humidity-Pack itself.
There is no water that is added to the Humidity-Pack, and no condensation develops, so there is no danger to the finish. It’s important to keep the instrument in its case when not playing it and to keep the case closed when the instrument is removed. This helps to maintain the proper humidity levels inside of the case. The Humidity-Pack should last 3-4 months when removed from its plastic wrapper. Once it begins to get hard and solid, it’s time to replace it with a new one.
STARTING WITH A DRY INSTRUMENT:
If starting to humidify a dry instrument (below the 40-60% humidity range) it’s important to start off with the 72% Boveda Humidity-Packs. By using the 72% in the holding sleeves for the first 2-3 weeks (while monitoring closely). The instrument and case will restore humidity balance more effectively. When the instrument and case reach the 40-60% range it’s time to switch to the 49% Humidity-Packs and continue to monitor those as usual. To help understand why we recommend the 72% for a dry instrument/case: A dry instrument may take up to 100g of water to restore and case humidity may take up to 200g-400g of water to restore a balanced humidity level. This would tax the 49% Humidity-Packs and greatly shorten their lifespan, additionally, it will be a more gradual process—simply put, less effective and would need replacement(s) sooner.
Humid Environments:
If you live somewhere that has high levels of humidity (above 60% consistently), this can affect your instrument as well. The wood of your instrument will take on moisture and begin to swell, potentially causing problems. Some of these problems can be high string action from the top swelling, making it difficult to play. Glue joints and braces can begin to separate from the swelling. And the sound of your instrument can change from taking on moisture.
The procedures for humid environments are similar to dry environments, but there are a few differences. We recommend using 2 of the Boveda High-Absorbency Humidity-Packs at a time [COMING SOON!].
To use the Humidity-Packs, remove them from the plastic wrapper, being careful not to cut or puncture the Humidity-Pack itself. Place them into the cloth sleeves and put one in the area of the case under the headstock (see photos below for reference). You can place the other one under the strings between the tailpiece and bridge (Mandolins) or On top of the strings, just above the bridge (Octaves). Please be careful that there is no pressure on the instrument top, bridge, or the Humidity-Pack itself.
There is no water that is added to the Humidity-Pack, and no condensation develops, so there is no danger to the finish. It’s important to keep the instrument in its case when not playing it and to keep the case closed when the instrument is removed. This helps to maintain the proper humidity levels inside of the case. The Humidity-Pack should last 3-4 months when removed from its plastic wrapper. In humid environments, the humidity- pack will swell as it takes on moisture, and when it fully expands it’s time to replace it.
Traveling & Gigging:
We do recommend these products for traveling situations. When traveling to varying environments/climates these are wonderful solutions to keeping your instrument’s humidity balanced. If using these products when air traveling, we highly recommend keeping your instrument with you and as a carry-on. This is due to the controlled air pressure in the passenger cabins. At this time, we are unsure of how the consequences of air pressure, in more varying circumstances, could impact the performance and integrity of this product.
In either a dry or a humid environment, we also recommend a good case-sized hygrometer/temperature gauge to accurately measure the conditions for your instrument. We sell this in our store at Northfield as well. If you are unsure about using the Boveda Humidity-Packs or have any questions about properly maintaining the humidity levels for your instrument, please feel free to contact us.
The Spread on Humidification
Once we all start turning the heat or AC on, things will start to dry out, including our instruments. Sometimes it’s even the natural climate of your location that poses a threat. There’s nothing more frustrating than finding a crack on the top or a shrunken fretboard/endpin/pickguard on your instrument, especially when it could have been avoided by properly humidifying. Here at our shops and homes, we have found that approaching humidity with three separate tools produces the best results.
1. In-case humidifier. Keeping your instrument inside a case when not in use greatly improves your chances of maintaining proper humidity. Check out Boveda or Oasis.
2. Portable hygrometer/thermometer to monitor the humidity level in the room where you store or play your instruments. It’s one thing to know what humidity is like inside the case but conditioning and monitoring your home, practice space, or storage closet is essential and easy to do.
3. In-room (Standalone) or home furnace humidifier. There are a gazillion options and you could very well need one or more depending on where you live and the type of system you use to heat your home with.
Optimum conditions for your instrument are humidity levels between 40-60% and temperatures between 65 and 75 degrees. Depending on where you live and how frequently you play (or inspect) your instruments you may not need all 3 items. We recommend that each owner approach humidity with their own environment in mind. However, all of us here at Northfield prescribe to the notion that it’s better to be safe than sorry. That’s why we’ve stocked up and are pleased to offer some of the same tools we use for you.
Please feel free to reach out with any questions.
—The Northfield Team
