Room Humidifier recs

[Sue Rieter]

Here's another question. If you have one of these humidifiers running through a separate control switch, what happens if the water runs out while you are away? Will it keep running and running until the humidifier motor burns out? Maybe I don't have to worry about this because I have cats and someone has to come in and check on them anyway, but could this be an issue?

Also, I assume the switches work by shutting the power on and off to the humidifier, that's why it's necessary to have a unit that doesn't require reset after power outage. I've begun thinking about trying to set something up in the main living space where the woodstove is. In my search thus far, I haven't located a currently available large capacity unit that doesn't have this "feature".

[pops1]

On my humidifier when it is out of water it shuts the humidifier off and a light comes on to tell you it's out of water. Should be no problem.

[DaveGinNJ]

There is a whole can of worms:
Weber mandolins says 35-45% RH
Apitius mandolins says 40-60%
The Folk Musician site says 45-50% for mandolins

If your manufacturer has a recommendation, I'd go with that. I keep mine between 45-50% to kind of stay in the middle of the recommendations. Although they will naturally get higher in the summer where I live, sometimes to 60%, but I just let that go, because it is so gradual and I have not had good luck with dehumidifiers. I may try some desiccant next Summer.

Everyone agrees under 30 and over 60 is bad and sudden changes are bad.

Thanks. 60% seems like a lot (unless its a humidor). I plan to set up a humidifier ion my music room as I now have 2 mandos, acoustic guitar and a double bass to worry about. I think I can easily get to 45%

[ajh]

Here's another question. If you have one of these humidifiers running through a separate control switch, what happens if the water runs out while you are away? Will it keep running and running until the humidifier motor burns out? Maybe I don't have to worry about this because I have cats and someone has to come in and check on them anyway, but could this be an issue?

Also, I assume the switches work by shutting the power on and off to the humidifier, that's why it's necessary to have a unit that doesn't require reset after power outage. I've begun thinking about trying to set something up in the main living space where the woodstove is. In my search thus far, I haven't located a currently available large capacity unit that doesn't have this "feature".

The 5gallon cabinet evaporatives that I have had all have had a float switch that turns off power completely when the water gets low. Shouldn't be an issue at all for that. The problem with most humidifiers is that you set a number that you want....say 45%. Whenever the humidity goes lower the humidifier kicks on. When you have the room balanced the humidifier has a tendency to be switching off and on very frequently. The Inkbird that John Flynn mentioned earlier solves this by letting you put in a range. I have one on order and will be planning on setting it for turning on at 40 and off at 50. What you do have to watch is if the humidifier you get has an electronically controlled off/on button....... the separate control switch won't work with them because every time the control switch turns off power the humidifier button needs to be pushed to restart. The older ones have a manual twist type switch with the speed tied to it (off/low/medium/high) those work fine with the external control switch.

[Sue Rieter]

What you do have to watch is if the humidifier you get has an electronically controlled off/on button....... the separate control switch won't work with them because every time the control switch turns off power the humidifier button needs to be pushed to restart. The older ones have a manual twist type switch with the speed tied to it (off/low/medium/high) those work fine with the external control switch.

This seems to be the tricky part, then. How do you find a newer humidifier that works with the controller? I found a Vornado Evap40 that does not need to be restarted, but reviews indicate it is not able to change the RH much in the room. I don't think it will work in a room with a woodstove, though it might be good in a back bedroom. I've also seen a few that have a twist switch for adjusting, but they have a "safety" shutoff if the power goes out (must manually restart), so no good. I saw someone using a swamp cooler as a humidifier (it was in a greenhouse environment), they said most of these have analog controls.

[ajh]

The size of the room makes a big difference....the woodstove hurts also. They are advertised as "Whole House" units....but that is very, very optimistic. I use mine in a smaller bedroom in a 100 year old house with the old hot water radiators. Most of the evaporative cabinet types are (and were) made by Essick. Another factor to consider is that in a larger room you pretty much have to run them at full speed.......and they are noisy even when new. If you can't keep the instruments in a more controlled environment (smaller room) and still want to go this route, I guess I'd look for a used one with the twist knob and take my chances. The motor is what typically (in my experience) goes. New replacrment motors are about 40 including shipping. Or find another used one to cannibalize (what I do). They are pretty easy to switch out. You do have to make sure the motor numbers are the same but that is fairly easy to do. If you want more info PM me. Otherwise see what others have to say.....

[Sue Rieter]

Well, I probably do want to keep them in a smaller room, but I want to play them in the main space. So I was thinking about trying to humidify both spaces so that the instruments don't receive a shock when I take them out. Also not a bad idea to have extra humidity for the people and cats. Maybe I don't have to worry about a controller in the main space? Might "some" humidification plus an accurate hygrometer be enough for when I take them out, as long as they are stored optimally? Maybe just one of those ones you put in kids rooms when they are sick. I just can't see wanting to squirrel myself away in a back room when I want to play.

[pops1]

I have my humidifier, and wood heat. It works on the low setting and keeps my place humidified, doesn't run all the time either. I do have a small place and fairly tight so that is a big difference from an old house and a lot of air exchanging from outside. A low pressure spray foam to seal any air leaks will help a lot with heat and humidity. The last place I lived in was old and on the hill, I spent a lot of time sealing leaks until I had it fairly sealed.

[ajh]

Yep, like pops said....the room makes a huge difference. Cubic footage (not square footage) and how the room breathes. I know my controlled bedroom can drop from 45% to 35% in a little over an hour so it is pretty leaky.....the joys of being a renter in an interesting old house. I keep the nicer instruments humidity controlled in the winter to keep them from drying out. But I don't worry too much about taking them out of the room to play or bring to another place. I don't know if it shocks them much because it does take the wood awhile to dry out, but I try to keep away from the wet/dry cycling over short periods as much as I can so as not to work the glue joints. I do keep a couple other instruments in uncontrolled other rooms to just pick up when the mood hits. And the acoustics go out of tune pretty drastically. Another vote for the Caliber IV hygrometer. I initially tried using my humidifier in the main rooms. Running on high it never moved the needle...from five feet away. Every circumstance is different.

Humidity change is what gives the luthiers their income.

[Alfons]

The living room, where I like to practice, has a wide diurnal temperature fluctuation in the winter. Even if I keep the instruments in a different part of the house, do I need to worry about bringing them out to play? I can set up a humidifier, but what about quick temperature changes between, say, 63F and 80-ish?

My luthier has told me that I shouldn't worry about taking my instruments on a "day trip" as long as they are not going anyplace too extreme and are going back to a stable, properly humidified environment afterward. So far I haven't found fault with that advice. I think a trip to your livingroom qualifies as safe. I also like to take over the livingroom or sometimes the kitchen when I have the house to myself, and so far so good. Sometimes those little changes even provide some unexpected inspiration.