Announcement, Care & Maintenance: Humidity & Temperatures

Thank You.

Thank you for purchasing your new fantastic guitar from us at Presto Music.

Congratulations, you are now the exclusive caretaker of a fine stringed instrument. Every instrument we encounter is special to us and we hope it will bring many years of enjoyment.

To preserve the remarkable tone, appearance and playability of your new guitar, here is one of several pertinent posts that provide simple and quick suggestions to help ensure that your instrument will be making beautiful music for years to come.

Humidity & Temperatures

With any high-quality solid wood instrument, humidity and temperature will be very important factors affecting the health and longevity of your guitar.

Humidity and temperature can be easily monitored and regulated with correct accessories; specifically, a thermometer and a hygrometer.

Simply, an “in-the-case” approach to humidity control can be sufficient, or you can monitor and treat the room in which your instrument will be stored.

By measuring the relative humidity (RH) and temperature of your storage environment to determine if it is suitable.

Measuring daily for a week or fortnightly will help determine whether conditions are stable.

Your instrument was usually built in a controlled environment with an RH of approximately 45% with a temperature of 20°C.

An RH of between 40% and 50% at this same temperature will ensure a suitable environment for you when you take it home.

(Note: RH is temperature-dependent. Air with 45% RH at 16°C does not have the same water content as air at 20°C with 45% RH.)

If your storage environment falls below 40% RH, it is suggested that an investment in a humidifier with variable controls to establish proper RH will be a shrewd decision.

If the environment rises above 50% RH, a variable-control dehumidifier will be needed to achieve optimal RH.

Humidifiers and dehumidifiers are commonly available.

The transfer of vapour between the wood of the guitar and that of the atmosphere is a relatively slow process, and this is extremely beneficial.

When an instrument is stored within a case, the vapour transfer process is slowed even further.

By keeping the instrument in suitable conditions most of the time, you can take it on short trips to places with less desirable RH conditions without causing problems.

If you are taking a longer trip it suggested that you may want to use an in-case humidity control and measurement tool.

Importantly, before taking steps to control humidity, an accurate measure of the humidity conditions inside your room or guitar case will ensure safe maintenance results.

You will probably notice the symptoms of an RH problem before it poses a serious threat.

Some common signs of improper humidification are listed below.

It is good practice to avoid exposing your instrument to extreme temperatures (such as a car on a “hopefully” hot day, or when possible, the cargo hold of a plane). Avoiding prolonged exposure to temperatures below 15° F or above 25° F is ideal.