I live in Las Vegas which is VERY VERY dry and harsh on my acoustic guitar. I bought a very good guitar and struggled with keeping it hydrated. I keep it in the hard shell case that it came with and after a few years I noticed it wasn't enough as the frets were protruding and I noticed a two very small hairline cracks in one of the spaces between the frets. Immediately, I began rehydrating it in a shower stall with an ultrasonic hydrator set at 55% (being monitored by two hygrometers). It took months for it to rehydrate and now the frets are smooth again. The small cracks have healed but can still be seen if you know where to look. Since this incident I have purchased a better hydration pack system (3-pack) that goes in the sound hole and case when not being played. However, I still give the guitar and case a nice hydration exposure on a regular weekly basis and it seems to have stopped the drying. I am being careful not to over-hydrate the guitar. Seems silly to have to explain all of this, but what is the optimal relative humidity that a guitar should be kept at? Also, I have a newer electric guitar and will it fall to the same drying out that the acoustic fell susceptible to? Would you recommend keeping the electric hydrated in the same manner to prevent the fretboard from drying out?
Sincerely,
Rob Williams
I live in Las Vegas which is VERY VERY dry and harsh on my acoustic guitar. I bought a very good guitar and struggled with keeping it hydrated. I keep it in the hard shell case that it came with and after a few years I noticed it wasn't enough as the frets were protruding and I noticed a two very small hairline cracks in one of the spaces between the frets. Immediately, I began rehydrating it in a shower stall with an ultrasonic hydrator set at 55% (being monitored by two hygrometers). It took months for it to rehydrate and now the frets are smooth again. The small cracks have healed but can still be seen if you know where to look. Since this incident I have purchased a better hydration pack system (3-pack) that goes in the sound hole and case when not being played. However, I still give the guitar and case a nice hydration exposure on a regular weekly basis and it seems to have stopped the drying. I am being careful not to over-hydrate the guitar. Seems silly to have to explain all of this, but what is the optimal relative humidity that a guitar should be kept at? Also, I have a newer electric guitar and will it fall to the same drying out that the acoustic fell susceptible to? Would you recommend keeping the electric hydrated in the same manner to prevent the fretboard from drying out? Sincerely, Rob Williams
