For those who live in arid climates and/or high altitudes do you give your pipes a drink (maybe dump a little water in the bag)? I know uilleann pipes are “dry” pipes but all reeds sound better with some moisture even if it is just atmospheric.
Cheers,
Aaron
Living in Utah, our relative humidity averages less than 10%. I’ve never put anything into my bag, and I don’t suck on my reeds like I did when playing the clarinet years ago.
The reeds seem stable enough I guess, but it’s tough to say. I’m not entirely convinced my chanter (David Daye penny chanter) is tuned super well either - but most likely, it’s my own lack of experience with pipes.
I talked to one guy here, who plays a little, and he said he sometimes blows into the blowpipe to fill the bag to start, and the moisture from his breath mellows out his reed. I haven’t wanted to try it myself, as I’ve heard that can do nasty things to the cane.
Hope that’s of SOME help! 
B~
A tiny bit of breath won’t hurt your reed. Though if the humidity is very low, it probably won’t help mellow it much as it would dry very quickly and return to its shape/former status.
Tim Britton (in his reedmaking video), for example, after making a reed, puts it into a chanter and blows directly into it for a few seconds.
Personally, I would simply find or make a reed that works in such a dry situation.
Dionys
The other day I was making grape juice in a steamer type juicer, so in the evening I came in from the vinyard and sat down in the kitchen and decided to strap my pipes on while I watched the bottles fill.
The juicer had been going all day so it was a little humid. I suddenly noticed my chanter reed played freer esp. noticeable in the upper E, although the entire upper register became softer and easier to play. The regulator reeds were in better tune also.
I’ll be keeping the tea kettle on from now on, esp this winter. I think I’d just gotten use to a stiff reed over the years(that works okay) thinking it was just crisp, but now I know it was just dry. What a difference! You gotta try this if you are in a dry climate.
By the way, I knew a guy in Arizona years ago that put a piece of dry ice in his bag when it got hot!