More Flute Tech (Serious): Humidification

No pix, sorry. What I’ve done is buy guitar “Dampits” (those green perforated rubber tubes with sponge inside) and cut them to length as flute sections indicate. A violin-gauge Dampit works well for the foot section as it’s not as thick, but I’m also using a guitar-size Dampit for one foot section and it works just fine in that case. Some footjoint bores may be too small for that.

Tweaking pointers, if you’re interested: you first need to remove the black hard rubber plug from one end (it’s best to remove the one with the broad flange), which takes a bit of doing, as they’re glued in place. You have to peel the green rubber back. A little cutting can help with this. Then you cut the tube to the length you require, pull out the sponge enough to cut away that amount that would obstruct the plug, stick it back in, and reinsert the plug.

Next trim away the flange with a knife or razor blade. I stand the Dampit up with the flanged plug down on a cutting surface, and trim away the flange by cutting away pieces in a downward motion until the plug cap is fairly even with the Dampit body’s circumference. I find that the length of an unshortened Dampit is perfect for the body proper, so all that’s needed is to trim the plug’s flange.

I put a Dampit in the head section even though it’s lined, as the socket isn’t, and it can’t hurt, anyway.

To hydrate the Dampits, soak them in a glass of water, squeeze them out enough to keep them from dripping, and make sure their surfaces are THOROUGHLY dry before you stick them into your flute sections. I find this very convenient, as the flute can stay in its case and stay hydrated in dry weather. Check your dampits every couple of days or so. The footjoint Dampit usually dries out first.

We’re talking a cost of at least about $45 USD, here, as you’ll need at least three Dampits, but consider by comparison what you shelled out for your baby!

Hope this works for someone. I’ve been using this method for almost a year, now, and I’m pretty satisfied with it. :slight_smile:

I’ve thought about doing this, but I wondered if this was too much humidity inside the flute, and not enough on the outside. This isn’t a problem on guitars or violins since the outside is protected by a finish.

I already have the three dampits from having various instruments over the years. I have the large and regular guitar versions, and the one for violin. The three different sizes would just about right for the head joint, body, and foot joint.

BTW, you really should use distilled water for these since the minerals from tap water will build up over a couple years of use and make the sponge much less effective.

Good idea about the distilled water! Thanks. I hadn’t considered that.

As for inside-to-outside humidification, it would depend on the case. One of mine is a “French” case, which has plenty of air space around the flute parts, so that’s not a problem, I think. The other case is lined with foam, and I cut channels crosswise to the “nesting” channels, connecting them for better humidity distribution. It’s not the most ideal, but I haven’t encountered any problems.

I just put a humidifier in the room with all the wooden instruments but my Flute seems to get the most (more than my Bleazey and my GHBs).