Cold guitar boxes arroved. How long to acclimate to room temp?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Metalhex
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Metalhex

Metalhex

Well-known member
I had to pick up my guitar (in a case, within a cardboard box; NGD coming soon...) And leave it in the trunk of my car at work where it will be at or below freezing until I get home tonight.

Will 12 hours in room temp be safe enough time to get home from work and sleep overnight, wake up around noon and open it?
 
I do it in stages. If you have a garage leave it there for a few hours in the box. Then bring inside in the box for another 3 hours. Then leave it in the case for another few hours, Feel the case. You can tell if it's ok to open.
 
It makes me wonder...what about bands that do small tours in the cold season going from gig to gig? Certainly their guitars must be fluctuating like a mother going from one extreme to the next.
 
Depends on how cautious you want to be. There’s been several threads like this on here and seems a mixed bag, some live by giving it time to acclimate while others believe it’s silly and play straight away.

I had a guitar arrive a couple days ago from FedEx, it was ice cold. I took the case out of the box and let the guitar sit in the closed case for about 4 or 5 hours. I checked and the guitar was cool but not cold. I took it out and played fine.
 
stratjacket said:
Depends on how cautious you want to be. There’s been several threads like this on here and seems a mixed bag, some live by giving it time to acclimate while others believe it’s silly and play straight away.

I had a guitar arrive a couple days ago from FedEx, it was ice cold. I took the case out of the box and let the guitar sit in the closed case for about 4 or 5 hours. I checked and the guitar was cool but not cold. I took it out and played fine.
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That confirms my excitement and inability to wait 24 hours. I may just open it up tomorrow after 12 hours indoors. What is the worst that can happen then....it explodes?? But still I want to be safe, of course lol
 
I would bring it in the house and open it after 12 hours. Even then, that's probably more than long enough. I imagine it wouldn't take longer than 6 hours for the temperature to equalize. I'll bet that it's a polyurethane finish in which case it probably doesn't matter anyway.
 
Sweetwater recommends 24 hours. That seems excessive to me but they have a lot of experience with this stuff.
 
Fordman65 said:
Let me understand. A guitar travels cross country for days, going through various temp swings and I'm supposed to wait to open it, as to somehow not cause damage? I can bring it in the house immediately, but I can't open it? That makes 0 sense. News flash, the case, nor the box provide any real level of insulated protection.

If you're that worried about acclimating the guitar to room temp, don't bring it in the house immediately after delivery. If you do, open box/ closed box is irrelevant. Maybe keep it in the garage for awhile? Maybe with nitro guitars I would figure out some way to bring it up to room temp slowly, but I think this is mostly BS.
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Right, thats also what I dont understand. Its not like your blasting it directly with a heat gun
 
I think this is more of an issue when the outside temp is really cold, like 15 degrees or something, and the thing has been on the truck all day, I think you might want to let it acclimate. But if its like 30 out, I don't see it being a big deal.
 
The only evidence I've seen of damage occurring due to an extreme and rapid temperature change, is nitrocellulose checking, and from what I've been led to believe, that will only happen with guitars that have only recently been finished and only with an extreme temperature change.
 
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