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SOS! Save Our Seegars! Humidor Help!
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ikonoklast7 Offline
#1 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 6:49 AM EST
Joined: 07-13-2003
Posts: 683
I bought a 40-capacity humidor off of CBid, which came with a humidifying unit and an analog hygrometer.

It only had a small instruction card, merely telling how to activate the hygrometer and how to use the humidifier. I did as it said and I couldn't get my humidity to stay above 65%! The humidifier was full, the seal on the humi was airtight, so I couldn't figure out why.

My local tobacconist told me to get a rag and rub distilled water into the wood, let it set, do it again a few hours later, and repeat that a few times.

I followed it, and finally got it to 70%, but it still stayed kinda low, usually around 68% to 70%, never over.

At that time, I only had a few cigars in it...then came the tidal wave! I ordered around 40 cigars from CBid and put them in my humidor and now the humidity has taken a huge plummet. Last I saw, it had crept up to a little over 60%.

My humidor is starting to piss me off. What is the problem? The day I put those cigars in, I had just refilled the humidifier before I loaded the humi up. How can I get my humidor to return to normal?

I've heard people talk about curing or seasoning your humidor, which I know involves letting a wet sponge or a few shot glasses of water (distilled, of course) evaporate in the humidor for several hours. So should I take out the cigars and devote a day to seasoning it? Or is there another trick.

All I want is my humidor to stabilize at about 70%. It has stabilized, but its stabilized on the lower end of acceptable humidity, and I'd like it a little higher. Should I just ignore the hygrometer, since I've been told most analogs are just cheap and don't give a real accurate reading of the humidity? What can I do!?

Please, all you experienced humidor experts. Give me your insite and share some good tips. Be as detailed and descriptive as you need to be! Please help!
puskarich Offline
#2 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 6:59 AM EST
Joined: 01-04-2003
Posts: 2,143
Did you calibrate the hygrometer? Try the salt test.
Gb Offline
#3 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 7:02 AM EST
Joined: 03-20-2003
Posts: 260
When curing the humidor, you will need to do it for more than a few hours... try at least overnight or up to a week.

Before you do anything else, you'll need to make sure your hygrometer is calibrated correctly. I'm sure is some past thread, there is a description of the salt test. Do that to ensure it is set correctly.
sketcha Offline
#4 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 7:06 AM EST
Joined: 03-26-2003
Posts: 3,238
My $.02.

1. Be patient. 60 is not dangerously low as long as it doesn't stay that way forever. If your order of sticks was on the dry side, you want them to raise in humidity slowly.

2. Yes, ignore the hygrometer. Good analogs are +/- 5%. your 68 could easily be 73 so your 60 could be 65. Use your hygrometer as a reference. I think it will eventually rise to you post seasoned 68 or so. When it again stabilizes, that is your reference. When it later starts to fall, add distilled water.

3. Consider 50/50 or Climmax beads. These are low maintenance methods. Both of these will stabilize your humi around 70% and you can eventually calibrate your hygrometer to that with some assurance. Then, again you can use that as a reference only. Again when the hygrometer starts to fall, add water. That's if you're not anal like the rest of us and are checking your credos often for water weight or lack of.

Hope this helps. Good luck.
ajeroth Offline
#5 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 8:37 AM EST
Joined: 07-17-2003
Posts: 1,000
Hi,

I've been having an issue with my digital gages and accurate readings. What are you using in the humidifier? I use 50/50 and just add distilled water whenever it needs it. Keep in mind also that as the temperature goes up the RH should go down. And if the temp goes down the humidity goes up. It is only in balance at 70/70. If you have the room put a shot glass of distilled water in with the cigars and let it sit for a day. Keep an eye on it. It should bring the humidity up and the moisture will soak into the cigars. And won't be pulled from the humidors wood. If it starts going to high take it out and see if it stabilizes. I purchased a 150 capacity a few weeks ago. And it takes a while to season. This is just my opinion though. There are many sites out there and a cigarfaq that is free to download that helped me alot...
sketcha Offline
#6 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 8:55 AM EST
Joined: 03-26-2003
Posts: 3,238
Don't know if this will help, but everyone should have this one.

http://www.cigargroup.com/faq
ikonoklast7 Offline
#7 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 1:33 PM EST
Joined: 07-13-2003
Posts: 683
I tried searching for the salt test, but I can't find anything. So someone tell me...just what is the salt test?

(Note: my humi seems to have stabilized now, but I still want to do the salt test so I can get a more accurate picture of what my relative humidity is)
kccody Offline
#8 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 1:35 PM EST
Joined: 03-19-2007
Posts: 610
go here
http://www.cigarnexus.com/counsel/cigarstorage/index.html#Salttest

sketcha Offline
#9 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 1:36 PM EST
Joined: 03-26-2003
Posts: 3,238
ikonoklast7,

I must refer you again to the above link. You'll find just about every answer to just about every cigar Q.
sketcha Offline
#10 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 1:38 PM EST
Joined: 03-26-2003
Posts: 3,238
O.K., kcody beat me to the punch. I was referring to my posted link. The salt test is just one of numerous things on that site. Very cool.
Robby Offline
#11 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 1:55 PM EST
Joined: 10-30-2002
Posts: 5,067
"ikonoklast7 Date: 07/23/2003 06:33 PM Reply
I tried searching for the salt test, but I can't find anything. So someone tell me...just what is the salt test?"

I did a search and found 29 threads including this one and one was titled "salt test"? Did you notice that there's a date function, i.e., this week, this month, or all messages? You might have been just looking for the past week.


mrtelcom Offline
#12 Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2003, 2:18 PM EST
Joined: 03-25-2004
Posts: 2,255
pttthhb I did a search for "tset tlas" and got 92 hits.

Good post Sketcha.. Not too long ago I was in the same boat and would have saved myself a lot of cursing had someone advised that well.
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