America's #1 Online Cigar Auction
first, best, biggest!

Last post 2 years ago by Stogie1020. 35 replies replies.
New humidor set-up - have things changed?
Jump to Bottom | Previous Topic | Next Topic
opelmanta1900 Offline
#1 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 7:46 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
I haven't kept a humidor in years... I noticed boveda makes an 84% seasoning pack... is that a gimmick? I've always done a shot glass of distilled water until the humidity stabilizes... is that still the preferred method?
Whistlebritches Offline
#2 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 8:02 PM EST
Joined: 04-23-2006
Posts: 22,128
opelmanta1900 wrote:
I haven't kept a humidor in years... I noticed boveda makes an 84% seasoning pack... is that a gimmick? I've always done a shot glass of distilled water until the humidity stabilizes... is that still the preferred method?



That's the way I have always done it.Get it to 70-75% and toss in cigars and heartfelt beads........it'll stabilize in a couple days.
opelmanta1900 Offline
#3 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 8:12 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
I'm thinking I'm gonna go boveda packs in lieu of beads this time around...
Whistlebritches Offline
#4 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 8:27 PM EST
Joined: 04-23-2006
Posts: 22,128
opelmanta1900 wrote:
I'm thinking I'm gonna go boveda packs in lieu of beads this time around...



I've never been a huge fan but whatever floats your boat.I use water crystals in my closet humi and beads in my desk top,it's what works for me in dry as a bone winters and scorching hot summers.
opelmanta1900 Offline
#5 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 8:36 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
I like how I can switch out the dry packs for fresh ones while I recharge them... and I like how a lot of the companies I like use boveda packs in their boxes... it means I have extras and always getting more...

I used the beads for years... eventually they got discolored and picked up some off odors... almost certainly use error... I also found rehydrating them to be a bit of a pita... and they took up a lot more room in a desktop than I like surrendering...
rfenst Offline
#6 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 8:36 PM EST
Joined: 06-23-2007
Posts: 39,255
opelmanta1900 wrote:
I haven't kept a humidor in years... I noticed boveda makes an 84% seasoning pack... is that a gimmick? I've always done a shot glass of distilled water until the humidity stabilizes... is that still the preferred method?

Waste of money and time.

Dampen (not dripping wet) a folded paper towel with distilled water and wipe/dampen the entire inside of the spanish cedar. Close the lid. Do the same thing again the next day for 2-4 days, then put your hygrometer in and test the RH. If it has stabilized, put a bunch of cigars in it with a Boveda that is the RH you prefer.
opelmanta1900 Offline
#7 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 8:43 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
Personally i avoid putting water directly on the cedar, even if just a damp paper towel... I look at it like curing herb... the slower the process, the more uniform the results...
rfenst Offline
#8 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 8:53 PM EST
Joined: 06-23-2007
Posts: 39,255
opelmanta1900 wrote:
Personally i avoid putting water directly on the cedar, even if just a damp paper towel... I look at it like curing herb... the slower the process, the more uniform the results...

Not even wet, just mildly damp and done over a few days will stabilize things properly. The wood balances out the moisture on its own pretty quickly- certainly faster than acclimating cigars. And, you check it with your hygrometer to make sure it's not too wet... YMMV.
Jakethesnake86 Offline
#9 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 9:00 PM EST
Joined: 12-29-2020
Posts: 4,097
What did you get opie??
LeeBot Offline
#10 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 9:39 PM EST
Joined: 07-08-2020
Posts: 1,984
I got a boveda bag with something I ordered several months ago, had a big boveda pack in it. Said it would last a year. I put pack in a coolerdor, and it started forming crystals within 4 or 5 months. One is really big, like the size of a dime. I read that's when you need to get rid of them. The cooler was moist the whole time with other humidifiers, so the boveda shouldn't have had to do much work. Do they really not last any longer than that? Seems like that would get unnecessarily expensive. I don't get it.
opelmanta1900 Offline
#11 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 11:14 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
Jakethesnake86 wrote:
What did you get opie??

I won a My Father 15th Anni humi in a raffle at the local b&m... from what I understand you can't buy em, they're only made as grand prizes for their raffles... it's a thing of beauty...
opelmanta1900 Offline
#12 Posted: Fri, Jul 2 2021, 11:17 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
LeeBot wrote:
I got a boveda bag with something I ordered several months ago, had a big boveda pack in it. Said it would last a year. I put pack in a coolerdor, and it started forming crystals within 4 or 5 months. One is really big, like the size of a dime. I read that's when you need to get rid of them. The cooler was moist the whole time with other humidifiers, so the boveda shouldn't have had to do much work. Do they really not last any longer than that? Seems like that would get unnecessarily expensive. I don't get it.

You can recharge em easily with distilled water... they give up humidity more readily than other forms of humidification... it's possible your other humidification systems stole the moisture from the bovedas...
Palama Offline
#13 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 12:07 AM EST
Joined: 02-05-2013
Posts: 23,623
opelmanta1900 wrote:
You can recharge em easily with distilled water... they give up humidity more readily than other forms of humidification... it's possible your other humidification systems stole the moisture from the bovedas...


Was thinking the same thing, especially if there’s a mix of RH levels.
Cheno Offline
#14 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 9:04 AM EST
Joined: 06-06-2019
Posts: 1,964
So you are telling us you have an empty humi that holds 100 cigars?? MOOCH POST!!!
Dr. Madhattan Offline
#15 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 4:52 PM EST
Joined: 06-19-2021
Posts: 2
I generally mix table salt and distilled water to a slush-like consistency in a ramekin and close it up in there with a Govee hygro/thermo unit and let it ride for a week or so, opening only to make sure the salt stays hydrated. The ramekin has more surface area than a shotglass and I know exactly the RH it should be reading inside. Easy as pie. Saltwater will get it to 75% RH. Then I pull the saltwater add my sticks and a 68% boveda. The initial drop caused by adding all the sticks usually drops me no lower than 65-66% and it only stays there a day or so until the boveda catches up. Most effecient method I've found by far.
opelmanta1900 Offline
#16 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 5:22 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
Sounds like you're confusing 2 different processes...

The saltwater slush method is used for calibrating a hygrometer (to 75.5)...

You should never, ever put saltwater inside of a humidor...
tonygraz Offline
#17 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 5:47 PM EST
Joined: 08-11-2008
Posts: 20,230
What !?! , No lettuce ?
frankj1 Offline
#18 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 6:09 PM EST
Joined: 02-08-2007
Posts: 44,215
opelmanta1900 wrote:
Sounds like you're confusing 2 different processes...

The saltwater slush method is used for calibrating a hygrometer (to 75.5)...

You should never, ever put saltwater inside of a humidor...

only in a zip lock bag
Cigarick Offline
#19 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 7:49 PM EST
Joined: 07-28-2002
Posts: 3,078
70% humidity, 70 degrees F is ideal from my understanding. They also recommend the same stat's for cigarettes, guitars, and pot.
LeeBot Offline
#20 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 8:58 PM EST
Joined: 07-08-2020
Posts: 1,984
opelmanta1900 wrote:
Sounds like you're confusing 2 different processes...

The saltwater slush method is used for calibrating a hygrometer (to 75.5)...

You should never, ever put saltwater inside of a humidor...



But a Boveda is just distilled water and "natural salts." They either dilute the sodium chloride with something that moderates it, and let's them adjust it down from the default 75 Rh to whatever the pack advertises, or perhaps they use some different type of salt. My understanding is that most of the value added is the 2-way permeable membrane they put the salt in. But, as I have already made clear, I am not a boveda expert.
frankj1 Offline
#21 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 9:43 PM EST
Joined: 02-08-2007
Posts: 44,215
where is thunder.gerbil when we need him?
CelticBomber Offline
#22 Posted: Sat, Jul 3 2021, 11:27 PM EST
Joined: 05-03-2012
Posts: 6,786
Cigarick wrote:
70% humidity, 70 degrees F is ideal from my understanding. They also recommend the same stat's for cigarettes, guitars, and pot.


70% humidity is on the high side... 68% tops.. I like to keep it around 65%
BobGee Offline
#23 Posted: Tue, Jul 6 2021, 3:24 PM EST
Joined: 06-29-2021
Posts: 5
Propylene glycol (PG), distilled water and wet oasis has gone out of style? 25 yrs on, hasn't failed me yet. Set'm and forget'm
opelmanta1900 Offline
#24 Posted: Tue, Jul 6 2021, 3:33 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
Propylene glycol has fallen out of favor with many serious cigar smokers...
BobGee Offline
#25 Posted: Tue, Jul 6 2021, 4:55 PM EST
Joined: 06-29-2021
Posts: 5
Opei: would you know why? Just googled, and it's still recommended. Is it the mess?
Stogie1020 Offline
#26 Posted: Tue, Jul 6 2021, 5:03 PM EST
Joined: 12-19-2019
Posts: 5,308
Because Bovedas are simple and there is no guessing/chasing a RH, it's "Set-and-forget"...
opelmanta1900 Offline
#27 Posted: Tue, Jul 6 2021, 5:37 PM EST
Joined: 01-10-2012
Posts: 13,954
Cigars stored under pg for a long time can end up with a metallic taste... some swear they can't tell a difference but others swear they can... I steer clear...
LeeBot Offline
#28 Posted: Mon, Jul 19 2021, 9:12 PM EST
Joined: 07-08-2020
Posts: 1,984
I found a completely dry Boveda in an empty box I bought. Hard as a rock, stiff as a board. I left it sitting in my home office, and It's been so humid in Philadelphia, it has come back to life. Still a little grainy, but I imagine it will get more hydrated as summer goes on.

My struggle this time of year is keeping the humidity out of the coolers and Tupperware. I'll have to throw some dessicant packs in soon. Bigger versions of the small ones that come in your beef jerky that they tell stupid people not to eat. Life in the East Coast soup.
bgz Offline
#29 Posted: Tue, Jul 20 2021, 11:51 PM EST
Joined: 07-29-2014
Posts: 13,023
I can confirm what Opie said... pg makes your cigars taste like sh*t.

I mean, if you don't have taste buds, have at it, I'm sure it's fine.
tonygraz Offline
#30 Posted: Wed, Jul 21 2021, 6:55 AM EST
Joined: 08-11-2008
Posts: 20,230
And all that time I blamed it on Gurkha.
shaun341 Offline
#31 Posted: Wed, Jul 21 2021, 4:55 PM EST
Joined: 08-02-2012
Posts: 8,826
opelmanta1900 wrote:
I won a My Father 15th Anni humi in a raffle at the local b&m... from what I understand you can't buy em, they're only made as grand prizes for their raffles... it's a thing of beauty...




That is a nice looking piece....Congrats on the score!
Mr. Jones Offline
#32 Posted: Wed, Jul 21 2021, 9:31 PM EST
Joined: 06-12-2005
Posts: 19,419
Cat pearls
Nicky Bell Offline
#33 Posted: Wed, Jul 21 2021, 11:58 PM EST
Joined: 07-18-2021
Posts: 1
I just bought a new humidor and plan on trying out the boveda packs to season it for 14 days. Just from what i've seen on youtube has me interested. I'm gunna test them up against my cousins humidor with a more traditional setup.
ZRX1200 Offline
#34 Posted: Thu, Jul 22 2021, 1:22 AM EST
Joined: 07-08-2007
Posts: 60,582
Boveda packs are fine but the only way to season a humidor is lettuce. Romaine.
Stogie1020 Offline
#35 Posted: Thu, Jul 22 2021, 11:07 AM EST
Joined: 12-19-2019
Posts: 5,308
ZRX1200 wrote:
Boveda packs are fine but the only way to season a humidor is lettuce. Romaine.

You gotta wash it first though, right? Otherwise you could give your cigars e-coli...
Users browsing this topic
Guest
Back to Top