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Last post 21 years ago by 550025. 13 replies replies.
Homemade Humidors
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haque Offline
#1 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 11:20 AM EST
Joined: 08-02-2002
Posts: 24
Hopefully I'm not beating a dead horse, but has anyone had any success in converting a piece of furniture (e.g., nightstand, cabinet) into a humidor? I know about coolerdors, but I wanted to try to build something a little more presentable. My specific concerns are how to maintain a good seal and what would be the best way to line the piece with Spanish Cedar. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
xrundog Offline
#2 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 1:49 PM EST
Joined: 01-17-2002
Posts: 2,212
I've given lots of thought to this. I think you can turn almost anything into a humidor. Hardwood is best. A soft wood will suck up moisture and warp. See www.biesanz.com/humidor.htm for some good info on working with spanish cedar. The seal just needs to be good enough to maintain RH for a reasonable amount of time. There are various ways to do it. Look at pictures of humidors, it's usually done by using a special cut on the cedar. You just have to experiment a little. What specifically do you have in mind?
haque Offline
#3 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 2:39 PM EST
Joined: 08-02-2002
Posts: 24
Thanks xrundog for the info. What I had in mind was buying a storage cabinet or nightstand that was cheap at Target or a similar place. My concern is that most of the "furniture" at these types of places are constructed with particle board with a laminate of some kind. I figured if I lined it with Spanish cedar and made sure I got a good seal throughout it may work (e.g., weatherstipping around the doors, etc.) If it doesn't look like it will be worth the time, I may just go the coolerdor route.
DrMaddVibe Offline
#4 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 3:12 PM EST
Joined: 10-21-2000
Posts: 55,550
What about yard sales and thrift stores? I wouldn't waste time with particle board either.

I'm in the middle of converting buffet table into a humidor/wine rack. It's gonna take almost 30 board feet in Spanish Cedar. The guys at the lumber store ordered it and when I showed them the plans they flipped out. I'm going to take before and after pictures.
xrundog Offline
#5 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 5:33 PM EST
Joined: 01-17-2002
Posts: 2,212
DMV, I want to see those pics! And I agree on buying something secondhand. Buy something with a bad finish for cheap. Then you can redo it as you like.
SteveS Offline
#6 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 6:16 PM EST
Joined: 01-13-2002
Posts: 8,751
GIGO: a high-tech expression that stands for "Garbage In, Garbage Out"

If you use a "cheap" piece of furniture from Target, you'll have a "cheap" humidor when you're done ... but perhaps it will not be an inexpensive one .... far better to pick up a piece of old furniture at an estate sale, a garage sale, a flea market or wherever ... finish is unimportant ... integrity of the item IS ... after you use the spanish cedar to line it, you can always refinish it ...

You should know that unless it's a true antique, it will almost certainly be a high-grade wood veneer over a MDF or HDF board and you should use great care to not sand through the veneer.

There's not much danger in the wood warping from the humidity of a humidor ... after all, lots of people, many of them in this forum, live in climates where the ambient humidity is frequently higher for a sustained period than inside their humidor and their furniture doesn't warp ...

Go back in the pics board and find the pics that one of our guys posted of his homemade humidor ... I can't remember who it was now, but it was an exceptionally nice job .... late spring or early summer I think ...


SteveS Offline
#7 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 6:24 PM EST
Joined: 01-13-2002
Posts: 8,751
Should have also said ... my best advise is to do a coolerador ... it's easier, quicker, and cheaper than to refinish a piece of furniture and unless you're doing one hell of a big piece, you're gonna need the coolerador anyway ...

With your cigars taken care of and the pressure off, you can take a little more time to find just the right item to work with and take the time to do it right ... which is always better than doing it over.
jjohnson28 Offline
#8 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 7:27 PM EST
Joined: 09-12-2000
Posts: 7,914
Ya'll need to check out Bud451's converted Armoire!

I just topped it on the Pic board.
emgjet Offline
#9 Posted: Thu, Oct 17 2002, 8:25 PM EST
Joined: 11-28-2001
Posts: 1,231
Hello, I posted a pic of my homemade humidor around July Titled: "My Treasure Chest". Check it out and ask me any questions.
Ed
SteveS Offline
#10 Posted: Fri, Oct 18 2002, 7:15 AM EST
Joined: 01-13-2002
Posts: 8,751
Last night, in speaking of a pic one of our number had posted of his home made humidor, I wrote: "... I can't remember who it was now, but it was an exceptionally nice job .... late spring or early summer I think ..."

It was Ed's "Treasure Chest" that I was thinking of ... (see his post above) ... it really is worth a look ... and so is Bud's converted armoire ... that pic was topped just this morning
SteveS Offline
#11 Posted: Fri, Oct 18 2002, 8:02 AM EST
Joined: 01-13-2002
Posts: 8,751
I found and topped the pic of Ed's Treasure Chest so that it is also readily available to illustrate what can result when a fine old piece of furniture meets a guy with imagination, skill, and a determination to create a thing of function and beauty ...
emgjet Offline
#12 Posted: Fri, Oct 18 2002, 11:04 AM EST
Joined: 11-28-2001
Posts: 1,231
Thanks for the plug Steve, glad you still remember. Hope everything is well...see you on the boards.
Ed
penzt8 Offline
#13 Posted: Fri, Oct 18 2002, 11:43 AM EST
Joined: 06-05-2000
Posts: 1,771
I just brought up an old picture post of mine also. titled "cabinet for smokerings" I think. No need to line with cedar because I keep the cigars in the boxes. I got rid of the big humidifier and put in some smaller passive humidifiers. Had to make room for more cigars.
550025 Offline
#14 Posted: Fri, Oct 18 2002, 2:50 PM EST
Joined: 08-08-2001
Posts: 153
I was snooping around Amazon and found a book on building humidors. I have no interest in trying to fulfill that fantasy, but with some of the workmanship I've seen on Pics board, some of you may want to give it a search.

I'd have to buy $5000 worth of tools to build a $150 humi.

KV
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