Okay, so I finally got my new humi up and running and just put some of my sticks to bed earlier this week. Here's the question: The humidity level is holding at a perfect 70%, but the temperature in my apartment, and in the humi, is around 63-65 degrees.

Will the 'gars suffer over time if they consistently stay at a lower temperature than the recommended 70 degrees? Any thoughts?

63-65 degrees is fine, especially if your humidor is stable at 70% humidity. I usually like to store my cigars in the low 60's for temperature, at about 65% humidity.

I wouldn't worry 🙂 Just keep an eye on your cigars...if they don't smoke right, make changes as needed. Otherwise, keep on truckin.

I have a problem like that also but mine is that the temp is at 70 and the R.H. is at 75% is that a problem?

Shua, you may want to bring down the humidity some... Put a bag of rice in humi to absorb some moisture... Or maybe try PG solution in your humidifier.

Low

I think 75% is too high. I try not to exceed 68%.

I only worry if the temp is high, because that's when beetles come out to play!

Humidity is relative... The purests say, 70/70, or 70 degrees and 70% humidity. However, many others here say 70/65 or a lower humidity. Keep in mind that temparature and humidity are related (like many people in Georgia). Holding humidity constant, and raising the temperature will actually result in a higher "RH". Conversly, holding humidity constant and lowering the temperature will result in a lower RH. If you're desire is to achieve 70/70 "like" humidification, then at 65 degrees, I would shoot more for 73% or higher humidity. I'd have to consult a table to be sure. If you're objective is really 70/65 as many here profess, I would go 65 degrees and 70% which should be the same as 70 degrees and 67 or 68%. Again, I would consult a table for specifics. Just keep in mind the inverse relationship between temperture and "Relative Humidity". For me and my door, it stays at 70 degrees and about 67-68% humidity.

GOBP,

When I was in a cigar store in Bermuda, hanging on the wall was a temp/humidity chart. At ___, humidity should be ____. Do you have a chart like that??

Low

BTW, While in the store this long, lovely lady kept calling me... I think her name was Ms. Partagas... Luci, I think... Showed her a $20 and she was mine...LOL

Hey Grizzled, Methinks you got it backwards. Relative humidity is relative to the saturation point. At 100 percent humidity the air is saturated so it cannot hold any more moisture. Warm air can hold more moisture than cool air, that's why stuff drys faster on a warm day. If you take warm, moist air and cool it off it will become saturated, that's why there's dew on the grass in the morning. Therefore, increasing the temperature will DECREASE the Relative Humidity and vicie versie.

But that's just science. As a practical matter so long as the digital whachamacallit in my humidor reads somewhere between 65-70 I'm happy and so are my cigars.

efm is right. If the air is gradually cooled while maintaining the moisture content constant, the relative humidity will rise until it reaches 100%. This temperature, at which the moisture content in the air will saturate the air, is called the dew point . If the air is cooled further, some of the moisture will condense.

KC

Dyslexia... Sorry; but my point being that yes, temp is that important.

Examples of How Relative Humidity Changes Occur

On a 30 degree F day with an outdoor RH of 60%, the relative humidity indoors can drop to levels as low as 15% when the air is heated to 70 degrees F (as the air is heated it expands giving it the capacity to hold more moisture. If moisture is not added to the air as it is heated the RH level may drop considerably). If the outdoor temperature is 10 degrees F, the indoor relative humidity may fall to 8% or less. These are extreme levels of dryness. As a comparison, the average relative humidity in the Sahara Desert is 25%.

Since warm air can hold more water vapor than cold air, the relative humidity of the air can be changed by simply changing its temperature. If in the winter, outside air at 20 degrees F and 65% RH is drawn inside and heated to 70F without humidification, its RH drops to about 10%. In summer, outside air at 70F and 60% RH flows into a basement at 60F causing an increase in RH up to 82%.

Here's a table that shows it pretty well. It looks like at 70 degrees and appx. 70% humidity, that a 5 degree drop in temperature will cause approximately a 3% reduction in RH.

http://nesen.unl.edu/resources/TeachingTools/humidityf.htm 

OK, all. I will probably get trounced for this somewhat scientific explanation, but here goes...

MY ASSUMPTION: If you ignore foreign invaders, such as insects, mold, trees, etc., then the overall effect on the cigar is likely to be from the total water available to the cigar. This is equivalent to the absolute humidity contained in a cigar's volume. As previous posters mentioned correctly, lower RH at a higher temperature is equivalent to higher RH at a lower temperature in terms of the total moisture load of the air.

That being said, the following temp/RH combinations all have equivalent water vapor (12.8 g/m3 if you care).

65ºF/84% RH
66ºF/81% RH
68ºF/75% RH
70ºF/70% RH
72ºF/65% RH
74ºF/61% RH
75ºF/59% RH

In each case, the Dew Point is 60ºF, as the total amount of water isn't changing.

Now, I don't profess to know whether total moisture is the only determinant of cigar flavor/smokability/whatever, and bugs and mold definitely prefer warmer temps. But if your house isn't a steady 70ºF, at least you have an RH level to target to keep those smokes from getting too dry/soggy.

http://www.overgrow.com/tools/rhumidity.php 

Hope this helps,

Eric

Thanks everyone for the thoughts.

Eric, if you're correct, I should be storing my sticks at almost 80%+ RH. I agree with your logic about trying to replicate the same humidity by volume as is present at 70/70, and by calculation, your figures seem correct. But I've never heard of anyone storing cigars at that humidity (though I don't know so many cigar-storing people!). anyone else have a thought on this?

Thanks in advance.

the fallacy of the concept of offsetting the temp and humidity can be readily seen if one considers the effects of storing cigars at 40deg and 100% humidity ... or vice-versa.

A little variation from 70 won't make much diff ... a big variation will ... same with humidity, although I've been far happier with 65-68 humidity than I was with 70 ...

temp of 70 with humidity of 65 results in no draw and or burn problems ... both of which I had more of at 70/70 ...

Eric you are the man! I've searched and searched for that info presented in that format. Gideon, warm them babies up or hose um down! This is why people say "NOOOOO! When someone says, yeah, I wanted to keep them fresh, so I put them in the fridge" Folks figure, it works for bologna. But the cold temp makes it like a desert or like a dessert depending…

egruff, I can't buy the "absolute humidity" thing. The temperature im my coolador is seldom over 60ºF except in summer. If I kept the RH over eighty as your chart suggests the cigars would be unsmokable. I can't argue theory on this but I know from experience that when the digital thingamajig reads over 80% the cigars will smoke like a wet noodle. Anybody that doesn't believe that only has to try it.

efm - I agree!! I rarely pay attention to my hygrometers... Just feel the sticks and refill on a schedule or as necessary...

Now guys, I'm not advocating cranking up the RH and storing your 'gars at 40 degrees, or anything like that. I was trying to point out that the amount of moisture in a humidor or cigar is the same at the different temp/RH combinations. I suspect (strongly) that the aging of the cigar IS dependent on temperature, so there is a significance to 70ºF. What I think can be inferred is that if your house/humidor is 66º and the RH reads 74%, for instance, then you shouldn't worry that your sticks will turn to mush. Conversely, if you live in the desert and the house is 74ºF, you shouldn't panic if your hygrometer reads 65%.

I work in the pharmaceutical industry and the same thing applies to storage of prescription drugs. What is important is the overall moisture load that a tablet or capsule will contain, not the RH. Anyway, it's just some interesting info - use it (or don't) as you all see fit.

Eric