If you're using HF beads for humidity control, just dry them a bit with a hair drier, then put them back in and they will bring the humidity down to their set point. If you are using HCM beads, then the procedure is a bit different, since you can actually change the setpoint of the beads, best to take a look at Scott/Michael's directions for that.

If you're not using beads, get some.

Thunder.Gerbil wrote:

Are the gel crystals the sames as beads or are you referring to something altogether different?

Convict wrote:

Two different things.

Gel is super-absorbent polymer (SAP) crystals, they can hold up to something like 1000x their own volume/weight in water. It's what you find in the Xikar gel, HUMI-CARE Crystal Gel, Cigar Mechanic jars, etc. "Gel Beads" are the same thing, just in a round casing or some **** like that. Gel holds a lot of water and is good for raising humidity, it can even pull a bit of humidity out of the air, but it's slow to react in all cases.

Beads are either silica based or a clay-salt base depending on the manufacturer. They don't hold anywhere near as much water, but they react very quickly and can lower humidity almost as well as they can raise it. They also come in various RH set points, some come 60%, 65% and 70%, while another brand can be set to any RH you want. Gel, by contrast, seems to typically hover in the 67%-70%ish range.

While we're on the subject - Boveda packs & Humidipak (same thing) are a salt solution with a two way permeable membrane.

Hope that helps clear things up a bit.

Thunder.Gerbil wrote:

It does, And Thank You!. Ive been told that the PG affects the taste of cigars, not sure if thats just a rumor, But its what most people use in their humidifiers. Ive also been told that the Beads will absorb any Ammonia that is dissipated from the cigars. Dont know if the Boveda does either.

Convict wrote:

Listen to TG he knows EVERYTHING about cigars and the stuff that goes with em. 👍

tugboat wrote:

Two different things.

Gel is super-absorbent polymer (SAP) crystals, they can hold up to something like 1000x their own volume/weight in water. It's what you find in the Xikar gel, HUMI-CARE Crystal Gel, Cigar Mechanic jars, etc. "Gel Beads" are the same thing, just in a round casing or some **** like that. Gel holds a lot of water and is good for raising humidity, it can even pull a bit of humidity out of the air, but it's slow to react in all cases.

Beads are either silica based or a clay-salt base depending on the manufacturer. They don't hold anywhere near as much water, but they react very quickly and can lower humidity almost as well as they can raise it. They also come in various RH set points, some come 60%, 65% and 70%, while another brand can be set to any RH you want. Gel, by contrast, seems to typically hover in the 67%-70%ish range.

While we're on the subject - Boveda packs & Humidipak (same thing) are a salt solution with a two way permeable membrane.

Hope that helps clear things up a bit.

Thunder.Gerbil wrote:

I am also having problems with humidity--I can't seem to get it above 45-50% in my small (20 cigar) humidor. Have used one of those humidifying bags and an absorbing foam thing that came with an order. I live in an area with low ambient humidity, which likely causes the problem. Suggestions anyone?

chsteiner wrote:

seems like everyone else has more proficient ways of dealing with this...all i did was take out my humidifying device and open the draws a little bit for a few hours and that seemed to do the trick. then once the humidity died down i put them back in and ive have readings in the 65-70rh range consistently

b1gblue92 wrote:

Have you calibrated your hygrometer?

--BEGIN

2) Wanna get a little more technical? Try the Salt Test:

Luckily, as nature would have it, when salt and water (NaCl and H2O for you studious types), are in a saturated solution at equilibrium, the resultant humidity is 75%. This gives a fantastic reference point to calibrate our hygrometer. There is an easy way to determine if your hygrometer is accurate. Here's the procedure you should use: you need a ziploc bag, a screw-on beer bottle cap (or other small container) a small amount of salt (regular 'ole table salt), and water.

Place the salt in the bottle cap (or other small container).

Dampen the salt with water. Do not put so much in that the salt gets "sloppy". You want a damp pile of salt in the bottle cap.

Place both the hygrometer and the bottle cap full of damp salt in the ziploc bag and seal it well. (It is important not to let air on or out while the test is going on.)

Keep it like this for over 8 hours.

After 8 hours in the damp salt environment, the actual humidity inside the bag will be 75%. Compare it to your hygrometer, your hygrometer should also read 75%. If not, you will then know exactly how far off your hygrometer is. If it's off, note the amount and direction that it actually reads and be sure to add or subtract that amount when reading the hygrometer. If the hygrometer has a control to adjust it (either the needle or the display), you can set the hygrometer to 75% immediately after the test.

---END

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/html/cig101_12st.asp 

After you have done that, if the humidity is still low, check the humidor for leaks.

You can take a flashlight, turn it on, put it in the humidor (after taking your cigars out) and take the humidor into a darkened room to see if you observe any light from the seal/joints.

You can take a dollar bill, lay it over the seal, close the humidor and try to slide it around the opening. If it slides, you can use some masking tape on the seal lip of the humidor to get it to make a better seal.

There are a few other ways, but you get the idea.

If it's one of the real thin bottomed humidors, like the various manufacturer logo humidors they sell here, the bottoms on those don't appear to be sealed. Put it on a sheet of sheet of plastic, plexi-glass or onto a counter that doesn't breathe (tile, glass, varnished etc).

Thunder.Gerbil wrote: