Wineador Journal

[jeffturneraz]

I can tinker and figure out on my own, but am interested if anyone cares to chime in with an opinion.

You can see my set up as it is currently above.

My cedar tray from CheapHum's is coming today.

This thing is fairly small, the tray, wondering if I am going to have to toss the KL I have now and start over. It's dialed in perfectly, but I know this new tray is going to throw everything out of whack.

Maybe I can wipe it down, then throw it in there with KL I have. It seems like such a minor change and such a small object, I hope to avoid starting over with full on seasoning. Maybe no wsy around it. Huh..who knows, I will find out soon enough.

 

[nystogiesmoker22]

When I set mine up, I just used a new sponge, DW, and I wiped down all the wood. I used a small amount. ( moderation is key here or you can warp the wood) after I did that I put in bowls of DW for a week I let the Rh get around 75, took out all DW then let the rh come down to a few degrees higher then I was shooting for. I added the proper amount of KL, let it go another week till it was solid at the 64-65 rh I like. Then added my sticks.

 

[AdamJoshua]

The blue pieces in the kitty litter are the flavor crystals right? :dunno:

 

[cgraunke]

Shawn (nystogiesmoker22) is dead on for staring a new setup! But, rather than start over, do you have a big enough ziplock to fit the tray in? Or a tupperware? Get the tray seasoned in its own enclosure, then transfer once it's stabilized. I would say this would have less effect on your cigars than transferring them all out and starting over...

 

[jeffturneraz]

Shawn (nystogiesmoker22) is dead on for staring a new setup! But, rather than start over, do you have a big enough ziplock to fit the tray in? Or a tupperware? Get the tray seasoned in its own enclosure, then transfer once it's stabilized. I would say this would have less effect on your cigars than transferring them all out and starting over...

Yeah, what Shawn is explaining is what I did also originally.

May not have worded correctly but I'm hoping to avoid doing that again. Will have my drawers from Forrest in 5 to whatevervweeks from now...at that time I definitely will have to start over.

I like what you are saying, so hypothetically, if this 1 tiny tray is totally seasoned separately, sticking that in my fridge should only change my RH slightly if that much at all.

I like it, don't think I have anything large enough to hold the tray and a container of DW.

I will look, if I find one and this works I will let you know, ha.

 

[jeffturneraz]

Okay, nm...couldn't find large enough container to separately season tray.

I just started all over and dumped the KL. Squeezed my cigars into this tupperdore and shoved it in wine cooler so they stay cool next 3 or 4 days while I wait, have to rush out tonight and buy another tupperware.

Dialing in my KL is not my favorite part, you make one tiny change to the environment inside, sheez...for the cryin out loud, lol

 

[cgraunke]

You shouldn't need to throw out the KL.
If you remove it and put in a sealed container you should be able to put the same stuff back in once the tray is up to RH. The KL in a sealed container should maintain it's "dialed in" humidity. It's the cedar that's really resistant to change (hence, the reason for having the cedar in there in the first place, and the whole "seasoning" process. You season the wood more so than the KL)
No matter what you do, you've got the start of a sweet setup. And, trust me, you're going to love when those trays from forest finally arrive!

 

[Sirspanksalot]

Sorry for the slight derailment guys, just need a quick question answered. Do you guys think I'll need empty boxes to take up space in a 48 quart cooler? I don't have any, and won't have time to get some, but I need a bit more space after some packages arrive this upcoming week.

 

[jeffturneraz]

You shouldn't need to throw out the KL.
If you remove it and put in a sealed container you should be able to put the same stuff back in once the tray is up to RH. The KL in a sealed container should maintain it's "dialed in" humidity. It's the cedar that's really resistant to change (hence, the reason for having the cedar in there in the first place, and the whole "seasoning" process. You season the wood more so than the KL)
No matter what you do, you've got the start of a sweet setup. And, trust me, you're going to love when those trays from forest finally arrive!

Dang, already threw KL away, it's fine my cigars are actually in the wine cooler in their own tupperdor environment while the wineador re-seasons, so that's a win-win.

 

[jeffturneraz]

Sorry for the slight derailment guys, just need a quick question answered. Do you guys think I'll need empty boxes to take up space in a 48 quart cooler? I don't have any, and won't have time to get some, but I need a bit more space after some packages arrive this upcoming week.

Cedar helps keep a stesdy RH. You can either go without and deal with RH, or if you want to add boxes later, as it seems you need to since you want to get it going now, then you will have to go through a changing process like myself, probably need to remove cigars, put in tupperware with bovedas until new boxes and cooler are all in sync.

 

[Sirspanksalot]

Okay, just backed up what I was thinking. Thanks jeff

 

[jeffturneraz]

Okay, just backed up what I was thinking. Thanks jeff

Sure thing bud! Having overflow problems does not suck.

 

[AdamJoshua]

Spanish Cedar absorbs and releases humidity naturally, in a coolador it's not really a big requirement, you are dealing with a sealed plastic container, your beads (or litter) will do just fine. Cedar also is a natural pest repellent, another reason it's used for desktop boxes, beetles are not big fans of cedar.

As far as using pieces of it in your coolidor it doesn't matter all that much and would just take up room. My two cents and input from actually reading up on these things and asking some very sm0rt people.

 

[jeffturneraz]

Question:

Getting my drawers in the near future as I have just hit the magical 5 week line to where I can actually allow myself to start thinking about them again, and I have a question of opinion.

I have 2 hygro's that I have, from day 1, planned on sticking to the front of the drawers because it looks good and plus you can get reading s without opening the door.

But it has recently occurred to me that while it may not look as cool, having the hygro's inside the drawer towards the back may be more accurate or more of a reading I would want.

Is that crazy talk?

Will the RH be the same on the outside of the front of the very top drawer as it would be inside that same drawer where the cigars actually are?

If I'm going to peel the sticker back off and permanently place them somewhere finally, I want to put them in the best spot obviously.

This is sort of nitpicky question I understand where I'm over-thinking, but it just seems like there is a difference b/t the tight column of space in b/t the front of the drawer and the front of the door....

...as opposed to inside the drawer, considering the KL or beads, etc are in the center bottom rising up through the slats in the drawers.

(Deep thoughts by Jack Handy)

 

[cgraunke]

In front will have the greatest fluctuation, as you will have a drop in humidity every time the door is opened, regardless of if you pull that drawer out. I went with a wireless solution (there are a couple threads with talk from multiple brothers who go this route) If you decide it's for you, do a search for AmbientWeather, or just let me know and I can walk you through it. I love it, I have one display that toggles between six different sensors, placed in multiple humidors, tupperdors and different levels in my wineador. All inconspicuous, yet readable at any time without ever breaking a seal!

 

[jeffturneraz]

In front will have the greatest fluctuation, as you will have a drop in humidity every time the door is opened, regardless of if you pull that drawer out. I went with a wireless solution (there are a couple threads with talk from multiple brothers who go this route) If you decide it's for you, do a search for AmbientWeather, or just let me know and I can walk you through it. I love it, I have one display that toggles between six different sensors, placed in multiple humidors, tupperdors and different levels in my wineador. All inconspicuous, yet readable at any time without ever breaking a seal!

Yes, I love the idea of these but for the moment I will be doing the low-tech xikar hygro's.

 

[cgraunke]

I guess I did stray from your question...
I would personally toss them in the back where they would fluctuate less. I'd worry that looking at them through the glass you'd never really know if it was an accurate reading or if it was still stabilizing from the last time you opened the door.
IMO, there will always be a period of time while you're waiting for humidity from your kl/beads to make up the RH loss that happens at the front every time you open the door.
Granted, the air should circulate rather quickly, but I would imagine the wood at the front would dry faster than that at the rear, most significantly if you have the door open for long periods of time while wrestling with the decision of what cigar to smoke... BOTL problems! 😉

 

[3/5King]

I'll give my two cents (worth millions on the right market) I have two digi hydros in my humidor and whether it is at the front or back, I still see just as much fluctuation. The units are not that big and only 18ish inches difference from front to back. The cedar shelves/draws will be holding the same amount of humidity as the cigars (once seasoned and settled properly) when you open the door, it is the humidity in the air that is being released, unless you are taking the shelves/drawers out for an extended period of time or holding the door open for excess of 10 minutes lol. So what happens is, the moisture leaves the air (when the door is opened) and is stabilized back to a relative humidity by moisture from the KL/Beads/etc. you would have to have that door open for a long time for the moisture levels in your cigars to be affected IMO. It's not a quick process. So I personally feel comfortable keeping them in the front or back. I do recommend two though and also to keep your cigars stored evenly distributed or all clumped together. Don't have a few up top and a hoard at the bottom.

 

[3/5King]

I'll give my two cents (worth millions on the right market) I have two digi hydros in my humidor and whether it is at the front or back, I still see just as much fluctuation. The units are not that big and only 18ish inches difference from front to back. The cedar shelves/draws will be holding the same amount of humidity as the cigars (once seasoned and settled properly) when you open the door, it is the humidity in the air that is being released, unless you are taking the shelves/drawers out for an extended period of time or holding the door open for excess of 10 minutes lol. So what happens is, the moisture leaves the air (when the door is opened) and is stabilized back to a relative humidity by moisture from the KL/Beads/etc. you would have to have that door open for a long time for the moisture levels in your cigars to be affected IMO. It's not a quick process. So I personally feel comfortable keeping them in the front or back. I do recommend two though and also to keep your cigars stored evenly distributed or all clumped together. Don't have a few up top and a hoard at the bottom.

Edit: wineador not humidor. (New Air AW 281e)

 

[cgraunke]

...it is the humidity in the air that is being released, unless you are taking the shelves/drawers out for an extended period of time or holding the door open for excess of 10 minutes...

^^^That's what I was getting at.
Thanks King!