Going back to cooler set up, Boveda question

[StogieJim]

Hey guys, long time no talk. Been a busy year with moving to a new place and doing some renovations. Finally able to relax and smoke more.

Anyways, I tried downsizing before moving last year, sold off a ton of my stash and went to a couple tupperdors with 60g Boveda packs for ease of moving. Didn't last long and am going to move back into my 75qt cooler ( I sold the wino, didn't really need it for temp control).

These 320g Boveda's look to be the ticket. Is that the best thing to use in a cooler, do you mount it to the lid? Would you run two? I used to use heartfelt beads but I don't want to mess with those any more.

Thanks and good to be back

 

[Bondo 440]

Hey Stogie. I have no experience with coolers. I'm cooler-blind.
But welcome back , see you in the threads !

 

[Boudie]

I read the Boveda site information about 320 gram packs. They still recommend using 1- 320 pack for every 25 to 150 cigar sized humidor, just that the large packs last 5 to 6 times longer then the 60s. So you'll need the same number of packs in the coolidor and still have to have packs available to be recharged. I'm assuming it takes longer to recharge a 320 then it does a 60. You can purchase 60 gram packs in volume ( bricks of 20) but I only saw individual packs for the 320s

I always seem to have a need for additional Bovedas and the 60s are super convenient.

 

[BasicTek]

I have the 320's and honestly I like the smaller packs (60s?) better because I can stick them everywhere in the nooks and crannies. The 320's are a better deal for the money but they are so dang big I feel I'm loosing cigar real estate. To note I'm a bit excessive and always have more smokes than I can store so if you are looking for a bigger simpler solution then the 320's may work out fine.

I bought my 320's in a 6 pack. The seller kept sending my singles so I ended up with 8 for about $68 which was quite a deal

 

[StogieJim]

I read the Boveda site information about 320 gram packs. They still recommend using 1- 320 pack for every 25 to 150 cigar sized humidor, just that the large packs last 5 to 6 times longer then the 60s. So you'll need the same number of packs in the coolidor and still have to have packs available to be recharged. I'm assuming it takes longer to recharge a 320 then it does a 60. You can purchase 60 gram packs in volume ( bricks of 20) but I only saw individual packs for the 320s

I always seem to have a need for additional Bovedas and the 60s are super convenient.

Right on, I forgot I can recharge these things. I remember doing it way back in the day but lately haven't had to buy any due to the tupperdor being so airtight. How are you recharging yours and how many would you recommend for a 75qt cooler?

 

[Boudie]

I'm an overkill kind of guy and it depends on so many different things. I use 26 quart Tuperdoors and keep 4 or 5 -60s in each Tuperdoor.

I bought an Acrylic, rubber gasketed jar and a 3 pack of "Stainless Steel Scrubbers" from Walmart. Place the scrubbers in the bottom of the jar and add an inch or so of distilled water. Place the Bovedas in the jar and forget about them for a while. The scrubbers prevent the Bovedas from laying in the distilled water. Any number of ways of doing it, just use distilled water and a tight sealed container. Some of us soak them in water or spray them but I find that reduces how often they can be recharged.



Buy enough Bovedas that you can keep a rotation of freshly charged packs cycling through your storage.

 

[Natefiet]

Right on, I forgot I can recharge these things. I remember doing it way back in the day but lately haven't had to buy any due to the tupperdor being so airtight. How are you recharging yours and how many would you recommend for a 75qt cooler?

I calculated it out when I transferred over to a cooler and it was ridiculous the amount of packs you would need to properly (according to boveda) pack the cooler with 320s....it was something insane like over $200 in packs. A half pound of heartfelt beads is enough to do a 70qt cooler by itself and only costs like $24. I run the half pound of beads, 2 320 Boveda and about 10 60 gram packs. I had all the boveda on hand before the transfer though.

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[Rupe]

I run a combination of crystal kitty litter and 6-7 60 gram Boveda packs in my 48 quart coolers (I have 4). if things get a little "dry" I will just spritz the kitty litter.

Quite honestly, the seals on the coolers are so good that I only need to spritz the kitty litter maybe twice a year and I have never needed to recharge the Bovedas. The ones in my original cooler are still the old school white ones which are probably about 7 years old at this point!

I do still have 4 old school traditional humidors though and the Bovedas in those will dry out so I have a recharging set-up and rotate them out every couple of months or so.

 

[StogieJim]

I calculated it out when I transferred over to a cooler and it was ridiculous the amount of packs you would need to properly (according to boveda) pack the cooler with 320s....it was something insane like over $200 in packs. A half pound of heartfelt beads is enough to do a 70qt cooler by itself and only costs like $24. I run the half pound of beads, 2 320 Boveda and about 10 60 gram packs. I had all the boveda on hand before the transfer though.

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Right on, I was thinking the same thing about the Boveda cost. I should never have gotten rid of my HF beads. They did leave a fine dust at the bottom of the cooler, but it really wasn't a big deal

 

[Boudie]

60 gr Boveda's run about $3.65 each, considering their reliability and how easy they are to use I think they are a good investment. I tossed the beads I had because they became discolored and I got tired of trying to pickup the errant beads every time the tie on the sachet bag got a bit loose or the container got knocked over in my tuperdoors.

 

[Old Smokey]

I am a big advocate for non scented silica kitty litter. I paid about $5 for 5#. Picked up some drawstring mesh bags for a couple of dollars at PetSmart and a gallon of distilled water for less than a dollar and $1 for a spray bottle at WalMart. It has lasted me for years. If Rh gets a little low I just pull out the bags of litter and spray the about 4 squirts and they are good for about 4 months and I spray them again. Cheap, easy and lasts a VERY long time.

 

[StogieJim]

60 gr Boveda's run about $3.65 each, considering their reliability and how easy they are to use I think they are a good investment. I tossed the beads I had because they became discolored and I got tired of trying to pickup the errant beads every time the tie on the sachet bag got a bit loose or the container got knocked over in my tuperdoors.

I've gotta agree with you here. I did like the HF beads, but what a pain in the ass with the filter bags and the inevitable silica dust lining the bottom of my cooler. I think I'll just drop a few bucks and load up on Boveda's. It's a one time investment really, assuming I can submerge them in water still to recharge.

 

[Boudie]

Personally, I think submerging them reduces their lifespan but I have no real evidence.

 

[CVAC085]

I've gotta agree with you here. I did like the HF beads, but what a pain in the ass with the filter bags and the inevitable silica dust lining the bottom of my cooler. I think I'll just drop a few bucks and load up on Boveda's. It's a one time investment really, assuming I can submerge them in water still to recharge.

I believe that’ll damage them, instead place them on some sort of rack with the distilled water beneath and put in an air tight container. They should absorb the water over time and puff back up again. I feel like there’s a thread about that here somewhere.....

 

[Natefiet]

I believe that’ll damage them, instead place them on some sort of rack with the distilled water beneath and put in an air tight container. They should absorb the water over time and puff back up again. I feel like there’s a thread about that here somewhere.....

The best thing I've seen for this is a tupperware specifically designed fo breading food. They have a rack built in and are airtight.

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[CVAC085]

The best thing I've seen for this is a tupperware specifically designed fo breading food. They have a rack built in and are airtight.

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That actually might be what was discussed here at some point!!! I could be wrong, but I feel like someone did also mention it!!

 

[Lomey]

I believe that’ll damage them, instead place them on some sort of rack with the distilled water beneath and put in an air tight container. They should absorb the water over time and puff back up again. I feel like there’s a thread about that here somewhere.....

This is what I do and works perfectly.

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[YamRZ350]

This is what I do and works perfectly.

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How long does that take? I soak my 60 gram in distilled and that seems to take between 3 to 4 days depending on how dried out they are. Works well, but i am paranoid of tearing the pack until its fully dry.

 

[Boudie]

Buy enough Bovedas that you're not worried about how long it takes. If you need 4 buy 6 and always have 2 recharging or recharged. If you place the sealed container in a sunny widow it shortens the time considerably

 

[BasicTek]

Buy enough Bovedas that you're not worried about how long it takes. If you need 4 buy 6 and always have 2 recharging or recharged. If you place the sealed container in a sunny widow it shortens the time considerably

I put double what they ask for, I've had the same packs in for 6 months and they are still like new. Putting more in the humi seriously slows down the depletion (That's in my cooler anyway). In my wood humi I just found a few that were depleting in the same amount of time. I don't think I had quite double probably about 1.5 the recommended.