Okay, so I rearranged things--again--and the lid fits properly. With something that weighs at least 5 pounds siting on top forcing down the lid, I get a decent seal according to the "paper test," I couldn't pull it out without ripping it. My other tupperware has a better seal because the lid sort of clicks into place--decent, but still no cooler.
I have 2x the amount of beads I need in both of my bins, and am going to dry them until they're maybe 50% "full" of water. I also have a bag of dry kitty-litter beads in each bin, for added insurance. Next I'm going to buy one of those Oust fans for each bin, they're pretty cheap.
How does that sound?
--FRICKIN' HELL!
Sorry, the CAP just buzzed my house and I think my ears are bleeding...those F22s are frickin' loud!!!!--
Okay, so assuming that my beads will work properly when their saturation level is correct, I feel that I'm good to go for now--if there's something I"m missing still, let me know please!!
I've been sold on the idea of upgrading to giant coolers at some point--this is too big of an investment to not do everything possible to age my sticks properly. But since I'd need 2 cooler, I'm going to have to wait for a good sale. I think that I can fit my whole stash into 2 150-qt bins, if not I have my small tupperdor (the one that I'm trying to downsize) which actually has a great seal. 2 coolers for storage and a small bin for my day-to-day smokes--sounds pretty good.
Here's hoping for a summer closeout on coolers!