RH 65% or 70%

[jakeemtrn]

May be I am exposing my newness but what are the discussion for and against hanging at 65% vs 70%?

 

[RonC]

70%- best for long term storage. Most cigars will smoke good at 70%

65%- some cigars(thin ring gauge or some cuban cigars) will smoke better when stored a little bit dryer than 70.

 

[smokinafuente]

Don't be afraid to play around a little bit and find the RH you prefer.

 

[jakeemtrn]

Thanks for the clarification.

 

[rick12string]

70%- best for long term storage. Most cigars will smoke good at 70%

65%- some cigars(thin ring gauge or some cuban cigars) will smoke better when stored a little bit dryer than 70.

I went to the 65% beads in January and since then I’ve notice on some of my cigars (various brands) the wrapper starting to flake or peel in the humidor. When I smoke those some start to really come apart as I past the halfway point. It happened with an Excalibur 1066 this past weekend. Most opinions are that 65% is safe and best for smoking but I don’t know. The cigars don’t seem to be hard and dry. I do think I have less draw and burn problems with the cigars at 65% but I’m worried about the wrappers and ruining more of them as time goes on.
I don’t ever recall this happening when I kept my humi around 70% (usually 68%-70%). I’m thinking of switching to the 70% beads or going back to the floral foam and PG solution. Not sure what to do at this point. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Tegu]

I use the 65% Beads for all my smokes, they seem fine, they smoke better than at 70%. I wish they sold 68% beads, I think that is the sweet spot, I really need to get an active humidification system..

 

[charlie]

I use the 65% Beads for all my smokes, they seem fine, they smoke better than at 70%. I wish they sold 68% beads, I think that is the sweat spot, I really need to get an active humidification system..

What if you do a 50/50 mix with the 65 and 70??

 

[Tegu]

What if you do a 50/50 mix with the 65 and 70??

It should stay at 70, the 65 will fill up all the way absorbing humidity, and the 70 will keep giving it off until the humi reaches 70.

 

[charlie]

Wow, pretty amazing stuff.

 

[solowgregg]

I keep mine at 70% and everything I have smokes great.

 

[dpricenator]

It really come down to personal preference. I like 60-65 for smoking, but keep the humis at 65%-68%, The Frider-dor found a sweet spot and won't come down any lower, so I stoped messing with it.

 

[WhiteLightning]

I prefer my smokes at 65%. I feel that I can taste the cigar better and have less burn and draw issues.

 

[derfatdutchman]

Agree that its a matter of presonal prefrence. I store mine at between 65% and 68% too as they seem to smoke and taste better when stored in that range.

 

[joshua]

I vote 68%, just to be different.

 

[Angry Bill]

OK, personally for long term storage and aging, the higher the humidity the better. FOr every day smokes, somewhere between 63 and 66% is perfect for me. It's all about preference.

 

[stogies&hoagies]

61% for me. At least in my two end tables. The armoir is 67% and the three desktops are 63% go figure.

I agree it's all personal preference. Play with it to see what you prefer.

 

[mnelson]

OK, personally for long term storage and aging, the higher the humidity the better. FOr every day smokes, somewhere between 63 and 66% is perfect for me. It's all about preference.

I could not say it better myself :grin:

I keep my thermos at 70 and my "soon to smoke" desktops at 63-64

The burn problems are almost non-existent at 63!

 

[Curmudgeon76]

Just from my limited experience while keeping my cigars in a tupperware container while seasoning my humidor:

My sticks have been sitting for over a week right around 68 percent and they are PERFECT: before I found this forum, I never really knew how to properly care for my smokes, but keeping them at an ideal humidity makes a WORLD of difference. Check out the beads from Heartfelt Industries: once the humidor is properly seasoned, they should be able to keep your sticks at a constant humidity for quite some time.

I too have had a slight issue with them peeling occasionally, but this might be due to accidentally squeezing the wrapper too hard while handling the cigar: it doesn't happen all the time.

One thing I have found that greatly improves the cigar's draw and the way it burns: toast the end of the cigar before you actually light it and draw on it: rotate the stick between your fingers over a flame (don't actually touch the flame to the cigar) so you heat the surface evenly, say for about 30 seconds. Then, proceed to light the cigar by drawing on it repeatedly with the flame near the cigar (not directly touching it). From my experience this greatly helps the cigar to burn evenly and draw very nicely.

 

[BamaRed]

I run the 72% Boveda packets instead of beads and with my Humi it stays around 68 - 70%. They smoke perfect to me at that level. It is all a matter of preference...

 

[vperlman]

This is the humidor version of the great cello on/cell off debate. :guitar: FWIW, I started with 70% beads, but have been switching to 65% as I have added storage. I like the way they smoke at 65 slightly better and have not run into any wrapper problems.