I have a rookie question. I have purchased this used humidor And I am having issues. I have one tube of humidification crystals on the top rack and an open jar of water on the bottom. The readings have been around 63-67% according to the digital read out. The issue: my cigars are still drying up. Is there anything I can do to stop this from happening short of buying a new one? I have seasoned the box twice and it is hold steady percentage wise, but the cigars seem to still get dry and crack. With that much water in the case I would think cracking shouldn't be a problem. The case is not in direct sunlight, and is in my office away from direct air circulation from the A/C. Temperature is around 70 degrees as well. Can any one help? Thanks!
Rookie Question
- Thread starter jtpatton
- Start date
you will get good advice here, so hang on, but I'll take a stab with a couple of questions.
Have you calibrated the hygrometers? If not, you have no idea if they are accurate. One of mine reads 6% high, the other is 3% high.
Water in a humidor is a disaster waiting to happen. Cigar beads will bring humidity up fast than water if need be, a little thing called surface area.
Also, cracking cigars can also be from putting dryer cigars in an overly humid humidor. The blend expands faster then the wrapper causing the cracks.
Many will point you to cigar beads, and they are a fantastic product. Many brothers here will say the hygrometer is not necessary if you are using beads.
Finally, if the AC keeps the room dry, the humidor might just be too leaky. Can you put the sticks in tupperware until you get the humidor squared away?
Have you calibrated the hygrometers? If not, you have no idea if they are accurate. One of mine reads 6% high, the other is 3% high.
Water in a humidor is a disaster waiting to happen. Cigar beads will bring humidity up fast than water if need be, a little thing called surface area.
Also, cracking cigars can also be from putting dryer cigars in an overly humid humidor. The blend expands faster then the wrapper causing the cracks.
Many will point you to cigar beads, and they are a fantastic product. Many brothers here will say the hygrometer is not necessary if you are using beads.
Finally, if the AC keeps the room dry, the humidor might just be too leaky. Can you put the sticks in tupperware until you get the humidor squared away?
first question, are you relying on the hygrometer that is built into the humidor?
if yes, then you need a new recalibratable digital hygrometer with the humidipack calibration bag. get through the process of making sure that you have a good, accurate hygrometer before doing anything else or spending more $
if yes, then you need a new recalibratable digital hygrometer with the humidipack calibration bag. get through the process of making sure that you have a good, accurate hygrometer before doing anything else or spending more $
Sorry all, I should have been more specific. I have a digital hydrometer that is seperate. I have read that the ones on the outside are just costmetic and pretty useless. I have a seperate digital hydrometer in the inside.
Also, the humidor was seasoned twice, I wanted to make sure it was good to go before I put the cigars in there. This was several months back, so the humidor should have had plenty of time to season and use what I have had in there by now.
I am thinking of putting caulking around the glass to help with any leaking issues. Thoughts?
Also, the humidor was seasoned twice, I wanted to make sure it was good to go before I put the cigars in there. This was several months back, so the humidor should have had plenty of time to season and use what I have had in there by now.
I am thinking of putting caulking around the glass to help with any leaking issues. Thoughts?
hdroadglide
BoM x 2, BoY 2011
and dave is an expert on caulk. that's all he talks about. caulk caulk caulk.:halfgrinw
That's great advice, Ron is the man. Question, you say your cigars are drying out but I've always found cracking to be a sign of over humidification. You can tell a dry cigar by rolling it between your fingers, if it feels/sounds like dry leaves then its dry, if it's soft and spongy they are wet.
I would never have water in my humidor, just impossible to regulate the humidity. beads or boveda is a great way to go but can get pricey so i'd recomend at least putting a gel jar (can be found for 4-5 bucks) just to try to keep the humidity from spiking and dropping.
Sealing the glass is a great idea, go down to your pet store and buy the sealant for aquariums, that way you'll know it's food safe and wont damage your cigars. Have you done the dollar bill test to check the seal of your humidor. the test basically is put a dollar bill so half is outside your humidor other is inside and pull out the bill, if you have a good seal you'll feel resistence when pulling on it.
Just a final word, we all like to have that nice humidor sitting on our desk but as you've learned can be a real pain, and they aren't cheap. My advice, after spending a lot of money looking for a good humidor is for the money you can't beat a tupperdor, or coolidor for storage to cost ratio.
I would never have water in my humidor, just impossible to regulate the humidity. beads or boveda is a great way to go but can get pricey so i'd recomend at least putting a gel jar (can be found for 4-5 bucks) just to try to keep the humidity from spiking and dropping.
Sealing the glass is a great idea, go down to your pet store and buy the sealant for aquariums, that way you'll know it's food safe and wont damage your cigars. Have you done the dollar bill test to check the seal of your humidor. the test basically is put a dollar bill so half is outside your humidor other is inside and pull out the bill, if you have a good seal you'll feel resistence when pulling on it.
Just a final word, we all like to have that nice humidor sitting on our desk but as you've learned can be a real pain, and they aren't cheap. My advice, after spending a lot of money looking for a good humidor is for the money you can't beat a tupperdor, or coolidor for storage to cost ratio.