Anyone using beads AND an Cigar Oasis XL?

Which would you use?

  • Cigar Oasis XL AND 70% Beads

    Votes: 9 30.0%

  • 70% Beads only

    Votes: 11 36.7%

  • Cigar Oasis only

    Votes: 10 33.3%
  • Total voters
    30
P

Pete

Evolving Lead Gorilla
I have the Oasis XL in the bottom of my Savoy Khaya 150 humidor.
Just wanted to know...is anyone using beads w/ the Oasis (to stabilize)?

Should I ditch the oasis and only use beads?
Or forget the beads and stick w/ the Oasis?
Or use both?

Any opinions?
I thought of putting the Oasis at like 67% instead of 70% and letting the 70% beads absorb or humidify...as a safety mechanism...
 
If you live somewhere like New England like I do, I could put both in, but only the CO would be working in the winter and only the beads in the summer. Both have benefits and drawbacks.
 
I'm currently using that setup, and have quite a lot to say about it, as I'm on my third "upsized" humi in about 3 months after hitting the slope at Christmas. I just (last week) got a Bargain Humidors Vicksburg Humi... a 500 ct, with the intent of replacing my 150 ct desktop and my small coolerdor. I've been using varying combinations of beads/CO in three different sized humis, with varying results.

I bought the CO XL when I first got into this hobby, before I got to this site, and before I knew about beads. To be honest, at this time... I'm not sure I'd pay the price for a CO. You've already got one, lol... so ignore that, and I'll keep blabbing.

I'm currently using the CO XL and 70% beads in my 500ct humi. Quite honestly, if not for the fact that I was a bit "scared" of the humi not levelling out quickly with my several hundred sticks in it, (due to the humi being new), I'd probably have just loaded it up with beads and be done with it. As it was, I used the CO XL for several days to season it, then added the sticks and beads, keeping the CO XL in there.

A few thoughts: The circulation provided by the CO is theoretically nice... but I'm not sure it is all that effective. My 500 ct humi was reading HIGH (78!) in the bottom where the CO was located, and low (63!) in the top for a few days when it was newly filled (after being properly seasoned). I would have thought the ability for the CO to circulate air would have remedied that a lot quicker than it did. (After a few days, it is pretty good... 66% up top at the lowest due to being opened and closed, and 70% in the bottom.) Plus... though you can feel some air movement around the fan, I just don't think the air moved by it is all that substantial... not like putting an oust fan in a coolerdor.

Currently, my 500ct is leveled out, and I'll probably be removing the CO XL at some point.

Some things to think about in a 150 ct - CO XL takes A LOT OF SPACE! Several bead containers can be popped in the corners of your humi without giving up an entire "section" for the CO, and will keep the RH pretty consistent by spreading out the humidity into several source areas... so despite the fact that theres no "circulation", your humidity is pretty consistent throughout. In my 150ct, I used 2 of the Heartfelt 2 oz short/fat bead tubes in opposing corners of the bottom, and one of the 1oz long/skinny tubes in the top. When doing that, the CO XL was sitting in its box, and the humi was holding humidity perfectly.

If you overload the beads in a 150, (double or triple it... the beads are still easy to fit), the recovery time for the beads is just fine. I LOVE the fact that the 70% beads put it right on the spot at 70%.

IF you decide to use both:

I'd recommend setting the CO 1% higher than your beads. If you set it below your beads, you aren't going to accomplish anything. Theoretically, the CO (if set 2% below the beads) won't activate until the beads are emptying and can no longer keep the RH at their set level. And even when they CO is running, the beads will still be emptying, albeit more slowly, until they are dry. The beads will be pretty useless if your CO is set below them. If you set it above the beads by 1%, the beads will remain full... and will only operate if your CO fails for some reason, or isn't actually circulating humidity to the other side of the humi.

Anyway, in a 150 ct... I don't know that you need both. COs seem to be fairly reliable, and I imagine, like the rest of us, you check your humi pretty routinely. If you leave it for weeks at a time... then I think using both is probably pretty smart.

You'll probably have fine results using either beads or the CO. No harm in doing both, except for the lost space.

Based on my experience thus far... in a 150, I'd just go with the beads.

(I am a 70% guy... usually, due to opening and loss, the 70% beads are keeping the humi at 68-70, and when they drop and need to be refilled, I notice it when they are 64-65. If I were doing that with 65% beads, I'd be dealing with 63-65, and dropping to 60 when needing to be refilled. Plus, it is winter.)
 
I have the CO XL and use it in a 100 count humi. I couldn't be more pleased with its performance. It will season the humi within 24 hours (max); maintains consistent RH VERY well (my house currently is at approx. 19% RH and the CO has no problem keeping the humi at 70%); the CO brings the RH level back to the desired level extremly quicly after you open/close the humi (unlike the humi-tubes and humidipaks that I had previously tried - they took quite a long time to get the RH levels back during these dry winter months). Note that I never tried the beads - so I can't speak to their performance. I am, however, considering them but only as a means to remove any excess RH that may build up during the warm months.

Note that, per the CO's instructions, the CO must be positioned so that the air outlet rises ABOVE the 'gars in your humidor. DO NOT place the CO at the bottom of the unit as this will negatively impact air/humidity flow. I built a small stand out of kiln dried spanish cedar so that the CO outlet is above my smokes - this provides the proper airflow and also allows room for 'gars to be stored below the CO, thereby reducing the amount of space needed for the application.

Can't go wrong with the CO.

Hope that helps.

Kevin
 
CO XL only for me in large coolers. Keeps great RH and only has to be refilled every few months. :ss
 
It sems to me that the only purpose beads serve in a CO and beads system is to remove excess humidity. The CO will bring the humity up quickly when you open the humi, the beads react much slower. Do you who use the CO and beads ever get water logged beads? Or are you keeping the CO set below the beads RH values?

It's too dry here to even bother with CO and beads. So I just use a CO.

--
Erik
 
65% beads and No Cigar Oasis in my current humidors. My new humidor had the set and forget active humidification, so I may just leave the beads in there for stability.
 
icehog3 said:
65% beads and No Cigar Oasis in my current humidors. My new humidor had the set and forget active humidification, so I may just leave the beads in there for stability.
Click to expand...

:tpd:

don't forget the duct tape Tom!
:r
 
I use a Honeywell SureSet™ 4 Gallon Cool Mist Humidifier with an Igloo 165 QT cooler. That's right baby, 4 gallons!

Yeah it's large but so is the cooler. The entire setup was $125.00. I am sure I will eventually get something in the furniture category as this creative obsession progresses.

That is what is great about CS...there are so many "unique" people & ideas;)
 
Last edited:
tzaddi said:
I use a Honeywell SureSet™ 4 Gallon Cool Mist Humidifier with an Igloo 165 QT cooler. That's right baby, 4 gallons!

Yeah it's large but so is the cooler. The entire setup was $125.00. I am sure I will eventually get something in the furniture category as this creative obsession progresses.

That is what is great about CS...there are so many "unique" people & ideas;)
Click to expand...

That's a pretty cool set-up! Looks like the Honeywell gives you good circulation as well. :tu
 
I am using the CO in a 150 count humi. I have it in the center of the bottom.
I have a slotted tray for the top and not enough clearance for the CO up there. My experience with it so far is that the bottom maintains around 65-67 rh and the top is 62 rh. The thing is that it doesn't matter what level I set the CO, the rh is the same!?! I have purchased some heartfelt bead tubes and am now considering just using them exclusively to maintain a happy 65 on the top and bottom. Anyway, just my :2 . Not really sure what gives with the CO setting weirdness though.
 
i use 65% beads in the humi & cooler-the CO would take up too much room in a 150ct, why buy a bigger humi just to fill a good part of it up w/the CO?-for coolers the beads work great too-since they don't get opened as frequently & don't breathe like wood, ya hardly hafta refill the beads-IMHO, the CO is better suited for something end table size or larger
 
schnell987 said:
That's a pretty cool set-up! Looks like the Honeywell gives you good circulation as well. :tu
Click to expand...

Yes, the Honeywell has three fan speeds, the highest one really blasts...seeing how it was designed to humidify a large room. I use an additional digital hygrometer to ensure that the digital readout on the Honeywell remains faithful. There are a number of very good consumer cool mist humidifiers with relatively small footprints and some even have advanced humidication systems that sanatize the water with UV Light reducing up to 99% of germs thus preventing molds and stuff.

Here is a link I found showing the unit I bought at Costco a few years back.
http://www.kaz.com/kaz/store/product/?ProductCategoryId=48710052ded43396fc4ca9df58901760
 
In my cabinet, I have a bit of an unconventional setup right now. I have the original oasis plus but I had some sort of mold forming on the foam so I took it out and filled it with beads. Right now I have to recharge the beads evey month. I recently (5 min ago) ordered a replacement water cartridge and will be pulling the beads out. I also have a pound of beads loose in the humidor. The beads comming out of the oasis will end up in my small humidor which will be comming with me to Iraq.
 
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