Mold Growing on Part of a Humidor!

S

stogie4u4me

ChestBeater
Hey Guys & Gals! A buddy of mine needs some help. Went to a friends house today and he wanted me to ask me about what was growing in the bottom of his humidor. Now I didn't take a picture but he has what appears to be mold growing on the bottom of his humidor in front of his humidifier. They are small, olive green like dots that resemble the mold that you find on old bread or old oranges. I told him that it for sure it is mold. He stated that he only had been using distilled water to fill up his humidifier which was full of 65%rh beads. He has a digital hydrometer that has been properly calibrated and stays at or near 68%- 65%. I guess I have three questions.

1. What can he do to get rid of the mold that won't smell up his humidor? i.e. 10%bleach,lysol etc.

and

2.What can he do to prevent it in the future?

or

3. Is it a lost cause and does he need buy a new one?

PLEASE HELP.
 
Maybe it's plume.:ss

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I would say that before he does anything to get those cigars into some tupperware. I doubt that there is a quick solution so they definately need a new home for now. I think wiping it down with just some water and then airing the humidor out for a couple of weeks to dry would maybe fix it...

I'm sure that some may have more experience with this though.
 
Hi Stogie4U.
Whatever you do, make sure he doesnt use chlorine bleach or lysol. Bleach is an extremely corrosive substance that will probably leave a permanent smell in his humidor, and damage the wood fibres. The Lysol will also taint the scent of the spanish cedar and may destroy your cigars in the future. Well, then again, unless you like spring-fresh flavored cigars then go ahead with the Lysol :) ... Instead, ...

1. remove all the cigars to a tupperware container (like dbradley says)
2. Physically remove most of the mold with a butter knife (blunt so it wont gouge the wood)
3. Take some hydrogen peroxide in a spray bottle, and mist down the residual mold (lighty). Do this about 6 or 7 times, after it dries. This should kill the mold cells.
4. Let the humi dry out, and brush out the dead mold cells.
5. Re-season your humidor, by wiping distilled water on the surface once a day for 2 or 3 days. Add your beads, and make sure the humidor has stabilized before adding the cigars back in.

Just make sure that any of the other cigars dont have mold on them, or the process could start all over again!

Take care, and let me know if this helps!
 
Peroxide may stain or bleach the wood. Also it does have a smell. I myself would use a 50/50 solution of alcohol and distilled water mix to wipe down the humi and let it dry out real good. You can also after wipping it down with this solution set it outside in the sun for a hour or so. Mold does not like direct sunlight. I would not do this to long so it dosent hurt the humi. Might want to do this process a few times over the course of a week end. Then re season the humi and you should be straight. Be sure and check to make sure no mold spores are in or on the hygro or the source of humidity such as the floral foam or what ever is used. I always add a very small amount of alcohol to my distilled water to keep down on mold growth. I have never had a mold problem.

I just now noticed he uses beads. I am not sure how the alcohol and distilled water solution would do to the beads. I use Cigar Oasis units or the standard foam oasis units with this method.
 
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Some advice:

Mold goes to spore quickly...quickly enough that once you see it, it's already sporing. You need to kill or neutralize the spores properly, or else the mold will come back quickly.

The fastest way I found was to use a hair dryer on a medium heat setting for about 10-20 minutes to dry residual moisture out of the wood surface. Warning! Do not bow it TOO long, or you will dry out the oils in the wood, which is not what you want. All you wan to do is dry the mold and shallow surface out.

Next, using a 75/25 denatured alcohol/distilled water mix, wipe down the inside of the humidor where the mold was growing. Denatured alcohol will do nothing to the wood except wipe off any accumulated surface oils. This is good, because you want the mixture to work into the molded areas. The mold spores will absorb the alcohol and be killed. The alcohol will evaporate quickly out of the wood if left to air for a few minutes.

Now recondition daily for 1 week to ensure all mold is dead, and that the humidor properly reabsorbs the moisture.


Another thought...if your friend is using beads, tell him make sure they aren't resting directly on the wood, and that they have enough circulation around them. An overabundance of moist beads can cause mold to germinate if the moisture isn't allowed to circulate for the wood to absorb some of the excess.
 
had a similiar problem-solved it by wiping spots w/qtip dipped in isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol-repeat a few times-dry thouroughly-reseaon-makes sure no mold on humidifier-make sure humidifier doesn't touch wood-did this w/mine 4 months ago & no problem since
 
Silound said:
Another thought...if your friend is using beads, tell him make sure they aren't resting directly on the wood, and that they have enough circulation around them. An overabundance of moist beads can cause mold to germinate if the moisture isn't allowed to circulate for the wood to absorb some of the excess.
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Good for you. I was hoping someone would address the issue of why the mold could have started in the first place.:tu
 
apple cidar vinegar is great for disinfecting surfaces near& around organic product / live animals....
 
a high concentration of UV light should render your humi sterile from mold....know anyone with a tranning bed?

wipe down with distilled water(not wet just moist)...let dry, maybe even in the sun for a while...and leave it open in a tanning bed for a while...unless you know a doctor or dentist with a medical UV lamp...this is an absolute odor free solution....

keep in mind that prolonged UV may run the risk of slight fading of the finish...

just my sorta high tech approach.:)

but it may be overkill too....
 
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screwbag said:
a high concentration of UV light should render your humi sterile from mold....know anyone with a tranning bed?

wipe down with distilled water(not wet just moist)...let dry, maybe even in the sun for a while...and leave it open in a tanning bed for a while...unless you know a doctor or dentist with a medical UV lamp...this is an absolute odor free solution....

keep in mind that prolonged UV may run the risk of slight fading of the finish...

just my sorta high tech approach.:)

but it may be overkill too....
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LOL. Just take it to a tanning salon.
 
He should get rid of the humidor. Hope it wasn't expensive.

If I had mold growing in a humidor, no matter what I did to get rid of it, I'd be up nights worrying that the mold was creeping back.

Tell him to get rid of the humidor.
 
Teninx said:
He should get rid of the humidor. Hope it wasn't expensive.

If I had mold growing in a humidor, no matter what I did to get rid of it, I'd be up nights worrying that the mold was creeping back.

Tell him to get rid of the humidor.
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I would disagree with that entirely. What I suggested above is something I've used twice now to take care of mold, and neither time has it come back in that particular humidor. Both have since been replaced with beads to prevent any future mold.
 
Another point to check on is the temperature of the humidor. Make sure where he keeps it is a cool as possible. I would bet that it was too warm inside as well.
 
Viper139 said:
Another point to check on is the temperature of the humidor. Make sure where he keeps it is a cool as possible. I would bet that it was too warm inside as well.
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:tpd:

This is the main reason for the mold spores..

Either cool the house more, or move the humi.....

goodluck
 
Silound said:
I would disagree with that entirely. What I suggested above is something I've used twice now to take care of mold, and neither time has it come back in that particular humidor. Both have since been replaced with beads to prevent any future mold.
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I would also disagree but there are things to take in to consideration. Lets say that the guy makes great money and the humi cost him 100.00. The time spent working on it could be more valuable to him than the humidor. If that is the case, the humidor should be shipped to a BOTL that is not as well off so that HE can spend the time and effort on it. Just my :2.
 
Smoked said:
I would also disagree but there are things to take in to consideration. Lets say that the guy makes great money and the humi cost him 100.00. The time spent working on it could be more valuable to him than the humidor. If that is the case, the humidor should be shipped to a BOTL that is not as well off so that HE can spend the time and effort on it. Just my :2.
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:tpd:

good point......
 
Smoked said:
I would also disagree but there are things to take in to consideration. Lets say that the guy makes great money and the humi cost him 100.00. The time spent working on it could be more valuable to him than the humidor. If that is the case, the humidor should be shipped to a BOTL that is not as well off so that HE can spend the time and effort on it. Just my :2.
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Valid point, I would probably do just that if I were in that situation.

I tend to be pretty possessive about my humi's though :ss
 
RJT said:
I would think the smell would be to strong and hard to get rid of. :2
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Yep, It does tend towards stubborn, but can be gotten rid of with the same level of difficulty as 'new cooler smell' or thereabots....
 
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