Please help out a cigar newbie.

J

Jimbo14

Cigar Nutter
Hey everyone, I have been into cigars for a while but have just got serious about it. My name is James and im from Australia.

I have a:
50 count cedar humidor
25 Monte Christo #4's in the humidor
A Credo digital hydrometer
A tub of Xikar crystals for humidification

When I set up the humidor I made sure I wet all the cedar and left it to soak for 24 hours. I have also done the salt test on the hydrometer and after eight hours it reads 77% (+2 inaccuracy). The Xikar crystals are still full and does not require refilling. According to Xikar the crystals should always maintain a 70% humidity in the humidor.

The problem:
When my Credo hydrometer is in my humidor it only reads between 63-68% (which would really be between 61-66% after the salt test). This humidity seems to change with the humidors tempreture. What can I do to stablise my humidor?

Regards,
James
 
Welcome, James :)

I think the first problem is that your hygrometer is +7% inaccurate (the salt test give you 70%), which bodes even worse for you, unfortunately.

Maybe you need to season the humidor for longer than 1 day - most do it for about a week. Try it then, and also check the seal on your humidor. Lift the lid about 3 inches open and drop it. If it claps shut, the seal is bad. If it makes a whoosh sound and closes more softly, then the seal is fine. If the seal leaks, you could try to fix it with do-it-yourself seal strips from the hardware store, or get another humidor if you have the money and want to.

I'm placing my bet on a bad seal with that large of a humidity loss, but it also might be the seasoning. Hopefully it's the latter.

Also, where did the cigars come from? If they weren't stored properly, they could be dry and soaking up all the extra humidity. Just another thought.

Otherwise, I don't know, but I hope I at least helped a bit :tu
 
According to everything I have read lately that would be a good RH to keep your smokes at.

If it still bugs you make sure to check to see if you have a good seal on your humidor.

MM
 
If you seasoned it properly the humidity would be much higher than that after only 24 hours. I can't remember all the seasoning instructions off the top of my head but it should be above 80 percent after the first day. You need to wipe it down again and place a bowl of distilled water in there until the cedar has had a chance to soak up the water. In the meantime clean out a piece of tupperware and keep your cigars safe. I think the mainstream instructions are about 3 days IMO that is still too soon and 10 days or more to stabilize a new humidor is best.

You may also have a bad seal but chances are you just need to season it more.

Oh and about 10 people will post here and tell you to get a digital hygrometer and then get beads from heartfelt industries. I was the first.
 
Jimbo,
While most will tell you that your hygrometer must be salt tested, I would recommend going another route. I think that it is just to easy to have too much, or not enough, water to salt mix to get accurate results. If you can find a Boveda Seasoning Kit at your local store I would recommend using that to calibrate your hygrometer.

If you have a Xikar unit and it states it will hold 70%, I would trust that to calibrate my hygrometer over the salt method. You could put the crystals into a ziplock bag with the hygrometer for a few hours then check the results.

As far as your humidor goes, if you are hearing the air woosh out as you close the lid, I would think your seal is in decent shape.
 
Welcome to CS James.

I am new as well but have found that many brothers here in this forum will help you. I have a similar issue but it appears to be correcting itself with a different type of beads called Shilala Beads(sorry Scott).

I agree seasoning the humidor longer will allow the cedar to get its moisture fill, which in my newbie opinion is critical.I also recommend using the search function in the forum and see what type of results you get, you may find your answer there.


Best of Luck and welcome,

Molar


Rolando said:
If you seasoned it properly the humidity would be much higher than that after only 24 hours. I can't remember all the seasoning instructions off the top of my head but it should be above 80 percent after the first day. You need to wipe it down again and place a bowl of distilled water in there until the cedar has had a chance to soak up the water. In the meantime clean out a piece of tupperware and keep your cigars safe. I think the mainstream instructions are about 3 days IMO that is still too soon and 10 days or more to stabilize a new humidor is best.

You may also have a bad seal but chances are you just need to season it more.

Oh and about 10 people will post here and tell you to get a digital hygrometer and then get beads from heartfelt industries. I was the first.
Click to expand...
 
I already am using a digital Credo hydrometer, and the seal is great on the humidor.
I think I may not have seasoned the box as well as possible.
I have never heard of these 'beads' before? What are they?
 
Jimbo

Be aware that Temp and Rh are interrelated. A change in the air temperature will effect the amount of moisture the air can carry, and will change the Rh reading accordingly. Around 70 degrees, a 65% humidity should be sustainable with a good humi. I actually keep my humi closer to 60% Rh, because I prefer he way the sticks smoke over higher Rhs. I'm also in a naturally humid climate, so the lower Rh works better for me when I'm smoking (outdoors) to keep the wrapper from over absorbing atomosphere Rh. I would not sweat a 60-65% range in the least

And you are correct. Salt test should reveal 75% humidity, However, it is also dependent on the proper amount of water added to the salt.

Good luck, mate.
 
It is pretty cold down under at the moment, and I have found that the tempreture in my humidor really makes a difference to the humidity. When summer comes along im sure the humidity will significantly increase.

The following numbers are with the Credo digital calibrated and the Tempreture in Celcius and Fahrenheit.

Temp 20.2 C (68.3 F) Humidity 66
Temp 19.4 C (66.9 F) Humidity 63
Temp 15.1 C (59.2 F) Humidity 61
 
Hi,

I am relatively new also. I have a 100 count and it took a week, perhaps a bit more to stabilize. My guess is that it needs a bit more time. If you have a decent humidor (and sounds like you do), it should even out in a few days. Until then, I wouldn't worry much about it. Good luck.

P.S. After I bought some beads from Heartfelt it the RH% has been very stable. If you go this route, I would get double the amount of beads needed for your humidor--it tends to keep things more stable and I think will give you more piece of mind.
 
Jimbo14 said:
I already am using a digital Credo hydrometer, and the seal is great on the humidor.
I think I may not have seasoned the box as well as possible.
I have never heard of these 'beads' before? What are they?
Click to expand...
I use the crystals, they work fine.
 
I am about to reseason my humidor.

I am going to put my cigars in a tupperwear container during this time with the xikar crystals in the container while the humidor reseaons. Is this a good idea so the cigars dont go dry?
 
Jimbo14 said:
I am about to reseason my humidor.

I am going to put my cigars in a tupperwear container during this time with the xikar crystals in the container while the humidor reseaons. Is this a good idea so the cigars dont go dry?
Click to expand...


That will be fine, the crystals will keep them plenty moist. If it is going to be a week or less the cigars themselves will maintain proper humidity. :tu
 
Welcome to CS and glad you have your humidity stabilized.

I also belong to the "beads are best crowd" If you have any further problems, I would sincerely recommend getting some 65% beads form Heartfelt. They also sell the hygrometer calibration bags. This method is by far the best I have found for by cooledors/humidors.

Enjoy those Montes!

Mark
 
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