Found RH article

[DKAudio]

I found this RH cigar storage article, the following paragraph made me ponder...

"Tobacco should be kept at a relative humidity which just keeps the leaves pliable without swelling them. Since that pliability is based on the interaction of the cellular membranes with the air surrounding them, *relative humidity*, not absolute moisture content is what's important. This isn't chemistry, it's mechanics - on a cellular level. Ideally, the correct point is 70-73% regardless of temperature. At 70% relative humidity (a measure which by definition is independent of temperature) cigar leaves become pliable without swelling. at 75% or higher, the cells begin to swell. at 68% or lower, they can become brittle. These points are regardless of the ambient temperature or the absolute moisture content."

I (along with many BOTL) keep my humi at 62-65% RH and always thought this as being the best smoking RH. Just wanted to get some more thoughts on this.

Thanks

Dan

 

[smokinbolt]

As I have no clue how to prove this correct or incorrect, sounds good to me. I have a question though. When calibrating my hygrometer, does it matter how much water and salt I use as long as it is a 2/3 salt, 1/3 water? For example 1/2 cup salt and 1/4 water would provide the same results as 4 teaspoons salt and 2 teaspoons water right? I only had little ziplock bags so I cut down on the amount of each.

 

[DKAudio]

It should be the same, I only use a large amount if I am testing in a large sealed container with more air to stabilize.

 

[wtrfwler1]

I think this article is referring to the leaf itself, not the finished cigar. The leaf needs to be pliable to be worked with, if they are too dry they become brittle and tear.

As far as humidity in your humidor, set it at what best fits you. I have found 65% to be the best for my smokes. I started out at 70% and found it to be too much humidity. My cigars were just not burning well, then I backed down to 65% and they are smoking great.

Robby

 

[Saxjazzman]

I think this article is referring to the leaf itself, not the finished cigar. The leaf needs to be pliable to be worked with, if they are too dry they become brittle and tear.

As far as humidity in your humidor, set it at what best fits you. I have found 65% to be the best for my smokes. I started out at 70% and found it to be too much humidity. My cigars were just not burning well, then I backed down to 65% and they are smoking great.

Robby

This is also my experience with my smokes. I find, for my preference, they smoke better at 60-65%.

 

[Ginseng]

I'm a 67-70% for smoking guy. As for relative versus absolute moisture content in the cigar or leaf...

I believe that chestnut about relative versus absolute humidity has been making the rounds of cigar forums for at least as long as there have been online cigar forums.

Rather than restate all the pros and cons for either side of the argument, let me offer this simple insight:

Tobacco is a natural, organic product. The moisture tobacco takes in or releases is in direct response to the environment. This is its nature. When tobacco that is in thermal and moisture equilibrium experiences a change in the environment, it will naturally become cooler/warmer and higher/lower in absolute moisture content as the properties of its materials demand.

This means that the iconic conditions of 70/70 are but one point on the two-dimensional space of temperature/humidity that a cigar experiences. While a cigar left out in the open environment of the world could conceivably experience any and all conditions bounded by hot/wet, hot/dry, cold/wet, cold/dry, a cigar in a closed humidor or cooler will experience something quite different. In these chambers where the humidity is regulated independently from, but is always tied in response to, the temperature, the conditions a cigar could experience trace a line and not a plane. This is because in choosing to use either propylene glycol/water, hydrated silica, saturated salt solution, we are imposing a restriction on how humidity may change in response to temperature changes.

So you see, by virtue of using a humidity regulation agent, the conditions that a cigar experiences is by definition unnatural as it is the properties of the agent that dictate what environmental humidity a cigar will see and has to respond to at a given temperature. In one sense, it is a tidier situation than the "outside world" where any condition could become reality.

The upshot for me is that I use PG/water to compensate for large drains on the cooler's humidity. For example, if I put in many new cigars, or a dry, empty box that I'm conditioning to use for holding singles. I use hydrated silica to moderate small fluctuations such as daily opening and closing.

The argument surrounding relative versus absolute moisture content is a difficult one to make crystal clear. I have a Masters degree in chemical engineering and over dozen years in industry and still, it is a challenging concept bring to the popular awareness especially when regulating agents are being used. But the point I want to make is that it is really moot. A cigar will naturally be drier when it is colder, and moister when it is warmer.

Wilkey

 

[DKAudio]

Hmm, great reply

 

[cody5thou]

does anyone know if there is a wine cooler that lets you control the RH and temp. As far as the RH in my humi it is 68 and 72 degree