Guide: How to salt test / calibrate your hygrometer

[Rosh Taylor]

Great post. I going to test the method. Thanks

 

[smellysell]

Anybody else not keep regular, table salt on hand anymore? Guess I'm too fancy!

 

[BlindedByScience]

Got to have some handy, to rub into the wounds of your enemies......

 

[smellysell]

Got to have some handy, to rub into the wounds of your enemies......

Remind me, I want iodized right?

 

[smellysell]

Remind me, I want iodized right?

For salt testing that is, not the wounds of my enemies.

 

[BlindedByScience]

Honestly, I don't think it matters for salt testing or irritating your enemies......

 

[JCinPA]

Many thanks to @BlindedByScience for the Mason jar idea. And many thanks to @personal User for the information that a unit calibrated at one RH may be off at another RH, they may not be linear. I happen to be borderline OCD (well SWMBO argues with 'borderline' qualifier), and worrying about the salt solution was making me crazy. I found every advice from just add a few drops of water to a capful of salt to measure it 1:3 water to salt, 1:2 water to salt ... what is a saturated solution? Super saturated solution? How would that affect things? It was freaking me out.

Then I thought, "Wait, I'm gonna run my desktop humidor at 65%, and I just got some brand-new, unopened Boveda 65% packs, why not just use those?" I had some small, 1/2 pint mason jars for pipe tobacco, so I folded one brand new Boveda, put the sensorpush in there, and let it go 24 hours. It was running about 65.8%. Calibrating that way will probably put it in the right range for the higher RH wineador, and the lower RH dry box I'm going to set up. Perfect!

Now the Boveda says unopened, it should be +/- 2% and the SensorPush says it should be +/-2%, and while they could both error stack in the same direction, I would think a 4% error would be highly unlikely. So reading about 1.2% high? I thought that was just dandy! I'm going to buy a pint mason jar next time I'm at the grocery store, not too big but will be a little less cramped, and a Caliver IV won't fit in that small one. And this process relieves all my OCD anxiety! Thanks for this thread!

 

[Eqwhipped]

Many thanks to @BlindedByScience for the Mason jar idea. And many thanks to @personal User for the information that a unit calibrated at one RH may be off at another RH, they may not be linear. I happen to be borderline OCD (well SWMBO argues with 'borderline' qualifier), and worrying about the salt solution was making me crazy. I found every advice from just add a few drops of water to a capful of salt to measure it 1:3 water to salt, 1:2 water to salt ... what is a saturated solution? Super saturated solution? How would that affect things? It was freaking me out.

Then I thought, "Wait, I'm gonna run my desktop humidor at 65%, and I just got some brand-new, unopened Boveda 65% packs, why not just use those?" I had some small, 1/2 pint mason jars for pipe tobacco, so I folded one brand new Boveda, put the sensorpush in there, and let it go 24 hours. It was running about 65.8%. Calibrating that way will probably put it in the right range for the higher RH wineador, and the lower RH dry box I'm going to set up. Perfect!

Now the Boveda says unopened, it should be +/- 2% and the SensorPush says it should be +/-2%, and while they could both error stack in the same direction, I would think a 4% error would be highly unlikely. So reading about 1.2% high? I thought that was just dandy! I'm going to buy a pint mason jar next time I'm at the grocery store, not too big but will be a little less cramped, and a Caliver IV won't fit in that small one. And this process relieves all my OCD anxiety! Thanks for this thread!

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Quite the necrobump here lol.

I would consider if the boveda is crammed in there. It could be putting pressure on the membrane that releases the moisture forcing more RH out than designed.

Just a thought.