Humidor RH is off

[SewerRanger]

So, as stated in my intro thread I'm relativly new to this whole cigar thing. I had a small (20 ct) humidor but the seal on it broke. I bought a 100ct humidor to replace it since the 20ct wasn't nearly enough anymore. I seasoned it and calibrated my hygdrometer with the salt water test and had the humidor at a steady 72 RH (I like them a bit more moist then 65RH). I had only a couple of cigars in my old humidor and placed them in my new one. Those cigars were a bit dry so I expected the RH to drop some. Little did I know it would drop down to 50RH over night. Wow! The RH climbed a little and then I read a bit on this forum that having a large humidor with nothing in it was bad, so I bought about 30 more cigars and placed them in there too. The RH climbed to 60 but has been there for about a week now. From what I've read 60RH is okay but I like them a bit "wetter" then that. Does anybody have any suggestions on how I could increase the humidity?

 

[robbiex0r]

Be patient and try to bring up the r/h slowly. What type of humidifying element are you using?

 

[lurch]

Be patient and try to bring up the r/h slowly. What type of humidifying element are you using?

Yea... The last thing you want to do is "shock" your cigars by making their environment too wet, too fast. If you're using one of those floral foam humidifiers you should think about getting some beads. Search "Heartfelt" and you'll find a wealth of knowledge that will answer probably all questions you have.

BTW... Welcome to CP!!!

 

[SewerRanger]

I've just been using purified water and the little plastic encased sponge that comes with the humidor. So, if I'm reading correct then I just need to let it sit a while and the RH will eventually rise? Concerning the beads, I read the large bead FAQ and there doesn't seem to be any beads that will do a 75ish RH. 60% and 65% seem to be the magic numbers. Are there beads that top out in the 70% range?

 

[lurch]

Heartfelt 70% Beads

Take that sponge out of their because of that purified water. The reason we don't use purified is because of the risk of festering mold. Distilled water is free of all of the mold inhibitors.

 

[SewerRanger]

Heartfelt 70% Beads

Take that sponge out of their because of that purified water. The reason we don't use purified is because of the risk of festering mold. Distilled water is free of all of the mold inhibitors.

Thanks for the bead link. I'll be purchasing that shortly (my humidor still reads 60% by the way).

Not to be nit picky but distillation is a form of purification and the minute you open your container of distilled water, bacteria settles on to it anyway. I will however, use distilled water on the beads to prevent calcium/mineral build up.

 

[B.L. Sims]

I think the biggest thing I had to overcome was the fear of my RH/temp being off. Reading on here if it was not 70/70 it seemed like the end of the world and the cigars were instantly ruined or beetles would start eating away at my stash. After talking to the local B&M its not really THAT big of a deal if things are off a little. Just take small measures to correct it if needed. Mine stays anywhere between 65-70 RH and 68-72 F.

It sounds to me like your humi is eating up alot of the moisture. When that happens I give mine a wipe down (sans cigars) and let it soak in a bit. It just needs a little. Or toss in a lightly damp paper towel.

 

[SewerRanger]

It sounds to me like your humi is eating up alot of the moisture. When that happens I give mine a wipe down (sans cigars) and let it soak in a bit. It just needs a little. Or toss in a lightly damp paper towel.

The bit I find the oddest is that the humidor stays at 60% and doesn't do anything else (with a little bit of weaving up and down about 1 or 2%). If it rose slowly but surely, or if it sunk slowly but surely, I dont' think I'd be as perplexed. Oh well, I've got those beads on the way; maybe that will help.

 

[lurch]

Ok... Since the beads are on the way it's time to sit back, relax, and smoke a good one. I've found that this hobby is a lot more fun when I'm not always fretting over 1-2% fluctuations.

 

[SewerRanger]

Got the beads about 3 days ago and I can happily say that my RH slowly climbed up to a delicious 70%. No idea why the sponge + water combo wasn't working. Thanks everyone for your help.

 

[lurch]

Good to hear man!!! Make sure to tell us how those "properly" stored cigars are smoking....