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my coffee table humidor

robbiex0r

robbiex0r

scum
Joined
Jun 26, 2007
Messages
1,139
Hello all,

My enthusiasm over this project has led me to want to share it with you all. I liked the idea of displaying my smokes AND being able to hold large amounts of them. A coffee table project seemed perfect. New ones can run up to 500 bucks, and while they are nice, and beautiful, they are not practical for a college kid.

Here is the album, linked on facebook, (sorry, college kid, remember?)
whole album here

This photo diary is only a little behind.

I have since ditched the idea of a framed glass lid, and decided to get a biggere piece of glass, and mount handles on it. will be a lot easier than designing some crazy flip up lid, and should be easier to maintain a good seal.
Feel free to ask questions on to give input.

total cost so far, including the purchasing of numerous tools is probably a little over 100 dollars, but I haven't double checked my receipts, and some things will be getting returned yet too.

enjoy!

-robbie
 
Interesting idea. I look forward to seeing it progress.

Seth
 
Very, Very nice bro! What school are you at? I'm at Illinois State. I just run about 3 humidors and a 16qt cooler, your idea is cool as hell tho! I hope it turns out to your liking.
 
Good luck with the project, it looks great!

Extra credit if you can store a beer funnel and beer pong overlay underneath! :whistling:
 
Looks great. Nice idea. I'm not a humidor expert but I remember seeing somewhere that using traditional cedar wasn't a good idea with cigars. Is that true? Maybe you should think about lining it with some Spanish cedar or old cigar boxes. A cool look might be to get some top quality boxes and leave the stamped outsides facing in.
 
*update*

updated with a few new pictures to show my actual progress,

tomorrow i should be ordering glass to fit the original hole, and then drill holes in it for two small brass handles. the handles i figure will be minimally invasive to the overall tabletop.

here we go.



to answer some questions:
I am at UW-La Crosse

true that the box frame is made of regular cedar (may be treated, not sure), but the beveled cedar siding looks and feels just like humidor quality. to make up for some inconsistencies I think I will be lining the sides with the thin sheets of spanish cedar i got from my local shop.
 
Looks like a nice project; good luck with it. So the glass top is just going to lay on top? Do you think you'll get a good enough seal or are you going to put something around the edge to help?
 
JHolmes763 said:
Looks like a nice project; good luck with it. So the glass top is just going to lay on top? Do you think you'll get a good enough seal or are you going to put something around the edge to help?
Click to expand...


you'll notice the 'lip' of the box has two horizontal edges.. the smaller one is where the glass will sit. I'm thinking of buying just some cheap weatherstripping from menards, they have one in brown, and lining the second level, the actual top of the box i made, with that. unfortunately, its not completely level in there, but i should be able to get it so it sits at glass level to form a tight seal.
 
This is a really cool idea, thanks for the pics, and please keep us updated. :thumbs:
 
Looks cool - but stay away from the American / Tennessee Cedar it produces too much vapor and sap. Use a hardwood with Spanish Cedar lining for best results. Looks VERY COOL! Since you are a student I would also watch the seal on the glass, because adult bevrages tend to spill. :whistling:
 
rebel, too late ;-) BUT, i decided hardwood was too heavy/expensive/hard to work with.

the seal on the glass is going to be difficult because the middle section of wood has sagged a bit.. so its like a loooonggg 'U' and the glass doesnt come into contact with it.. this is just the inside edge of the frame, the other 3 are mostly fine.

I'll try to get some pics of the rubber gasket I'm trying to fashion.

I'm going to the line the cheaper cedar frame with the spanish cedar 'paper' i got from the smoke shop, the outside of the entire box is sealed pretty well, so hopefully the frame, which is pretty soft wood, will hold moisture well, without any odor problems.. etc.

hit the link in my sig for some updated photos on the project, including the beginning of drilling the glass! :0
 
robbiex0r said:
rebel, too late ;-) BUT, i decided hardwood was too heavy/expensive/hard to work with.

the seal on the glass is going to be difficult because the middle section of wood has sagged a bit.. so its like a loooonggg 'U' and the glass doesnt come into contact with it.. this is just the inside edge of the frame, the other 3 are mostly fine.

I'll try to get some pics of the rubber gasket I'm trying to fashion.

I'm going to the line the cheaper cedar frame with the spanish cedar 'paper' i got from the smoke shop, the outside of the entire box is sealed pretty well, so hopefully the frame, which is pretty soft wood, will hold moisture well, without any odor problems.. etc.

hit the link in my sig for some updated photos on the project, including the beginning of drilling the glass! :0
Click to expand...

The aromatic cedar you used to box it is going to clash horribly with the Spanish cedar. I advise you seal the hell out if it with some kind of epoxy, then install the Spanish cedar.
 
MAN THAT IS SAH-WEET

I cant wait to see the finished project and find out how well it holds the RH. You cant beat a project that starts off with a $2 purchase.

Tim
 
I ended up sealing the inside of the box with two coats of the water based sealer.

I finished drilling the holes in the glass and mounted the two brass handles. I just have to line the sides with the spanish cedar sheets, and find a way to make a level seal around the outside, and we'll be in business.

questions, comments, always appreciated.
 
Looks good so far, just hope everything works out. Let us know how the rh and temp hold up. If all fails you have one hell of a coffee table. Since you are still in school watch out for drunk naked ladies who like to dance on coffee tables :whistling: Looks Good!!
 
I've started testing its ability to hold humidity, 2 humidifiers and a small glass of distilled water.

My main concern is already being realized though, the temperature in my living room sits around 80 degrees all day long and there's really nothing I can do about it. I will focus on holding humidity for now and go from there.

When i went to bed it said ~64% and this morning we hit 74%
We'll see if it levels out, or just peaks and then falls.

6 new pics of the (mostly) finished project
 
heat wave here in Wisconsin.. I watched the humidor's temp climb today, from 71 degrees at 10am to about 87 at 2pm ...
good news is all the while the humidity held at 79%

any ideas on how to keep things cooler?
 
robbiex0r said:
heat wave here in Wisconsin.. I watched the humidor's temp climb today, from 71 degrees at 10am to about 87 at 2pm ...
good news is all the while the humidity held at 79%

any ideas on how to keep things cooler?
Click to expand...


basement
 
there is no basement, i live in 2nd floor of old apt building.
humidity varies in the box ~3% .. not bad, temp swings wildly though..

i could cover the table, but wouldnt that just insulate it?
i could cover it, and place a bucket of ice water under it...
 
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