Unsteady RH

[mtschust]

A couple weeks back I noticed a huge drop in my normal 65% humidity level in my desktop humidor. I have been using beads in a half ounce tube. I got my level back up to 65% but can't seem to keep it there for more than a day. I have been adding water to the beads constantly and still the level will drop in a matter of hours. The humidor is sealed properly and I can't quite figure out the problem. A while back i spilled some water in the humidor and dried it with a hair dryer and am thinking that maybe I dried out the wood or something.

Also, anyone have a problem fueling their blazer lighters? I fuel and refuel and the gas runs out after a few cigars. ???

Thanks for listenting to all of my questions.

 

[Zeebra]

Interesting, do you have enough beads for the size of the humidor and have you allowed your humidor to season ? If you leave the beads in there with a bowl of distilled water for a bit, they should absorb the proper amount of water to keep the humidor at 65% Only other thing I can think of is your seal is not so good on the humidor.

 

[N2Advnture]

Questions:

1.) Like Michael asked, what are the dimensions of you humidor? (1 oz of RH Beads = 540 cu. in of volume).

2.) Have you calibrated your hygrometer?

3.) Try moving your humidor away from a vent and/or sunlight.

4.) How often do you open/close your humidor? Introducing ambient humidity into your relative humidity can/will affect your RH level.

5.) Have you been adding new cigars? Adding dry cigars can quickly reduce your RH levels.

6.) How long has it been "unstable"? Make sure that only 60% of of the RH Beads are hydrated and give them a little time to settle into doing what they were engineered to do.

7.) You never mentioned what your RH reading is.

Hope this helps
~Mark

 

[Big Stick]

Listen to Mark, he knows what he's talking about.
I was a little thick skulled at first. I love Beads

 

[Burnt Tongue]

Listen to Mark, he knows what he's talking about.
I was a little thick skulled at first. I love Beads

never mind im an idiot.

 

[mtschust]

The humidor holds 40 cigars. It is small 9 1/2" x 8 1/2" x 2 1/2". I have a half onuce of beads in a tube that is supposed to accomodate a humidor of this size. I have a digital hygromerter from Cuban crafters and It is supposed to be calibrated, and I have not done so myself. when I first added beads the humidity level was stable at 65%, which is the RH the beads were to provide. I have added some new cigars about 25, but they were properly humidified when I bought them. Usually the RH reading is fluxuating somewhere between 64 and 60%. Rightn ow after I added more water it is to high at 70%. I open the humidor a couple times every day to check levels or grab a smoke.

 

[N2Advnture]

The humidor holds 40 cigars. It is small 9 1/2" x 8 1/2" x 2 1/2". I have a half onuce of beads in a tube that is supposed to accomodate a humidor of this size. I have a digital hygromerter from Cuban crafters and It is supposed to be calibrated, and I have not done so myself. when I first added beads the humidity level was stable at 65%, which is the RH the beads were to provide. I have added some new cigars about 25, but they were properly humidified when I bought them. Usually the RH reading is fluxuating somewhere between 64 and 60%. Rightn ow after I added more water it is to high at 70%. I open the humidor a couple times every day to check levels or grab a smoke.

1.) Take out the beads and dry them with a hair dryer. They will turn milky white. Rehydrate so that 60% of the RH Beads are clear and 40% are milky white.

2.) Calibrate your hygrometer. (I am fairly confident this is your problem).

How to Test and Calibrate a Hygrometer

1. Fill a milk bottle cap or other small container with salt, and
add a few drops of distilled water - NOT enough to dissolve the salt,
just enough to moisten it. You want the slurry to be thick and pasty.

2. Put the cap inside of an air tight zip lock or plastic container
along with your hygrometer. Then seal the bag or container
(Tupperware works well).

3. Wait 12 hours, then check the reading on your hygrometer without
opening the bag or container (or quickly open the container and check
if the container is not clear).

If the reading is 75%, then your hygrometer is accurate and no
adjustment is required.

If the reading is not precisely 75%, then adjust the hygrometer to 75%
by turning the screw or dial on the back. This must be done
immediately after removing from the bag or container, before room
conditions cause the reading to change.

If there is no screw (or dial) to recalibrate your hygrometer, then
you will just have to remember to add or subtract the difference
between the test reading and 75%, in order to determine the actual
humidity level inside of your humidor. For example, if your hygrometer
test reading was 80%, then subtract 5% from the readings you get
inside of your humidor, to determine the actual levels of humidity
(e.g. a reading of 70% inside your humidor equals an actual humidity
level of 65%).


Please let us know how it works out and hope this helps
~Mark

 

[Shooter]

Have you turned your heat on for the winter, that will reek havoc on a humi....Might want to check the humidity of your house, it might be awful dry.

 

[bilder]

May want to resist the urge to keep opening it to check RH levels.

I was having a similar problem at first, but once I quit opening the humi every 8 hours to check the levels and let it sit undisturbed for three days, all was well with the universe.

If your air is dry outside the humi, opening it too much will suck the moist air out and make it hard to stabilize.

 

[mtschust]

After work today I will dry the beads and see what happens. I will also try to calibrate the hygrometer

 

[SMOKE!]

Is it possible to do a salt test wrong? I am checking my hygrometers right now and they are both off. I calibrated the analog one several months ago and the digital one has always been 2 or 3 points high. The analog one is reading 78 and the digital 81, which would be right if the humidity really was 78. I just used 3 drops of water on the salt, just enough to make it wet.

 

[viper139]

Mark mentioned one thing that is very important this time of year for all of us and maybe is your issue. Check to make sure that the heating source for the room the humidor is in is not effecting the humidor. Especially those homes with forced air heat, this can drive the rh down quickly.

You stated that you dried your humi out with a hair dryer, this will take alot of moisture out of the wood and you may have issues until the interior is re-seasoned. Also as has been siad you need to calibrate your hygrometer. Even though I have seen some that are accurate out of the box this is the exception and definately not the rule.

Is it possible to do a salt test wrong? I am checking my hygrometers right now and they are both off. I calibrated the analog one several months ago and the digital one has always been 2 or 3 points high. The analog one is reading 78 and the digital 81, which would be right if the humidity really was 78. I just used 3 drops of water on the salt, just enough to make it wet.

Do yourself a favor and ignore the analog hygrometer, even after they are calibrated they will drift anyway and be off.

Question, how long has it been since you replaced the batteries? When the batteries start to die the reading will drift giving you different readings than it has. I have made it a habit to change the batteries in my hygrometers when I change the batteries in my smoke detectors. I use the change to and from daylight savings time as my reminder.

 

[SMOKE!]

I just changed the battery a couple of months ago because I thought the reading was getting wonky. I think it is a CE brand, at least that is what it says on the back.