Water Pillow

[Bkatz87]

I love a lovely Prometheus humidor that does the trick. However for my shotgun shell, i don't really like using the solution/water with the sponge. I used a water pillow and it worked nicely. Perhaps the humidity was a bit to high but it was tolerable. I haven't ever had the need to use RH beads. The only reason I was considering using them was to get a lower level, since it's such a tight space. The issue isn't what level i enjoy my cigars at. It's really if any of you have had any bad experience with the pillows vs the beads. I guess a nice small bag would work in the shell as well. So basically all I am asking, is what would you rather use?

 

[Nimrod]

Pillows are good for shipping.
Beads are for humidors.

That is my experience.

 

[SiriusBlack]

I have used the pillows in small humidors when I didn't have the original sponge humidification device or just needed to add a little more humidity. They have worked fine. In fact i have a 50 count or so count humidor running right now as an overflow humidor. Its about half full and I am holding at 69% using two pillows.

 

[Bkatz87]

I have used the pillows in small humidors when I didn't have the original sponge humidification device or just needed to add a little more humidity. They have worked fine. In fact i have a 50 count or so count humidor running right now as an overflow humidor. Its about half full and I am holding at 69% using two pillows.

I use a pillow in my humidor also. It works well for some extra juice. I figured beads would be for more of a main system, and i have the Prometheus humidifier for that. Good to hear I am not the only one.

 

[Not A Nice Person]

I used to throw a water pillow in my travellin' tupperdor, but found my cigars didn't smoke well at my destinations . . . raised the humidity too much. Now I put a 65% Boveda pack in there instead.

Beads in the home humidor. Very consistent.

~Boar

 

[northernmoris]

Boveda makes humidifier packets. They work fine, but nothing like the beads.

Boveda-direct

 

[SiriusBlack]

I have used the pillows in small humidors when I didn't have the original sponge humidification device or just needed to add a little more humidity. They have worked fine. In fact i have a 50 count or so count humidor running right now as an overflow humidor. Its about half full and I am holding at 69% using two pillows.

I use a pillow in my humidor also. It works well for some extra juice. I figured beads would be for more of a main system, and i have the Prometheus humidifier for that. Good to hear I am not the only one.

This stuff is not a science...its is most certainly a trial and error effort. So certainly learn from the success and failures of others but thier experience may not be yours.

 

[FunkyCold5]

Use beads for your humidor.

Water pillows don't really obsorb moisture. It's usually used to provide moisture.

I only use it for shipping cigars during the winter or in my travel humidor.

 

[jepe]

Usually I use beads in my Coolidor ,it is the best thing for maintaining RH at a certain level.
Pillows are good to but they dont have much affect like the beads,
they better for shipping as mentioned.

 

[BlindedByScience]

Active humidification / beads for ballast at home.

I've used pillows for shipping before but the heads up there is if they get squshed, they can leak water and PG all over. Had that happen once. Good news for me is that was in the outer of a double bagged environment so it only leaked all over the inner bags (the ones with the cigars in them).

Bovida packs from now on, unless I can put 'em in the box such that getting crushed isn't a possibility.

Good luck - B.B.S.

 

[Marcos]

Read somewhere on the site I believe that water pillows can harbor mold after repeated use. I use beads in the cooler and have had great luck with boveda in other smaller applications.

 

[FunkyCold5]

Also, keep in mind:

Water pillows only provide humidification and do not soak up excess moisture.
Since they don't soak up excess moisture, they do tend to mold when there is too much moisture trapped in a confined space (hence, don't make this your primary humidification device).
You can use it multiple times, but they tend to lose their effectiveness after 2-3 refills (either the netting deteriorates or the gel starts to ooze out or gel stops obsorbing the water when you refill it).
Unless you use 3-4 water pillows in a 100 ct humidor, it's the most unefficient humidification device you can have. They are more geared to travel humidors or to send cigar packages in the middle of winter.