In another thread the topic of how much we should be concerned about temperature changes came up. I thought it should be its own thread.
The standard opinion is to keep storage temperature stable and somewhere around 65 - 70 deg. I don't see the reason. If the temp is too high then there is the risk of beetle eggs hatching but assuming there are no eggs then that is not an issue. As temp changes, the RH changes BUT if the RH was good at a normal temp (lets say 65% at 65 F ) then as the temp goes up or down the RH will change but the actual amount of moisture in the cigars will not change. There is no moisture added or removed, it is just that the reading will change because the humidity reading is relative to temperature. If you don't open your humidor and exchange the air then the moisture in the cigars will remain the same.
For example, if the readings are good at 65 F and the temp goes up to 80 F during a hot couple of weeks, the RH reading will change. If the temp then goes back down to 65 F then the RH reading will return to the original good reading. The moisture content in your cigars never really changed, only the RH reading on your hygrometer.
So am I full of shit or what? This is my understanding of RH but correct me if I'm wrong.
Bruce.
The standard opinion is to keep storage temperature stable and somewhere around 65 - 70 deg. I don't see the reason. If the temp is too high then there is the risk of beetle eggs hatching but assuming there are no eggs then that is not an issue. As temp changes, the RH changes BUT if the RH was good at a normal temp (lets say 65% at 65 F ) then as the temp goes up or down the RH will change but the actual amount of moisture in the cigars will not change. There is no moisture added or removed, it is just that the reading will change because the humidity reading is relative to temperature. If you don't open your humidor and exchange the air then the moisture in the cigars will remain the same.
For example, if the readings are good at 65 F and the temp goes up to 80 F during a hot couple of weeks, the RH reading will change. If the temp then goes back down to 65 F then the RH reading will return to the original good reading. The moisture content in your cigars never really changed, only the RH reading on your hygrometer.
So am I full of shit or what? This is my understanding of RH but correct me if I'm wrong.
Bruce.