Seasoning Humidor

[jebloom22]

I have done the paper test, yes. In fact, I also did the flashlight trick (I know, it's got glass) to see any light in the seams, and I did not. I get the "woosh" sound and everything. The humidor is from Don Salvatore (which may be going out of business much to the surprise of many).

Here's the link: http://www.donsalvatore.net/dp/B004KTMZ6E

Aside from going through the seasoning process yet another time, I'm not sure what else to do here. The only thing I can come up with is that the RH is low because of the low temperature, which holds between 64-66 degrees in my midwestern basement.

 

[ninjafox99]

you can have 65-70% RH with low temps. my coolidor was at 61º and i still had 69% RH. maybe just spray all your beads til theyre all clear??? good luck bro

 

[Thecatch83]

Patience is your friend! It took weeks for both my desktop and coolidor to stabilize after using 65% HF beads. I prefer my sticks on the lower side of 60%, after having relight and tunneling issues, so my beads are 50/50 clear to white.

 

[JNT]

are you going by that hygrometer on the front of the box, or are you utilizing a digital one inside as well?

 

[Thecatch83]

UPDATE:

Loaded the humidor with cigars and the 3-65% tubes. It's been 36 hours, and my recently calibrated digital hygro is showing 60%.

Hoping the beads are able to get me to 65%... Seasoned with distilled water in for ~10 days. Highest I got in that time period was 72%. It sat there for 4-5 days at least, so I figured I wasn't going to get a higher RH by letting it continue to sit.

How long should I allow the beads to do their job before I formulate a Plan B? Again, I'm at 60%, but it's only been ~36 hours. The humidor's capacity is about 100, and there are currently ~95 cigars in the box.

are you going by that hygrometer on the front of the box, or are you utilizing a digital one inside as well?

Did you even read the thread? :squinteye

 

[Jwrussell]

Aside from going through the seasoning process yet another time, I'm not sure what else to do here. The only thing I can come up with is that the RH is low because of the low temperature, which holds between 64-66 degrees in my midwestern basement.

I really don't think seasoning is your issue. And there should be no problem holding 65% at 64-66 degree temperatures. None at all. Look at all of the wine-idors out there.

A couple of things on the humidor. First, that's a lot of glass to seal, it is always possible that some of it is not sealed all that great. A little seam of silicone on the inside could fix that problem if it is one. I'm also noticing that digital-analog (yeah, oxy-moron, I know) on the outside of the humidor. How does that read inside the humidor? Assuming it is removable, there's got to be at least a small seal issue there?

On the plus side, you are not doing your cigars any harm at 60% RH.

Also, when you refreshed the beads, where they bone dry or just say, 40/60 (wet/dry) or something?

 

[Jwrussell]

Did you even read the thread? :squinteye

Just an FYI, that hygro on the front is ALSO a digital. It's a Digital Analog (looks like an analog, but is digital). :thumbsup:

 

[jebloom22]

Just an FYI, that hygro on the front is ALSO a digital. It's a Digital Analog (looks like an analog, but is digital). :thumbsup:

Yep. Unfortunately, the hygro is garbage. They run about $50 a pop too. I've been trying to get it replaced for months now, which has proven a challenge now that D.S. is going belly up. The guys at HumidorVault claim that they will track one down for me. Seems to be taking a long time though.

When I pulled the beads, they were somewhere between 50/50 and 40/60. I may be checking them again this weekend, and I will update on their status.

Is there any way to tell if the seal around the glass is bad before I go through the hassle of running a bead of silicone?

Oh, and I did need to take that analog-style digital hygro out to activate the battery. It was a big pain to get it back in, but I felt it was sealed tightly. The rubber gasket looks kind of like a gear, so when you push it in and twist, it appears to seal.

 

[Thecatch83]

One word, coolidor! I got lucky I guess when my glass top with built in digital hygrometer holds perfectly and reads spot on. I have since built up a 54 ct. igloo with five cedar trays and one lbs. of HF beads and it holds hundreds of singles and over ten boxes of sticks. Cost for everything was close to a hundred bucks, but that's a steal for something that holds 500 cigars!

 

[Jwrussell]

No real way to tell on the glass that I am aware of. If the beads were low, I would refill them to mostly clear and give it some more time. So long as your RH doesn't dip any further you should be fine and it is always possible that things are just progressing slowly.

 

[JNT]

Did you even read the thread? :squinteye

Yes. It's still an exterior hygrometer, which I have personally had zero luck with once in place, despite being calibrated. Cant beat the accuracy of one right in the box where the cigars are.

 

[Thecatch83]

Yes. It's still an exterior hygrometer, which I have personally had zero luck with once in place, despite being calibrated. Cant beat the accuracy of one right in the box where the cigars are.

Completely agree! I use two digitals for my coolidor, and two in my desktop (one fixed to the front). Using beads are almost dummy proof IMO, but a calibrated digital provides a nice heads up if your levels spike or dip and need to be treated with DW.

 

[jebloom22]

Think you may be on to something with the glass question. Got a little movement on the upper glass. All of the cigars are now in tupperdors. Need to apply the silicone, re-season, and go from there. What a pain!

 

[dpricenator]

Think you may be on to something with the glass question. Got a little movement on the upper glass. All of the cigars are now in tupperdors. Need to apply the silicone, re-season, and go from there. What a pain!

Be sure to use food grade slicone or fish tank / aquarium grade silicone.

 

[Jfire]

Return it, throw it away or ebay it. Get a 40 dollar cooler and be done. Cigars are for smoking not worrying over. Sorry to hear about it. Now days on threads like this my advice would of been to return it and use plan B before anything else. Beads often tell you when the desktop is junk like your post have indicated.

 

[Jwrussell]

Think you may be on to something with the glass question. Got a little movement on the upper glass. All of the cigars are now in tupperdors. Need to apply the silicone, re-season, and go from there. What a pain!

Sorry you are going through this bro'. Unfortunately, it seems to be a fairly common problem with mass produced humidors with glass in them. They, for whatever reason, just don't do enough to ensure a perfect seal.

J'fire, I believe he said the company he got it from was going out of business, which could make it tricky trying to return. And really, if he paid what the list this thing for retail, I'd rather pay for the tube of silicone and the time and effort to fix it than losing 75%+ of its value just to try again. But that's just me. :grin:

 

[Thecatch83]

Return it, throw it away or ebay it. Get a 40 dollar cooler and be done. Cigars are for smoking not worrying over. Sorry to hear about it. Now days on threads like this my advice would of been to return it and use plan B before anything else. Beads often tell you when the desktop is junk like your post have indicated.

This ^:applause:

 

[jebloom22]

So, the small tube of silicone I picked up for showers/bathrooms is probably not good to use? Even if it completely dries with the lid open?

 

[dpricenator]

So, the small tube of silicone I picked up for showers/bathrooms is probably not good to use? Even if it completely dries with the lid open?

That type is very smelly, you need a food grade or pet grade silicone thaT DRIES WITH NO SMELL.

 

[NCost]

I've used clear bathroom silicone but used it on the outside of the unit to seal the gaps between wood and glass. No odor in the box.

BTW a wet finger or silicone cleaning solution to make it smooth works wonders.