a couple of newbie q's for the experts

hello all,

i am so happy that i found this forum. i have been smoking cigars regularly for about 3 months now and boy am i HOOKED. i just invested in a humidor and accessories for it:

- 150 ct cubancrafters humidor
- humiGUAGE? digital hygrometer
- 65% heartfeltindustries humidifier (beads)

i have a few questions that I did not find in some of the other posts.

- When seasoning the humidor (after the wipedown when I place a wet sponge in the middle of the humidor), do I setup the heartfeltindustries humidifier during the seasoning or after?
- Do I need to ever change the beads in the humidifier? If so, how often?
- Do I only add more water to the beads when they turn white? On an average humidor, how often do you add water (once a week, twice a month, etc.)?

Thanks in advance in helping me out.

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Originally Posted by gottalovecigars

hello all,

i am so happy that i found this forum. i have been smoking cigars regularly for about 3 months now and boy am i HOOKED. i just invested in a humidor and accessories for it:

- 150 ct cubancrafters humidor
- humiGUAGE? digital hygrometer
- 65% heartfeltindustries humidifier (beads)

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Perfect..... looks like you have everything you need..... the humidor might be a little small after some time here..... so you can always buy a cooler and use the humidor on your desktop

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i have a few questions that I did not find in some of the other posts.

- When seasoning the humidor (after the wipedown when I place a wet sponge in the middle of the humidor), do I setup the heartfeltindustries humidifier during the seasoning or after?

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I believe you do this after..... you want moisture to be absorbed by the wood, if you put the beads in they might absorb the moisture. Check out this guide which was done by our own Lopaka... http://www.cigarsmokers.com/t3814-th...a-humidor.html

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- Do I need to ever change the beads in the humidifier? If so, how often?

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No, the beads will last a long time, You're gonna have to check with Viper on how long they actually last. Even if a few of them crack from the moisture, they still work.

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- Do I only add more water to the beads when they turn white? On an average humidor, how often do you add water (once a week, twice a month, etc.)?

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Wait till you see you humididty start to drop a bit or when they turn white.

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Thanks in advance in helping me out.

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No problem bro, enjoy your stay

thanks a lot for your help. i cant wait to get everything by ups next week and get going.

I am finally all setup. Just one concern....

After I did the salt test with my digital hygrometer...it read 65%

However, after I followed Lopoka instructions on seasoning the humidor, I placed the digital hygrometer in the humidor and it read 75%.

After I filled the humidor with cigars, placed the 65% beads in there...after about an hour it reads 74%. The temperature reads 74 degrees F.

- What should I do?
- Did I do the salt test wrong?
- Is my humidor in an area where it is too hot?

Thanks a million for your help. I really appreciate it.

Definitely keep the temp 70-60 degrees, safer towards the lower. You don't want bugs after all.

As for RH, the beads, if you didn't wet them, will soak up any excess moisture in the air and maintain a 65% RH for you.

Give your humi and beads a couple days to "level out".

Read your beads. When the beads are dry, they're white. When the beads are wet, they're clear. You want them somewhere in the middle (milky kinda color).

If you find your hygrometer is still way off, get yourself a Boveda Hygrometer Calibration Kit. That will give you a definite answer.

thanks a lot for the help. i am going to give it a few days without touching it and see what it levels out to.

the beads are a milky color right now, with an RH reading of 76%.

for it to be correct, it should be between 65%-70%...am i correct?

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Originally Posted by gottalovecigars

thanks a lot for the help. i am going to give it a few days without touching it and see what it levels out to.

the beads are a milky color right now, with an RH reading of 76%.

for it to be correct, it should be between 65%-70%...am i correct?

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depends on the RH level of the beads you bought... for example, I bought 65% beats for my new Humi... the humidity was around 71% when I added cigars after the seasoning, so I didn't add much distilled water to the beads. Currently the humi is now down to 67% after a day and night, beads are absorbing some of the moisture... only add water to the beads if it drops 4-5% below its RH factor and then, only so that about 70% of the beads are moisturised.... then wait it out...

-W.

I think my problem is that I may have added too much water to the beads. I guess I will just have to be patient and wait for it to come down.

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Originally Posted by gottalovecigars

I think my problem is that I may have added too much water to the beads. I guess I will just have to be patient and wait for it to come down.

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You can always give them a quick blow-dry on low heat (wave it back and forth so it doesn't concentrate on one area) to dry it out a bit.

-W.

good idea...thanks

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Originally Posted by gottalovecigars

I think my problem is that I may have added too much water to the beads. I guess I will just have to be patient and wait for it to come down.

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If you really think it's too high, put a shot glass of rice in there. It'll absorb some moisture...

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Originally Posted by SuperChuck

If you really think it's too high, put a shot glass of rice in there. It'll absorb some moisture...

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Not a bad trick at all.... I'll remember that one!

-W.