Hello!
I have quite a serious problem. My cigars are full of flakes - white and hard. I don't know, what it can be, but I am afraid that it's mold. What do you think? Look at the pictures and write.
Flakes are also on the labels - black and yellow. What it can be? I am desperate. I have a full humidor of new cigars!
I've never seen anything like that!
Do they scrape off easily?
Yes, scrape is OK, I think.
I have got just three types of cigars in humidor:
Ramon Allones Specially Selected 22 pieces
Partagas Lusitanias 3 pieces
Saint Luis Rey Regios 23 pieces
White flakes are only at Ramon Allones cigars, the black and white on labels are also at Saint Luis Rey.
What it can be?:(
Probably one of these from before harvesting.
Leaf Spot or Weather Fleck. Neither affects the taste, only appearance.
But, the flakes were not there about two weeks ago...
I have got it home for about one month.
Never seen that either, but the bands reminds me of something.
What kind of humidifying device(s) are you using, and are you using distilled water in it/them?
That is really interesting. I wish I could help but I got no suggestions. Good luck finding out what they are and a cure for them.
I have this humidor:
http://www.doutniky-obchod.cz/bmz_ca...ge.500x500.jpg
this humidifiers:
http://www.doutniky-obchod.cz/bmz_ca...ge.500x500.jpg
this solution:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...500_AA280_.jpg
and also technical distilled water.
Looks like water damage to me. Especially on that band.
I am thinking maybe when you filled the humidifier there was a bit of excess water on it and it dripped onto your smokes.
I would recommend you toss out the solution and the foam and get some beads. They worked great for me before I switched to active humidification. Much lower maintenance compared to the foam humidifier that I started with.
www.heartfeltindustries.com
www.cigarmony.com
Two great places to pick up beads or "The Puck".
Hmm.
- any deposits on the green foam inside that humidifier? (You should be able to pop the gold plastic off.)
- the white round things, what does the tobacco look like underneath after you flake one off?
- when you flake them off, do the white round things crumble, or do they have some structure to them?
- did any of them fall off without your help?
- does the center of the white round things look different? Are they flat or do they have raised parts or any fuzziness? (you'll need a lupe to see)
- any pattern to the white spots or their density? More on the cigars on the top, more on the cigars at the bottom, location in the humidor, any on the feet, etc.
- the SLR label pic is too fuzzy to tell what's there.
- the RA label - is the green what is left after the white thing has flaked off?
and:
- what RH are the cigars stored at, and
- have you calibrated that hygrometer? (salt test or hot towel or both)
I'm thinking the same thing as Drew ...
I think drew is right. It isn't mold and if it's bloom its bloom that got wet. But the tell tale sign is the green on the wrapper. Test a wrapper get it wet with what you use to hydrate your cigars and see what happens when it dries off.Quote:
Originally Posted by drew_goring
Mold on the cigars
looks like PG stains on the band
I have no idea what you contracted there, but it looks like it itches.
whats pg?Quote:
Originally Posted by kevin7
That god awful crap people use with distilled water. P something - glycol
Quote:
Originally Posted by kevin7
yes, I use this Propylene Glycol Solution. Is it bad?
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...500_AA280_.jpg
Drew got it. Water spots. They're harmless. Smoke em.
As others has stated, get rid of the solution and foam. Get some beads!
Welcome to the boards.
Rich
Better yet, get some crystals. Beads are a PITA inside desktops.
Crystals are easy and work great.
BTW, I recently ran into a box of jl pcs that had green/black areas on the band. I was told on another forum that it was the bronze pigment inside the wrapper oxidizing in the presence of water. So in other words no big deal they must have gotten a little to damp at some point.
As long as there is no sign of mold you are good.
Guess we're going to disagree on this too. Beads are a PITA versus crystals? Are you referring to kitty litter? Also, would you mind finding me a link where someone is discussing the wrapper pigment oxidizing?Quote:
Originally Posted by pmp
Who are you, really?
Just to stay off-topic for a sec ...
A given volume of poly-acrylic gel will hold (and thus release) more water than the same volume of silica beads. Thus, if you need a humidity source (e.g., because one has a POS humidor that doesn't seal worth a d*mn) then poly-acrylics are "better" than beads - "better" meaning ONLY that one has to add water much less often.
However, poly-acrylic used in this manner has no ability to regulate RH. To get that ability, one must use propylene glycol (PG) solution (50:50, and you're stuck with 70%RH). Thus, the available water is reduced in half. Now, that half is still more water than beads, but the difference in time-to-adding-water is not so great now.
On the other side, in summer (or Florida) when/where the ambient RH is greater then desired - and one has to remove moisture - then silica beads (that aren't saturated) work much better than poly-acrylic with PG solution (and Poly-acrylic without PG doesn't work at all).
Active humidification (with poly-acrylic in the reservoir) + beads = desktop (or display) SOTA (IMHO).
Smart(assed) Canadians! I was thinking of the Puck and it's cousins that replace the rectangular containers.