Making my own Coolerdor

[daredog4]

From all the research i have done on this board and others I just thought i should have some Spanish cedar in there. If you don't have something else besided beads to soak up some humidity then when you open and close the cooler it will cause the RH to swing low and then have to catch up. Also it is good for keeping out bugs and such. I only decided to spend the extra money on trays because i needed some trays anyways, and since i knew i wanted some spanish cedar in there it just made sense. Plus, some day if i buy or build a Large Humidor i can reuse the trays in it.

Also, I know that everyone likes their RH at a different level and I understand and respect all of your opinions. For me i think keeping the RH at 70% and then dry boxing for a day is the best way to go. Many of the cigar makers list on their websites that they reccomend 70% humidity as seen here http://www.olivacigars.com/fundamentals.aspx All in all it just boils down to what you like best.

[FactoredReality]

I have a bag full of empty bags taking up some space in the cooler right now. Having a full cooler will help reduce the ammount of air the beads have to re-humidify upon opening and closing. But don't worry about that, it will solve itself faster than you can imagine.

[bigwhiteash]

Go to home Depot or Lowes, and pick up a sheet of "luan' plywood, made from low grade mahogany, a close relative of Spanish cedar, and equally hygroscopic.

That is, if you're convinces you need a bunch of wood in your cooler. I just have a bunch of boxes in mine.

[craig]

From all the research i have done on this board and others I just thought i should have some Spanish cedar in there. If you don't have something else besided beads to soak up some humidity then when you open and close the cooler it will cause the RH to swing low and then have to catch up. Also it is good for keeping out bugs and such. I only decided to spend the extra money on trays because i needed some trays anyways, and since i knew i wanted some spanish cedar in there it just made sense. Plus, some day if i buy or build a Large Humidor i can reuse the trays in it.

Also, I know that everyone likes their RH at a different level and I understand and respect all of your opinions. For me i think keeping the RH at 70% and then dry boxing for a day is the best way to go. Many of the cigar makers list on their websites that they reccomend 70% humidity as seen here http://www.olivacigars.com/fundamentals.aspx All in all it just boils down to what you like best.

"Good" beads, e.g., RH beads from cigarmony (on sale now IIRC), outperform wood as a buffer. (You would need wood if you went with crystals. Just to confuse the issue, "beads" are actually silica gel (preferably doped with Lithium Chloride), and crystals are often called gel, but are typically polymers ...)

Also, cedar doesn't keep bugs out; the beetles just don't like the taste of that wood, so they won't eat cedar - they'll just crawl around it.

Lots of folks do like the cedar taste in cigars - witness cedar-wrapped cigars (and note that the cedar wrap is on the inside of the cello ...)

If it is important to the way you are planning to use your cooler to address RH swings, then the best way in a large volume of space is to use fans. However, putting cigars in boxes effectively eliminates that concern, i.e., the RH swing from opening and closing isn't going to affect a cigar in a box like it would a cigar in an open tray (assuming cigars without cello).

YMMV.

[TravPSU]

So keeping the cigars in the box they came in closed inside the coolerdor will still allow the humidity to get to them? Or should you sit the box in the coolerdor and keep it open to allow the humidity in?

[craig]

So keeping the cigars in the box they came in closed inside the coolerdor will still allow the humidity to get to them? Or should you sit the box in the coolerdor and keep it open to allow the humidity in?

If everything is already at the RH you want, keep the box closed. Otherwise, once everything is at the RH you want, close the box.