Some general cigar help please

[Wingman1]

I just found this forum and thought that it could help me with a bunch of questions that I have. There aren’t any cigar stores near by so I have to get all of my information from the web. Since I have a lot of questions and want to see if this forum can help me, I would like to start with just a few.

#1 my wife works for an airline. Due to the cold weather, they have to deice the planes. The substance they use to do this is propylene glycol/ water mixture. Is this the same substance that they use for humidification devices in humidor?

#2. A little over a months ago I went to a man’s house because his brother had died. The brother was a collector of many sorts. Cigars were one of the items he collected. I purchased a cooler full of cigars from the man. I recognized all of the brands of cigars that were in the cooler. 80% of the boxes had not even been opened and are still with the plastic wrap on the box. The humidification device that was in the cooler was a wet sponge on a cool whip lid. The guy said that is how his brother always kept them. When I got the cooler home I put a digital hygrometer into the cooler. It read 78% humidity. I took the sponge out of the cooler. The humidity has finally gone down to 71%. The majority of the cigars that I bought are from 1997 -2000 (written on the bottom). Some are new and 3 boxes are opened and the ages are unknown. Was there anything wrong with lowering the humidity that much over a month I had just heard that they should be around 70%? Were they ruined when I bought them?

Any and all help on this is appreciated!
Happy new year

[ashauler]

1. No
2. Open the boxes and check the cigars. They may have some mold at that high rh.
3. Post an introduction.

[ggiese]

I just found this forum and thought that it could help me with a bunch of questions that I have. There aren’t any cigar stores near by so I have to get all of my information from the web. Since I have a lot of questions and want to see if this forum can help me, I would like to start with just a few.

#1 my wife works for an airline. Due to the cold weather, they have to deice the planes. The substance they use to do this is propylene glycol/ water mixture. Is this the same substance that they use for humidification devices in humidor?

#2. A little over a months ago I went to a man’s house because his brother had died. The brother was a collector of many sorts. Cigars were one of the items he collected. I purchased a cooler full of cigars from the man. I recognized all of the brands of cigars that were in the cooler. 80% of the boxes had not even been opened and are still with the plastic wrap on the box. The humidification device that was in the cooler was a wet sponge on a cool whip lid. The guy said that is how his brother always kept them. When I got the cooler home I put a digital hygrometer into the cooler. It read 78% humidity. I took the sponge out of the cooler. The humidity has finally gone down to 71%. The majority of the cigars that I bought are from 1997 -2000 (written on the bottom). Some are new and 3 boxes are opened and the ages are unknown. Was there anything wrong with lowering the humidity that much over a month I had just heard that they should be around 70%? Were they ruined when I bought them?

Any and all help on this is appreciated!
Happy new year

1. Purchasing a 55 gallon drum of Propylene Glycol from the airport probably is not the best way to humidify your cigars. Many have tried, none have succeeded.

2. 78% humiudity is way too high. Dropping it to 70% is what needed to be done. Not only the potential mold issue, but I doubt seriously you'll be able to keep any of those cigars lit. You'll need to keep them at 70% (and even a bit lower) for several weeks to get them in smokeable condition.

Keeping them in a cooler is a great way to store them - it will maintain a very stable humiidity. The fact they're still in their boxes is also good. Look into humidification beads - that'll keep the rh very stable.

[cigarsarge]

I use anti-freeze in my humidor. it's the same shit as PG and it's much cheaper. Peak is the best I've found. A gallon will last all year.

[Wingman1]

Thanks for all of your information. I'll post an introduction.

[Wingman1]

The forum won't let me post because my tolken expired? so here this will have to do:

I am a 36 year old with a wife and two awesome children. Oh the wife’s awesome too. (she might see this post) I was born and raised in Colorado. I met my wife in Nebraska and will probably stay here. The hunting and fishing is incredible here. In the summer I miss riding motorcycles in the mountains but it’s not too far from here. I am a drug investigator for a drug task force. I’ve been a police officer for 11 years and can’t imagine doing anything else. (I joined this forum to talk about and learn about cigars not talk about being a cop, just giving some background)

In my humidor: Mostly Perdomo, Partagas and some Drew Estate and some throw down cigars (to give to friends who don’t care what they smoke)

In my newly acquired “cigar cooler”: boxes of Partagas, Macanudo, Punch, A. Fuente, LGC and Don Tomas.

[cigarsarge]

I'm a cop too...Shift Sergeant on the evening shift at the local Sheriff's Office. Please don't take the anitfreeze stuff I posted seriously. It's an inside joke with a few of us.

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