Help!!! Beetles!!!

[ggiese]

Sorry to relive anyones nightmare but this shit scares me almost to the point of only having a very small collection. How common are these things and what temp and humidity do they thrive at? I would hate for some of my cigars I've had for 6 monts or so to be wasted.

There are some incredible pics floating around showing the kind of damage these little buggers make. I personally saw a brand new box from the manufacturer, won in a drawing, LOADED with larvae. The tops of the cigars looked perfectly fine - but when you flipped the cigars over there was little that hadn't been chewed into...

I'm not aware there's any secret formula for preventing it from happening. One manufacturer or region doesn't seem to be more or less susceptible. Freezing seems to help - I know my shop supposedly freezes everything coming in - but I've also heard of individuals that have been hit AFTER the cigars were frozen. Keeping the cigars cool (around 70 degrees) does seem to help. Letting the cigars get over 80 degrees for any kind of prolonged period seems to speed the process up.

Bottom line - It happens often enough to be concerned, but not enough to lose sleep over it...

[TravPSU]

Although I would never want to have my cigars ruined by beetles, it could be a blessing in disguise. It would be an excuse to rebuild my collection... with better cigars!

[Irish79]

Although I would never want to have my cigars ruined by beetles, it could be a blessing in disguise. It would be an excuse to rebuild my collection... with better cigars!

Personally, I would prefer to rebuild my collection with better cigars after smoking and enjoying my current sicks. Wait, that might depend upon what you've been collecting...

[TravPSU]

Personally, I would prefer to rebuild my collection with better cigars after smoking and enjoying my current sicks. Wait, that might depend upon what you've been collecting...

I have a mighty fine collection of Swisher sweets...

[ashauler]

I have a mighty fine collection of Swisher sweets...

What, no contests for those?

[TravPSU]

What, no contests for those?

Sorry, these are my personal stash. Saving them for a special occasion. All my other cigars are just bait for the beetles so my Swishers are left alone.