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Humidor not holding humidity level

J

jrosser

New Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2011
Messages
5
I have a humidor that is rated for about 100 - 125 cigars, i have on hand most times 30-50 cigars in my humidor. I have seasoned my humidor on more then one occasion with distiled water by whiping down the inside of the box and letting it sit closed. I have a jar of humidity xicar jelly, humidity beads that are supposed to regulate at 70%, and still need to add a shot glass of water which slowly does empty over time but level doesnt' hold very well at all. The jelly has been slowly evaporating as it should and the jar is about half full, the beads are supposed to obsorbe and release water as needed to keep the humidity steady but i constantly find them dry.. and the level is always low.. the inside dimension of the box is approx 14x8x8.

my first thought was that the box wasn't sealed very good.. i tried the lid slaming test.. and it deff is not slamming down as though there was a leak.. i tested by removing the hygrometer that goes through the side and re-closing the lid and there was a big difference in sound.

the temp in the room where the humidor is kept is usually in the lower 60's between 62 and 65.. is this the cause? or is the humidor i have just a piece and needs replacing?.. any ideas?
 
jrosser said:
I have a humidor that is rated for about 100 - 125 cigars, i have on hand most times 30-50 cigars in my humidor. I have seasoned my humidor on more then one occasion with distiled water by whiping down the inside of the box and letting it sit closed. I have a jar of humidity xicar jelly, humidity beads that are supposed to regulate at 70%, and still need to add a shot glass of water which slowly does empty over time but level doesnt' hold very well at all. The jelly has been slowly evaporating as it should and the jar is about half full, the beads are supposed to obsorbe and release water as needed to keep the humidity steady but i constantly find them dry.. and the level is always low.. the inside dimension of the box is approx 14x8x8.

my first thought was that the box wasn't sealed very good.. i tried the lid slaming test.. and it deff is not slamming down as though there was a leak.. i tested by removing the hygrometer that goes through the side and re-closing the lid and there was a big difference in sound.

the temp in the room where the humidor is kept is usually in the lower 60's between 62 and 65.. is this the cause? or is the humidor i have just a piece and needs replacing?.. any ideas?
Click to expand...

Since you've seasoned it several times, it sounds like your humidor isn't air tight even though it passed the whoosh test. Maybe try some weather stripping? You could always just replace the humi if it's more work than it's worth.
 
First, please head over and introduce yourself so we may get to better know you. I have a few questions. When you say it doesn't hold humidity what is it reading at? Are we talking about swinging 1-2% rh or more like 10+%? Are you currently using a digital hygrometer and is it calibrated?

If you are moving a few %rh then don't worry about it too much.
 
What he said..
Joebiech said:
First, please head over and introduce yourself so we may get to better know you. I have a few questions. When you say it doesn't hold humidity what is it reading at? Are we talking about swinging 1-2% rh or more like 10+%? Are you currently using a digital hygrometer and is it calibrated?

If you are moving a few %rh then don't worry about it too much.
Click to expand...

And check out Heartfelt industries. They have beads a well. Their beads are best. They last forever and they are not Jell. Simple to use and the owner happens to be a member here.
 
beyond the band said:
What he said..
Joebiech said:
First, please head over and introduce yourself so we may get to better know you. I have a few questions. When you say it doesn't hold humidity what is it reading at? Are we talking about swinging 1-2% rh or more like 10+%? Are you currently using a digital hygrometer and is it calibrated?

If you are moving a few %rh then don't worry about it too much.
Click to expand...

And check out Heartfelt industries. They have beads a well. Their beads are best. They last forever and they are not Jell. Simple to use and the owner happens to be a member here.
Click to expand...

The more cigars you have in there, the less likely you'd experience massive fluctuations in RH. That being said, don't risk putting good cigars in a bad humidor otherwise you'll just be wasting good cigars and money.

If you don't want to spend a ton of cash on a new humidor and since you don't have more than 30-50 cigars at any given time, a cheap alternative is some Tupperware or Lock&Lock containers.
 
Put a lit flashlight inside it, close the lid, and go pitch black in the room. Look at all corners, seams, lid to base seal, etc. If it passes that test, do a dollar bill test on the lid. If that passes,

Get the beads, and go with 2X what the site recommends for that size.

Put the cigars in a tupperware, and then place a small shallow bowl of distilled water in the humidor for a minimum of two weeks. Do not open the box at all during that time.

Sounds like a leaky humidor, assuming your hygro is calibrated.

If it is a bad seal or seams not closed 100%, it might make a dandy dry box to keep at 60% rh.

Edit to add, what type of humidor construction is it? Box in a Box, or veneered cedar /mahogany?
 
well when i first put the jelly in there it was holding steady around 65%... then slowly dropped off to around 55... i have added water via a shot glass but still the same..

the beads i am referint to are the heartfeld beads...

humidor is solid wood construcion w/ a window in the lid..so i dont know if i could get the light trick to work.. i am thinking i may give the weather stipping a try..

i did a salt test yesterday and let it sit over night.. i filled a soda cap w/ salt and added water untill it was like a paste consitancy.. i put in my hygrometer.. i have both a digital and analog.. neither has adjustment or calebration screws..

when i did the test and let it sit over night.. both digital and analog were holding steady at 60%.. and it was reading 62 degrees... did it do something wrong w/ the test or are these just both shot hygrometers and i need to buy a better one?

so since the salt test showed 60%.. its supposed to be 75% right?... and my readings are holding in teh 50's.. then that woudl mean i am in the 60's somewhere?...

i think i need to get a good hygrometer that i can calibrate and start from there w/ my testing..
 
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