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Beads versus distilled water .

mementomori

mementomori

New Member
Joined
Jan 7, 2008
Messages
186
Location
Chicago,il
I'd like to hear if some of you ever switched from distilled water and foam humidifiers to beads and lived hapilly ever after . I seriously consider this options , i got cigar oasis and 12 foam humidifiers to get rid if you guys convince me to beads . Please let me know your experience with both , i'm getting tired of changing water and all that bullshit . I got 5 humidors so looks like it might be not cheap to replace humidification devices in all of them but i'm ready for it . Please let me know if it's worth to switch and if yes what kind of beads could be the best . Thanks again guys .
 
YES. I don't know why I ever used foam with water. I hardly ever have to do anything with my wine cooler. Always sitting at the right rh. Do it!
 
bfisher88 said:
YES. I don't know why I ever used foam with water. I hardly ever have to do anything with my wine cooler. Always sitting at the right rh. Do it!
Click to expand...

What kind of beads do you use ? I need to keep 65 in 4 humidors and 70 in only one ( i got cigars with really fragile , sensitive wrappers in that one )


Also i would like to pay more and get some beads that really last long . Anyways how often do i suppose to change them ?
 
www.heartfeltindustries.com

Also, do a search on here for them. Those questions have all been answered very well.
 
They'll last as long as they're in good condition = indefinitely.

You can also use this (avail @ Petsmart):
gallery_7197_614_6809.jpg



Use search for Kitty Litter Humidity. Best of luck.
 
You have to charge and occasionlly recharge them with a spray bottle af distilled water, but I don't think you have to change them unless you have defective beads or some bigger problem with your humi. I use 65's in my humidors and home mixed 50/50 in my storage coolerdors. Probably change them over at some point.
 
Kitty litter? That's fascinating. Is this brand clay based? Who figured that one out? Guess it's time to use that search function.

I've been using beads in a few humidors for probably a year. I'm not convinced that I'm using them 100% effectively yet.

I've also used them in flow over Food Storage conatainers and they work very well. In this application, I've found that they definitely last longer as I suppose that they're not competing with a lot of cedar for moisture. I also attribute this longevity to the more air tight nature of the containers.

I also use boveda packs, and while more expensive, they work flawlessly in the food storage container application.
 
I have been using silica-based kitty litter (unscented) for over a year now with excellent results.

Wilkey
 
Go to Petsmart

8 POUNDS of beads cost less than what Heartfelt charges for a 2 ounce tube.
 
I'm going to Pet-s-mart today. I've got to try this kitty litter method. Dick's sporting goods next week-end for a Coleman cooler.
 
I highly encourage you to either purchase beads or use gel. If you have small desktop humidors, I have crystal gel jars that work really well and super cheap. I use them in 3 of my desktops and they are easy to maintain. If you want some, PM me. If not, definitely get the beads. I am not a fan of using kitty liter to humidify cigars...
 
I've never used the kitty litter method, but if the "Professor" uses it then it can't be too bad....

I myself use a pound of Heartfelt in my cooler and a gel jar in my desktop. I've never had a problem with either....
 
The only two questions that should concern someone contemplating the use of silica-based kitty litter as a humidity buffer are:

1. Do I feel comfortable conditioning the silica myself and then giving it a little spritz with distilled water when I see RH start dropping.

2. Am I confident that my hygrometers are reading properly.

If your answers are YES, then there is no objective or performance reason whatsoever that one should shy away from taking this route. It is not rocket science. It is not a betrayal of a manufacturer/vendor whom many hold in high regard. It is not being cheap. It is but one way to manage the environmental conditions in our humidors to result in well-stored, perfectly conditioned, performing cigars. If making your own makes you happy, then by all means, do so. Whether it's $18 worth of commercial humidity buffering beads or $1.00 of homebrew KL, either way it's a tiny percentage of the value in cigars that a 48qt cooler can hold.

Is it about the money? Yes and no. If you can afford to fill a cooler, then you can afford $18 for beads. However, you could also spend the $17 buck difference on cigars. It's a choice we are all free to make.

Wilkey
 
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