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Is Heartfelt out of business?

Following up post 19 - I’ve had a large tube of the RH Shield 65% beads in my desktop humidor (100 count box, the tube of beads for 250 sticks, I like having extra humidity “ballast”) since Sunday. Have two recently calibrated Caliber VI hygros in it.

Just opened it now, it is well-seasoned. One read 65 the other 66. I have a Xikar Humifan in there, too.

I think RH Shield is the same thing as heartfelt, they’re not splitting the atom here. I’d say buy with confidence. You can get them direct or on Amazon.
 
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hydro-terp said:
So whats a guy to do for a source for good beads if Heartfelt is no longer an option? I have almost no interest in Boveda. I don't like living in a throw away world.

HT
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That's a great question! I'm kicking myself for not buying when I had the chance. I still have plenty, but wanted more since they are a great buffer/equalizer paired with my active humidification. Especially, when the dry winters in my area happen.
 
Nothing objective, but it's seemed like the business has been teetering on the edge for years.

I hope Viper is well all things considered. He's been a valuable part of this community for a long time.
 
hydro-terp said:
So whats a guy to do for a source for good beads if Heartfelt is no longer an option? I have almost no interest in Boveda. I don't like living in a throw away world.

HT
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I bought these beads, put them in a sealed container with a dish of water and a fan for a couple weeks until they got up to Mid 60s. Then I put eight boveda packs in to control them at exactly 65%. I am 2 weeks in to the stabilization process, another two weeks and they will be programmed to exactly 65%

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@CigarStone I've never heard of this process and cannot find it talked about here, but my search fu may be weak. Can you describe the process or point me to a web resource? I bought a bunch of RH Shield beads recently. I'll feel kind of stupid if I can make them myself. I always thought it was some special manufacturing process that had to take place when making them.

Thanks much, in advance!
 
JCinPA said:
@CigarStone I've never heard of this process and cannot find it talked about here, but my search fu may be weak. Can you describe the process or point me to a web resource? I bought a bunch of RH Shield beads recently. I'll feel kind of stupid if I can make them myself. I always thought it was some special manufacturing process that had to take place when making them.

Thanks much, in advance!
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Good question. I'm interested in this too. So when you program them, they will naturally drop below 65% if your humi goes too low, but when you mist them (recharge them), they won't go above 65%?
 
Im going to guess that perhaps putting them in a 65% environment for a long enough time it is essentially zeroing them out like when you calibrate Govees etc.

Im a skeptic since they were made to absorb moisture, and thats a one way street in what they were made to do. Thats a baked in thing literally, but I have an open mind. I need/want it to work in both directions.

HT
 
JCinPA said:
@CigarStone I've never heard of this process and cannot find it talked about here, but my search fu may be weak. Can you describe the process or point me to a web resource? I bought a bunch of RH Shield beads recently. I'll feel kind of stupid if I can make them myself. I always thought it was some special manufacturing process that had to take place when making them.

Thanks much, in advance!
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We talked about the process ad-nauseum many years ago but basically, using 100% pure silica beads, you stabilize them at the RH you want for three to four weeks and then that's where they want to live. They used to make pure silica beads as cat litter and people even used that, I remember one nimrod actually bought the beads which contained blue crystals and when we told him that wouldn't work because the blue crystals were scented, he went through and picked out all the blue ones. They still had the scent to them though.🤪

I did this 15 years ago using a Cigar Oasis and the beads still work perfectly. However, I programmed them at 70% and I now want to keep my cigars at 65% based on knowledge I've gained over the years. I will probably reprogram the 70% ones once I have the new ones in my coolidors.

I'm surprised that it isn't talked about at all anymore but like you, I can't find anything on the web about it. But it works.
 
Fascinating. I just assumed Heartfelt manufactured them to work the way they do. I can't imagine why this stopped being talked about, since beads are the second most recommended product after Boveda packs for humidity control.

After reading this, I'm pretty more convinced that RH Shield are the same as Heartfelt, mine are working fine. However, two pounds of your beads, @CigarStone cost $13. One pound of RH Shield beads cost $49. 😳 Talk about compelling economics! If yours are still working after 15 years, I'm a believer!

I have several Xikar Humifan units, and a spare 5L Sistema container. If I understand the process, use normal humidor seasoning techniques to get them close to 65%, then remove the seasoning item, and pack them with Bovedas for a month? I gotta try this.

I wonder how the hell this fell out of common cigar community conversation? The number of YouTube videos on calibrating hygrometers or recharging Boveda packs is redonkulous.

Edit: Some further Googling indicates that things like Heartfelt beads, and probably RH Shield beads may have silica beads manafactured with salts to work best at a particular RH. But I'm going to take Cigarstone's 15 years experience and try this. Thanks much for the explanation!
 
JCinPA said:
Fascinating. I just assumed Heartfelt manufactured them to work the way they do. I can't imagine why this stopped being talked about, since beads are the second most recommended product after Boveda packs for humidity control.

After reading this, I'm pretty more convinced that RH Shield are the same as Heartfelt, mine are working fine. However, two pounds of your beads, @CigarStone cost $13. One pound of RH Shield beads cost $49. 😳 Talk about compelling economics! If yours are still working after 15 years, I'm a believer!

I have several Xikar Humifan units, and a spare 5L Sistema container. If I understand the process, use normal humidor seasoning techniques to get them close to 65%, then remove the seasoning item, and pack them with Bovedas for a month? I gotta try this.

I wonder how the hell this fell out of common cigar community conversation? The number of YouTube videos on calibrating hygrometers or recharging Boveda packs is redonkulous.

Edit: Some further Googling indicates that things like Heartfelt beads, and probably RH Shield beads may have silica beads manafactured with salts to work best at a particular RH. But I'm going to take Cigarstone's 15 years experience and try this. Thanks much for the explanation!
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A while back, I read articles about beads being programmed to the desired RH for preservation of precious artworks. That's where I got my idea and quite frankly, I think most people would rather just buy the beads rather than invest six weeks to program them.
 
Rod said:
Good question. I'm interested in this too. So when you program them, they will naturally drop below 65% if your humi goes too low, but when you mist them (recharge them), they won't go above 65%?
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I never misted my beads because direct contact would make them fracture and they would turn into dust eventually. I always just insert a small dish water with colloidal silver for a day or so and they come right back to normal.

John @jfields and I talked about this at length a while back, it seemed like heartfelt beads did not have the issue of cracking and breaking if you misted them.
 
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Rod said:
Wow, no ones mentioned the old kitty litter hack... which I do not endorse. Guess it could be worse, there's always antifreeze. If you've been around long enough, you know... :D
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I responded to the latter couple posts in this thread and just now went back and was reading more of the posts and I saw this and got a good chuckle. 😂
 
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CigarStone said:
I never misted it my beads because direct contact would make them fracture and they would turn into dust eventually. I always just insert additional water with colloidal silver for a day or so and they come right back to normal.

John @jfields and I talked about this at length a while back, it seemed like heartfelt beads did not have the issue of cracking and breaking if you misted it them.
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I’ve used Heartfelt tubes for 20+ years and have misted them and even dunked them with no ill effects.
 
I remember all the talk about programming beads as well, 15+ years back when I was first switching to beads and setting up a coolerdor. But like you guys, I can't find anything about it now. I ended up just going with Heartfelt at that time and they've worked great ever since, but I'm glad the info was posted again so we can do it if we need to!
 
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