Having Humidity problem

**camelman0075** · 02-21-2011, 07:06 AM

Hello everyone

Its been a really long time since I posted on B&B (years even...)

Anyway been a cigar lover for going on 7 years, have had a stable setup for 5 yrs. I currently have the salerno from tampa humidors and I am using the Hydra Humidification system with a recently calibrated (brand new) xibar digital Hygrometer.

Last week a felt like a nice stoog so i openned the humidor and found a lot of my cigars we drying out and very rigid to the touch.

Any suggestions/ advice on what to do here?

Thanks a bunch

**Commander Quan** · 02-21-2011, 08:20 AM

What does the hydromitor say? What is your target humidity?

**camelman0075** · 02-21-2011, 10:18 AM

I have the system set for 70% humidity. Hygrometer reads 71%. Im wondering could it be maybe a circulation problem?

**The Count of Merkur Cristo** · 02-21-2011, 10:23 AM

camelman0075:
Does this Humidor have a good tight seal?

"If I cannot smoke cigars in Heaven, I shall not go". Mark Twain

NOTE: Good Humidors should have a tight seal and I can not stress this enough. Raise the lid about 2 inches and let it drop (it shouln't slam) and you should be able to hear (and feel) a 'whoosh' sound. That noise is the sound on the air escaping the Humidor, which then will tell you it's a well-constructed humidor. .

Christopher

"Cigar smoking knows no politics. It's about the pursuit of pleasure, taste, and aroma." Anonymous

**jwhite** · 02-21-2011, 11:06 AM

Even if the seal isn't perfect it should be reasonable with that set up if everything is functioning properly, and my Tampa humidors seal well. That doesn't mean your's does though. It's also strange that a humidor that has been stable for years should stop functioning. Do you have your old hydrometer? If it is still working you could use it as a fail-safe to check. The Hydra uses fans, I believe to increase circulation, are they functioning? If the driest cigars are on the outside than the environment is too dry, if they are dry on the bottom than It'd be circulation or dry wood. Is it a new humidor, I have a solid Spanish cedar humidor and it took a while to season properly. Even if the the ambient humidity is right the dry cedar will take the moisture out of cigars, especially those in contact with the wood until fully seasoned.

**Don Barbiere** · 02-21-2011, 11:17 AM

Take a 1$ put half inside ,half outside,close the lid,pull on tge bill if it slides out too easy then you dont have tight seal!Does your Hydra turn itself too often to keep up with the humidity? Also i would start using beads as well if you havent!

**camelman0075** · 02-21-2011, 12:44 PM

I have a good seal on the humidor ( i tested and everything). It may be that the cedar may be a bit dry. How would I go about treating that

**Commander Quan** · 02-21-2011, 01:14 PM

Depending on how many you have, take all the cigars out and either put them in a couple large Ziploc freezer bags, or a cooler. Set a bowl of water in the humidor and let it go for 3-5 days. Move everything back into the humidor and if the cigars feel dry let them rest for 2 weeks. It could just be that your humidifier can't keep up with the try ambient air in the house. Re-seasoning it may solve all your issues.

**camelman0075** · 02-21-2011, 02:10 PM

Thanks guys I appreciate all the help I'll take care of the bowl tonight. Thank god my job gives me access to freshly distilled water (my chemistry degrees finally pays off

)

**VFR79** · 02-21-2011, 02:55 PM

Originally Posted by Don Barbiere

Also i would start using beads as well if you havent!

+1 for the beads. I use Heartfelt beads that are calibrated for 65% humidity in both my desktop humidor and my coolidor.

Andrew

**captp** · 02-21-2011, 07:07 PM

What do you have the Hydra humidity set at? What does the Hydra hygrometer read? How big is your humidor (how many cigars is it rated to hold)? How many cigars do you have in it? A humidor works better if it is near full than if it is nearly empty. e.g. the Salerno is rated for about 300 cigars, and you only have 50-100 in it, it is harder to keep the humidity up. When you squeeze the cigars (very, very gently) do they sound like the might be cracking? If they don't sound crackly they are probably o.k. I use the Cigar Oasis XL Plus, same principle and about the same size as yours and it has no real trouble keeping the humidity in a 10 cubic foot end table humidor, the Montegue, which probably is NOT as tightly sealed as yours; 10 cubic feet is right at, maybe even over the upper limit the Oasis is rated for, the Hydra is rated to 8 cubic feet, almost overkill for the Salerno, which is not a bad thing. In the dry winter season I need to re-water the Oasis every day, sometimes twice a day, spring through fall maybe every 7-10 days.
Try this; take the cigars out, leave the trays in, set the Hydra up to about 80% or more for several days, keep the water full; 3-4 days should do the trick, longer won't hurt. Reset the Hydra back to 70 or so and put your smokes back in. This is more effective than a bowl of water. As an alternative, or in addition, you can carefully wipe down the interior walls and the trays in the humidor with distilled water; don't soak the cedar, just wipe it down lightly so it can absorb a bit of moisture. I know a lot of people object to wiping the cedar down, but I've never had a problem with it; the Montegue is at least the 15th humidor I've had; I didn't wipe it down, but have on most of my others.
You should place the Hydra so it isn't blowing directly on the cigars. If you have the Hydra in the bottom of the humidor and the trays above are packed full, it may not be able to get the moist air up top. Make sure the air intake has at least an inch or two of space in front of it; it should be placed against the back or side with the intake facing into the humidor.
I find that the Oasis works better than the hygroscopic beads in my Montegue; the beads do work; I used them almost exclusively in my desktop humidors and they worked beautifully. I'm sure they'd work perfectly in the Salerno, but the Hydra should work at least as well.
I've been smoking cigars regularly for about 15 years, and obviously suffer from HAD (humidor acquisition disorder). I also have a serious case of LAD and AAD (lighter and ashtray AD). I'm retired and spend a good deal of time at my local smoke shop; I semi-work there and have helped countless customers set up their humidors; never had a complaint on my advice.

**Don Barbiere** · 02-22-2011, 05:32 AM

A good combo is to have passive(beads) amd active(hydra or oadis)as a set up, also here is a link of the Count's tutorial for seasoning and conditioning the humidor!

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=181394

**The Count of Merkur Cristo** · 02-22-2011, 10:15 AM

Originally Posted by Don Barbiere

A good combo is to have passive(beads) amd active(hydra or oadis)as a set up, also here is a link of the Count's tutorial for seasoning and conditioning the humidor!

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=181394

Don Barbiere:
Thanx for your support and thanx for sharing.

Christopher

"Cigar smoking knows no politics. It's about the pursuit of pleasure, taste, and aroma." Anonymous

**Don Barbiere** · 02-22-2011, 03:52 PM

**Price** · 02-23-2011, 11:20 AM

Originally Posted by Commander Quan

Depending on how many you have, take all the cigars out and either put them in a couple large Ziploc freezer bags, or a cooler. Set a bowl of water in the humidor and let it go for 3-5 days. Move everything back into the humidor and if the cigars feel dry let them rest for 2 weeks. It could just be that your humidifier can't keep up with the try ambient air in the house. Re-seasoning it may solve all your issues.

While it's empty, it wouldn't be a bad idea to wipe down the interior with distilled water the first day. I do this with mine every couple years and it's kept my smokes perfect for almost 10 years. Also, depending on how many cigars you have, you may want to move them back in stages - put 100 dry sticks in your freshly re-seasoned humidor and you're right back where you started from.

**camelman0075** · 02-25-2011, 04:12 AM

Ladies and Gentleman

Allow me to begin with a very large thank you. All the input has been very helpful and I have begun fixing the issues (yes multiple).

Firstly, I am re-seasoning the humidor (Hydra turned up to 80, big bowl of distilled water to help maintain the high humidity, and finally a very light wiping with a brand new sponge and distilled water).

Also, It seems I wasn't using the hydra properly. The intake slot was being obstructed by a side wall.

I have taking care of all these issues and I hope this will work.

Thanks again everyone

PS. While emptying the humidor I have come to the conclusion I don't smoke enough cigars

**captp** · 02-25-2011, 04:39 AM

Good to hear all the advice helped. The bowl of water is probably overkill, but it won't hurt, unless you bump the humi and the water spills.

**camelman0075** · 02-25-2011, 04:47 AM

Sorry one more question:

I setup the reseasoning yesterday and I am planning to let it continue until sunday night....too long or too short?

**captp** · 02-25-2011, 05:07 AM

Originally Posted by camelman0075

Sorry one more question:

I setup the reseasoning yesterday and I am planning to let it continue until sunday night....too long or too short?

Sounds like a good time to me. On Sunday, remove the bowl of water, carefully, don't spill any ( a few drops is o.k., just wipe it up), turn the Hydra back down to 70%, or whatever level you prefer. Put the cigars back and monitor the humidity for several days to make sure it's holding well. You may notice that the Hydra will stop running for a while as the cedar releases moisture (not sure, but make sense)