How To Select The Best Cigar Humidors? Reason #553

[FrankJScott]

6 Cigar Humidification Methods

Now you have a solid comprehension of exactly what a hygrometer does and what can happen if your humidity is too high or too low, let's talk about how to actually control the humidity in your humidor. Unfortunately, you can't just use a moist paper towel in a ziplock bag...

1. The Hockey Puck Humidification Method
The unofficial hockey puck method was my very first means to control the humidity in my humidor and boy, was it stressful. This is actually the"puck" which is included with humidors the majority of the time and requires one to boil it into propylene glycol. I found it to be a bit of a guessing game since you need to be sure that your"puck" does not run out of juice. It had been mostly stressful since I used the crummy free version from my humidor so results may vary. I only had to re-soak each 30-45 days and found it to be much more consistent. Soaking a humidor puck is quite simple. It takes about 30 seconds and you simply purchase the propylene glycol separately. This solution is odorless and just replaces water as a pure form of moisture. Using tap water may create problems due to chlorine or other chemicals, and bottled water won't stay moist as long as propylene glycol.

2. The Tubes or Mini Jars Cigar Humidification Method
Xikar and Drymistat make quite easy to use products that you may just open and pop it in a humidor such as this
wineador. These have a much more controlled method of handling humidity compared to the puck technique. The only bad thing is that you need to replace these entirely most of the time each 3-6 months completely. I don't advise trying to"re-soak" them together with the propylene glycol. The attractiveness of them, particularly the tubes is that they don't occupy much space in your humidor. But, depending on the size, the jar format may work better:

3. The Boveda Packs Cigar Humidification Method
Like the jar or tubes from Xikar and Drymistat, it is possible to go with a very controlled system of Boveda humidity packs. These are my favourite cigar humidification strategy and ones that I use for the tupperdor today. But they can err a bit on the large side in terms of humidity should you use them in a tupperdor. I'd like to go several percentages lower in the desired humidity for a result if you have a tupperdor. (These packs are available in all different humidity levels.) They do a fantastic job of absorbing humidity whether it's too high and growing if it is too low. As soon as your package is stiff, you then just throw it off. That being said, many claim to be able to recharge these quite easily simply by soaking them for a few days once they become stiff. Although this may be a great way to save money, the recharged packs certainly will not be as precise as a first. To find out more about the way to recharge, check out this YouTube tutorial. For me personally, I really don't recharge because I'm going to spend hundreds of bucks on cigars, I don't want to cut corners to save a couple bucks on Boveda packs.

4. The Heartfelt Beads Humidification Method
Heartfelt beads are a common humidity method which many recommend across cigar forums. This company revolves around these beads and they've a lot of diehard followers for their product. These are popular with larger humidors or wineadors. These are most likely one of the more expensive options but continue forever. They do need spraying of water after two or week though so you've got to stick to a schedule. This way is somewhat more geared towards the more advanced cigar collectors. Normally, cigar collectors will have a pouch of these beads or a layer at the base of their wineador.

5. The Electric Cigar Humidification Method
There is nothing better than the place it and forget of an electric humidifier, particularly in the event that you have a large or precious collection. These are a little expensive when compared with the other choices such as
rabbit air but there is the advantage of very little maintenance. The components work best if plugged -- so you'll be asked to conduct a level cord to the exterior of your humidor. However some of these units have a few really cool features like wi-fi capabilities and can humidify up to 1,000 cigars! (That could be a good deal of Boveda packs...) You really do have to replace the cartridge every 6 -- 12 months but it's comparatively cheap.

6. The Kitty Litter Cigar Humidification Method
For a larger wineador installation, many advocate kitty litter as a viable option to control humidity. I've never done this but many swear by it. This is a very similar technique to this Heartfelt beads strategy outlined above. The key is to get a kitty litter without a fragrance and spray distilled water every two to three weeks as needed. I've seen very positive testimonials from Exquisicat Crystals with very low fructose nor scent.