humidor problems ?

kos22us

i bought the milano glass top humidor 75-100 sticks from cheaphumidors, its a two tier box w/ a top tray and three dividers on bottom, it came w/ a large foam oasis rectangular humidifier, i upgraded to the same size rect. humidifier of the gel crystals because i heard they were better, i also bought a little havana digital hygrometer, so i started seasoning by very very lightly wiping down just the lid part of the box, i charged and put in the crystal gel humidi. along w/ a wet ,but not dripping sponge on a zip lock bag, left it alone for 3 days which was now about a week ago and still have the same readings of 82.9 F and 85 RH, it would not budge so i swapped the crystal gel w/ the charged foam that came w/ it same readings ??? any advice on what to do ? the bad thing is i have a decent size sampler of some of the higher end smokes just sitting here and i dont know how long i can leave them hangin w/out proper storage i really would appreciate any advice at all thank you much ... Jack in PA

AQUADGIO1200

The first part is to take care if your bundle from drying out. Grab an XL ziplock bag and put your cigars along with one Crystal Gel Humidifier inside and zip it shut. The second part is when you mentioned you only wiped down the top portion of the humidor....you should of wiped down the entire interior as well as the cedar tray....followed by charging the foam humidifier with distilled water and placing back inside for 24hrs. After the first 24hrs you repeat the same process again.....the 3rd day check your humidity....it should be in the 70's and safe....at that point you can swap out the foam humidifier for some crystal gel beads. At this point you can just remove all humidifiers and let your humidity drop to low to mid 60's and then start to add your crystal gels. Hope this helps you out.

tkohler

I've never had good luck with gels, they never seem to humidify enough for me, but I live in a pretty dry climate. It could be that your gel is actually a bit too wet, so it won't absorb your extra humidity and regulate 'down' to 70 (or whatever the gel you have is setup for % wise). I'd say if your climate is lower than 70 % humidity, let your gel sit out and 'dry' a bit for a while, then put back in your humi to see if it will bring the humidity down.
On that note, I've had great luck with beads regulating the humidity in my 100qt coolerdor. If all else fails, maybe pick up some beads? Maybe someone else will have some insight to help bring your humidity down a bit.
Also note, your temps are a little high in my book, much over 75 or so and I'd be worried about beetles hatching...

jship079

Take every thing out of the humi except the hygro. let it sit a day and check if the RH is still high vent over night by just leaving the lid open. once you get the RH down put the Gel back in and everything should be stable. Also be sure to sat test your hygro to be sure it is not off.