First time cigar smoker (first humidor)
Hi guys,
My brother got me a humidor for my birthday (similar to this model) and since then I've bought a Xikar cigar cutter, lighter, and a 5 Vegas sampler pack from this site. I received the cigars 2 days ago, but I just started to season the humidor yesterday (oops). I wiped everything down with distilled water and filled up the 2 humidifier units with distilled water and stuck them to the top of the unit. The humidity has risen to about 75% in 12 hours. I also have some cigar juice that I bought from this site. Should I add cigar juice to the humidifiers and throw the cigars in there? Or what should I do? I am not sure how long I need to let it "season"
My brother got me a humidor for my birthday (similar to this model) and since then I've bought a Xikar cigar cutter, lighter, and a 5 Vegas sampler pack from this site. I received the cigars 2 days ago, but I just started to season the humidor yesterday (oops). I wiped everything down with distilled water and filled up the 2 humidifier units with distilled water and stuck them to the top of the unit. The humidity has risen to about 75% in 12 hours. I also have some cigar juice that I bought from this site. Should I add cigar juice to the humidifiers and throw the cigars in there? Or what should I do? I am not sure how long I need to let it "season"
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That will keep you busy for quite a while. In the meantime, don't put your cigars in there yet, your humi isn't ready. Keep them sealed in the bag they shipped in along with (hopefully) the humi pillow. Put a large, shallow bowl of distilled water in the humi as well and keep the lid shut until tomorrow.
The info your looking for is a bit much for a single post so searching really is a good way to get all the info. to start and then you can come back and post more specific questions as you proceed. Happy reading and congratulations on your new humidor and cigars!!!
I am performing the salt test as we speak. I am considering getting a digital hydrometer though. Do you know if it will fit in the standard hole that an analog fits into?
I am so eager to pull one of my cigars out and smoke it! I also have the cigar club cigars coming soon.
I hope the cigar juice does the trick. If not, I will consider getting some of the beads.
The foam pucks and distilled water/propelene will work for a while just fine but eventually you'll probably want to use beads because they work both ways, giving off humidity and absorbing humidity, depending on what's needed. They produce an environment that's far more stable than foam can produce since it only gives off humidity. Foam and ppl can produce mold over time as well but for the near future you'll be safe.
As for your count question, my friend has that same humi and it holds fewer sticks than you think. I think he was only able to get about 75 sticks in there.
I did the salt test on my hydrometer (analog) and it came out at 76. Me, being an idiot, tried to adjust it down to 75 and ended up adjusting more than I should have. I put it back with the salt and after a while I could tell I moved it too much. It was hard to adjust because when I put the screwdriver in the back, it changed to like 70 and then when I pulled it out and went back up. Hard to explain. After messing with it for a while, I think I have it within 2 % accuracy. I put it back in the humidor and am continuing to season. It is reading 78 right now. I am going to buy a digital though for improved accuracy.
I will give the humidor a couple more days to season and then if everything looks good I will throw my cigars in there. I can't wait to smoke some of the more full body cigars to see what they are like. Also can't wait for my cigars of the month to come in.
1) Digital hygro's, not only being more accurate, feature a button to reset to 75%, so you don't need to take the hygro out of the ziplock bag to adjust it
2) Full flavors and complexity can be found in any cigar, from mild to full, so don't restrict yourself to just one profile
oh yeah... and read the forums alot. the search button here is my and will be your friend. the back logs here have tons of info that is cool to read.
I see a couple of green dots. I sure hope that isn't mold and that is just how the wood was before.
I put the cigar juice in the humidifiers and the output is staying steady around 76...my digital hygrometer will come in tomorrow and I'll see how accurate my analog is after calibrating. I imagine i can stick the cigars in soon. I think the seasoning is about done.
Also, the humidor RH level will change dramatically as you open or close your box since the wood hasnt been totally totally seasoned yet and more importantly, its empty. More cigars in the box = more stable the humidity level. Id make sure the wood is well seasoned before putting them in. Only reason i say that is because if you jump the gun and dump cigars in with unseasoned wood, your box will season itself by using your cigars as its water source, in other words pulling moisture out of the sticks.
So far I have smoked a Vegas classic, gold, A series, and miami. I liked them all. I thought the A series was the strongest.
Based on me liking all of those, does anyone have any recommendations for another sampler on cigar.com? I wouldn't mind trying some more expensive cigars, but budget cigars that taste good are fine recommendations too