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Beads for the new humi

HugemooseHugemoose Posts: 458 ✭
in Cigar 101
So as a relative newbie, I have another question for the more experienced.

My new humidor should be here this week, and it is a 120 count 2 layer, with around a 530 cubic inch capacity. I am looking into the Heartfelt beads and quite simply I need to know how much to get! I have done some reading on this, but I still am a little unsure as to how much I actually need.

I had thought about simply getting a half pound and one of their bags to take care of it. Then I'll still have a foam (of I could fill it with beads) round humidifier on top to keep the beads with enough humidity.

Any suggestions?

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    BigginBiggin Posts: 52
    Can someone explain the bead thing for me so I know what's going on?
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    mustluvcigarsmustluvcigars Posts: 686
    basically it goes like this, you buy a humidor which usually comes with a "puck" humidifier with a chunk of foam in it, which most people hate using, you can also buy this "pucks" which come with a crystal gel, you can use humidity packs or water pillows also, but alot the guys here like the beads sold by heartfelt industries, they are sold by the ounce from their site(google it)
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    gmill880gmill880 Posts: 5,947 ✭
    Hugemoose:
    So as a relative newbie, I have another question for the more experienced.

    My new humidor should be here this week, and it is a 120 count 2 layer, with around a 530 cubic inch capacity. I am looking into the Heartfelt beads and quite simply I need to know how much to get! I have done some reading on this, but I still am a little unsure as to how much I actually need.

    I had thought about simply getting a half pound and one of their bags to take care of it. Then I'll still have a foam (of I could fill it with beads) round humidifier on top to keep the beads with enough humidity.

    Any suggestions?

    I personally use the Boveda Packs they are the easiest thing you can do. Drop in and forget about them. They release and absorb which I don't think beads do. 3 packs per 50 cigars works great for me. replace with new ones every couple of months and no water no charging no hassel ...IMHO...
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    xmacroxmacro Posts: 3,402 ✭
    I use beads and its working fine for me - I'm pretty sure the beads absorb moisture as well as release it, at least thats been the case in my experience. Hugemoose - check your inbox
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    brsmith21brsmith21 Posts: 207
    The beads do absorb and release, though probably not as effectively. I don't use the Boveda packs only because of cost. 3 packs for 50 sticks seems pretty steep considering I'm sitting on 4 to 5 hundred sticks at any given time. Replacing the packs every couple of months would be a lot more expensive than a squirt of distilled water as needed (about once a month). Again, just my opinion.
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    niz33niz33 Posts: 83
    Heartfelt Industries recommends 1oz for a humidor with 540 cu inches so get the half pound bag. Now if you are going to be opening your humidor a lot Like everyone does in the beginning including myself go ahead and put in 2oz so it could stabilize the humidity much faster when you do open it. Remember you can’t go wrong with putting in more beads.
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    HugemooseHugemoose Posts: 458 ✭
    Thanks for the tips guys. I know many of these questions were probably asked before, so I really appreciate the help. I just really want this humidor to be in good condition so I can start aging a few cigars for my brothers wedding!

    I figured the half pound bag would suffice, but I was wrong on the room inside the humidor. It is actually a little over 800 cubic inches. So lets say I buy half a pound, and then go slightly overkill and put in 4 ounces of the beads into the humi. I still have 4 ounces left over; how do I store them without them well.....being put to use?
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    niz33niz33 Posts: 83
    Hugemoose:
    Thanks for the tips guys. I know many of these questions were probably asked before, so I really appreciate the help. I just really want this humidor to be in good condition so I can start aging a few cigars for my brothers wedding!

    I figured the half pound bag would suffice, but I was wrong on the room inside the humidor. It is actually a little over 800 cubic inches. So lets say I buy half a pound, and then go slightly overkill and put in 4 ounces of the beads into the humi. I still have 4 ounces left over; how do I store them without them well.....being put to use?
    If you get the Heartfelt Industries beads they come in a ziploc bag so just keep it close. No special storage needed.
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    HugemooseHugemoose Posts: 458 ✭
    That'll work! Thank you.
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    xmacroxmacro Posts: 3,402 ✭
    You may just wanna toss all the beads in if you can - they're rated for a specific percentage. So long as your humidor is about 60-80% full, they should hold that same RH, regardless of how many you have in there (if you have less, then the RH may be a bit higher due to all the room/unused space - the cigars also absorb moisture, which is why unfilled humidors may experience higher RH's). - - - - also, most premium cigars are already aged - the leaves are aged for about 2 yrs, then rolled into cigars, which are then aged for 2 more years. Keeping your cigars in a humidor after you get them via mail serves 2 purposes - 1) Keep them fresh/properly humidified, and 2) When you first get cigars, they may be a bit wet/dry depending on how they were shipped, so keeping them in your humidor remedies that and makes them smoke better (typically takes about a week I think)
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    HugemooseHugemoose Posts: 458 ✭
    I'm sure I'll have room for all of them....at least at first.

    One more newbie question about these. How long will they last? I can keep on eye on them for recharging, but is there a limit to that like there is the gel?
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    niz33niz33 Posts: 83
    Hugemoose:
    I'm sure I'll have room for all of them....at least at first.

    One more newbie question about these. How long will they last? I can keep on eye on them for recharging, but is there a limit to that like there is the gel?
    I don't know about how long, but I have had mine for almost 2 years
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    xmacroxmacro Posts: 3,402 ✭
    The beads themselves last for years; how long you can go without recharging them depends on the number you use. THe more beads you use, the longer they can go without recharging since there's more beads to spread around the humidity (and the humidor will reach proper RH after opening the lid with more beads); likewise, if you have the bare minimum, you'll be recharging them more often and it'll take longer to equalize the RH after you open the lid (though I don't know how much longer - could be weeks, could be months; I just dunno). - - - - Most ppl on this forum recommend between 1.5x - 2x the amount of beads that heartfelt recommends
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