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70/70 - what if humidity changes?

SacNickSacNick Posts: 77
in Cigar 101
I hate to beat a dead horse - or anything for that matter. But...

What if I lost my humidity down to....45%?

It was down this low for some time (almost a week).

Am I OK?
Now that I got it back to 65 - 68%?
Are my cigars doomed?

I am not aging, I want to enjoy them now.

:)

Thanks in advance.

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    madurofanmadurofan Posts: 6,219 ✭✭✭
    Nick you have done some damage to the cigars there is no doubt about that. The extent of the damage is hard to quantify unless you have smoked that cigar before. THey'll be fine and smokeable but they may not be what they were intended to be. Can I ask how the hell that happened?
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    dutyjedutyje Posts: 2,263 ✭
    I don't know if a week will be enough to cause much in the way of permanent damage or taste change... but they're probably quite dried out... do they feel crunchy/crackly? If so, they're in some bad shape. I'd keep then in a humidor at the proper humidity for many weeks (kuzi's 6+ wouldn't be a bad idea here at all). You'll get them back to a smokeable condition, but as maddy said they may have a slightly different flavor. However, unless you happen to have smoked a lot of that particular cigar, I bet you'd have a hard time picking out the subtle flavor change from just a week of this mistreatment. If these are something you're sampling for a first time, I think you can enjoy the smoke just as much (in a couple months).
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    urbinourbino Posts: 4,517 ✭
    I'm certainly no expert, but I doubt a week will have done much harm. Let them come back up over a few weeks, and then set 'em afire. You'll enjoy it.
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    j0z3rj0z3r Posts: 9,403 ✭✭
    I doubt your situation is as dire as maddy is describing. Remember that cigars absorb humidity themselves, so even if you humidor were to maintain a 45% RH for a week or so, the cigar's internal humidity will be higher as it will take a while to dry the cigar out to that level. I think as long as you keep it stabilized for at least one month they should be just fine, but don't rush it as they will be somewhat dried out.
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    kaspera79kaspera79 Posts: 7,257 ✭✭✭
    Hey nick, when I was moving a few years back all my stuff including my humidor were placed in a storage unit and I did not have access to them for over a month. At the time I was using pillows for humidity. When I got them back they were at about 4o-45% and probably 50 degrees I was able to bring them back, and the taste was harsher on some sticks, but all still smokable. I had about 50 cigars in that batch, Let them recharge for about a month, that's how long I waited.
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    SacNickSacNick Posts: 77
    It happened because the water sponge that originally came with the humidor ran out of water.

    I have a glycol gel jar (small). I think this is for 50 cigar size humidor.
    Mine is 150 cigar size humidor.

    The cigars never became crunchy, but I could tell they were drier when I rolled them in my fingers.

    I think I will smoke the less expensive ones in the next week (Vegas, Troya), and wait one or two weeks for my others to rest more (AF, Cusana, Gurkha). I doubt my pallate will be able to tell the difference though.
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    ScramblerScrambler Posts: 746 ✭✭
    Now is a perfect time to invest $20 in humidity beads. I think very few here use the standard humidifier that comes with the humi. Not everyone agrees that beads are the best alternative, but in my opinion a 150ct humidor will be much easier to maintain with the beads.
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    urbinourbino Posts: 4,517 ✭
    SacNick:
    The cigars never became crunchy, but I could tell they were drier when I rolled them in my fingers.

    I think I will smoke the less expensive ones in the next week (Vegas, Troya), and wait one or two weeks for my others to rest more (AF, Cusana, Gurkha). I doubt my pallate will be able to tell the difference though.
    Sounds reasonable, Nick. It might be worth mentioning, though, that while you probably won't notice a big taste difference, the cigars will burn faster and hotter the drier they are. Though you might not notice the affect on the taste, it will also shorten your smoke. It's worth putting those higher end smokes away for a while.
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    pilot711pilot711 Posts: 176
    Scrambler:
    Now is a perfect time to invest $20 in humidity beads. I think very few here use the standard humidifier that comes with the humi. Not everyone agrees that beads are the best alternative, but in my opinion a 150ct humidor will be much easier to maintain with the beads.
    Totally agree.
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    SacNickSacNick Posts: 77
    OOIIiieeee.

    Now I am havin' fun. Now it's jumped up to 70% in two days.
    Is there a risk in these "swelling" too fast? or anything?

    Additionally, I recall that one of my local cigar shops, with less selection, had their humidifier running and it's readout said 47% in their walk-in. There cigars were definately, more crunchy.

    Should I be concerned?


    My better selection cigar shop has their humidity around 60%.

    Strange stuff.

    Thanks for all the replies.
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    dutyjedutyje Posts: 2,263 ✭
    Ask them what's up ... it may just be a calibration thing (less with the 47% than the 60%)... it also may have something to do with your location. I live in the southeast, so I can't really say.
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