If you have a cigar humidor, make sure you take the right steps to maintain it. For instance, you should maintain it under the max temperature of 23C and a humidity between 65 to 74$. Ideally, the temperature should be 21C and humidity should be 70%. Read on to know more tips.
According to experts, you may want to use a digital hygrometer in order to control the relative humidity and temperature in your device.
It’s better to recheck the humidity level on a weekly basis to make sure that the humidity is not too low or high. Generally, you should add more distilled water if the humidity levels goes below 65%. Tap water is not a good choice as it may block the pores of the device due to chlorine and minerals.
You should add a little bit of distilled water to the device to saturate it. Allow the surface of the device to dry to ensure it won’t drip water.
Choose a cool, dry place to store your device. It’s not a good idea to place your device in the direct sunlight. Cigars may develop mold or fungus if the humidity or temperature level are too high. Aside from this, the cigars should not clog the vents of the humidifier.
Use Activation Solution
This solution is a mixture of distilled water and propylene glycol. The later works in two ways, which is important: it absorbs the extra humidity and adds more humidity if needed. Aside from this, it acts like a mold and bacterial inhibitor.
Based on your climate, you may want to charge you humidor. Generally, you can recharge it after one or two months. In the meantime, only distilled water can do the job.
Before you use Activation Solution to recharge the device, make sure you rinse the device with distilled water and let it sit for a few minutes to dry. This way you can eliminate the remaining propylene glycol.
Hygrometer Calibration
At times, hygrometers don’t work well, which means their readings are not accurate. so, you need to calibrate them again. It’s a good idea to test your hygrometer every now and then to make sure it is okay. Given below is the description of how you can do it by the salt method:
- Take a bottle cap and fill it with a little bit of salt. Next, drop a little bit of water to dampen it.
- Put the hygrometer and wet salt in a transparent container and close it tightly.
- Wait for 6 hours before you take the reading on the device. If it’s not 75%, make sure you adjust it.
- To make the adjustment, all you need to do is turn the screw on the device. You can keep rotating the screw until the reading is 75%.
