Cigar Humidors Tips
Read these 25 Cigar Humidors Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Cigar tips and hundreds of other topics.
How Long Can I Store Cigars?
The amount of time you can store cigars depends on how you store them. If you keep them in a properly maintained humidor, they will keep indefinitely and may actually taste better the longer they age. If you keep them in a plastic bag or a resealable jar, they may last a week or two before drying out.
Buying Humidors Online
Buying cigar humidors online can sometimes be risky, but if you buy from a reputable merchant that offers a money-back guarantee, it could be the best deal that you ever made.
The biggest problem with buying humidors online is the shipping charges. Some online cigar merchants impose additional charges for shipping humidors so don't just look at the price of the humidor. Others have a standardized shipping charge and you can get a cheap deal as long as the humidors are priced competitively. The bottom line is that you must look at the total after shipping price when buying humidors.
Before you buy a humidor determine the room where it will be kept. The room's furniture should guide you as to the humidors that you will look for. Try to match the humidors exterior with the décor of the room. Remember that humidors are not only functional but must also serve to enhance the environment of the room. The finest humidors have lacquer “piano” finishes. They usually cost more but their shine and beauty make the extra cost worthwhile.
The humidors interior is important in order to maintain your cigars in optimum condition. Spanish cedar interiors are best, but if you live high in the mountains, you will most like need an erable wood interior. This wood is harder than cedar and therefore allows a slightly tighter seal. In both cases the seal is important. You can test the seal by inserting a dollar bill on the seal between the lid and humidor's body. Close the top and see how difficult it is to slide the bill out of the seal. If it slides out easily, then you have a weak seal. If it requires tugging, the humidor has a good seal. In addition, you can drop the top and listen for the “swoosh” of the wind as it closes. If there is no “swoosh” sound when the top lid hits the seal, then the seal might not be adequate to maintain the proper humidity level.
There are many online stores that offer humidors at great prices. Before ordering online, check the store's shipping and return policy. Make sure that if you are not satisfied you have recourse. Many offer quality products and if they do not stand behind their humidors, why should you. Before you buy you should do your research. There is nothing worse than a bad humidor.
Visit a complete cigar accessories and Humidor website. They can help cigar smokers decide which styles, interiors and features are best for them.
Smell Ammonia? Let Your Cigars Age More
If you smell ammonia inside your cigar humidor, don't panic. This is relatively common with young premium cigars that need some additional aging in the humidor. Keep your premium cigar brands inside the humidor for another few weeks and make sure to open the humidor every once in a while to let any trapped ammonia out.
Restoring cigars
Dried out cigars can be restored in cigar humidors. It is a long process. Time and allowing the cigar to hydrate is the key to saving your cigar. Begin by placing the cigars in a sealed box to allow them to breathe. After a couple of days introduce a partially filled humidifier. Allow the cigars to re-adjust to the new environment for a few more days. Continue to do this for a few weeks until the cigars are restored. Be careful and patient. If you humidify them too quickly the cigars will go into "shock" and the outer tobacco wrapper can crack or break.
The aging of cigars
Most cigars need time to age in a cigar humidor. Many manufacturers age cigars before shipping. Others are fresh. These need to be aged 6-12 months in a humidor. The aging allows them to rid themselves of gases and odors built up during the rolling process.
The Benefits of a Cigar Humidor
You ask yourself, do I need a humidor? Won't a sealed plastic bag and a damp towel work? If you enjoy a quality cigar, hold any quantity and/or consider yourself a connoisseur, you should invest in a cigar humidor. Cigars adapt to the environment in which they are kept. Left out in a room, they will quickly die like an old flower. Proper storage of cigars are critical to their existence.
Storing your Cigars
In order to preserve your cigars they must be stored correctly. The most conventional way is to purchase a quality cigar humidor. There are all types of humidors on the market and they range in price. The best humidor will have a tight seal and be lined with spanish cedar. Also in order to have accurate temperature and humidity levels I prefer the digital hygrometer as opposed to the analog. The temperature in your humidor should be around 70°F and the relative humidity should be 70%. That reproduces the temperature that tobacco plants grow best. Maintaining your cigars under those conditions allows the cigars to age perfectly and improves their taste.
Make sure to check your humidor once every two weeks during the summer and once a week during the winter. Only use distilled water or a 50/50 mix of Propylene Glycol and Distilled Water. The only advantage to using the 50/50 solution is that the humidifier only needs to be refilled once monthly. Generally the cost of the solution outweighs the benefits, as it is expensive compared to plain old distilled water that is available at most supermarkets or drug stores.
There is nothing as good as an aged cigar. Storing them correctly will guarantee proper aging and great smoking cigars.
Active or Passive Humidification?
If you're investing a few hundred dollars in a real cigar humidor, one decision you're going to want to make is whether you want active or passive humidification. Active humidifers are electronic humidifiers that set and keep an exact level of humidity inside your humidor. These are typically used in large cigar humidors, but can be found in smaller models. Be prepared to pay big for a humidor with active humidification. More common are cigar humidors with passive humidification. These use simple vapor conduction principles to keep the humidity inside your humidor stable and your premium cigar brands nice and moist.
Obtaining discount humidors
Carefully examine discount humidors before you purchase them and use them for your cigars. The workmanship of humidors is important to their function. If a humidor is cheaply made, it will be counterproductive to the proper storage of the cigars. A humidor that doesn't work will be of more harm to your premium cigars that good. After all, it won't do you much good to spend money on a cheap humidor only to find that it doesn't work and you need to purchase another.
Things to Look for in a Good Cigar Humidor
Just as you took care in choosing a humidor, you want to have patience breaking it in. Keep in mind that you are recreating the tropical environments where the cigars were created. You cannot rush the process of getting cigar humidors ready. Most humidors have an interior made of Spanish Cedar.
* Season or humidify the wood with a new clean sponge and a good dose of distilled water and wipe the exposed wood.
* Place the damp sponge on a plastic bag and prepare the humidification device according to the manufacturers instructions.
* Close the lid and let it sit over night.
* Refill the device and sponge the following day, if necessary, and let it sit over night once again.
* Remove the sponge and plastic and your cigars should now be ready for the humidor.
Travel Cigar Humidors
When you are on the move and want to bring your cigars on a trip, you will want to protect them from drying out and also from becoming damaged. Travel humidors are an excellent solution. A cigar humidor on the run. Choose one that will accommodate your size of cigar. Make sure the travel humidor is sturdy, not many items travel without getting knocked around. If your mobile humidor has a humidification device, ensure that it will stay in place.
A Good Cigar Humidor is Worth the Investment
A good cigar humidor is not cheap. There is no point in having an inferior unit. Quality humidors maintain the desired level of humidity (70-75%). Whether it is small, a display humidor, or a walk-in like at the tobacco shops, approach the selection as a wine lover cares for the storage of their collection. You want to protect your investment.
Humidor as an investment
For anyone who buys cigars in quantity, a humidor is a good investment. If you are a thrifty person, and why not, you will want to find a discount humidor. It is important to find a quality piece though, or the humidor is of no use. Wholesale humidors are available at some of the same sites where cigars are sold. It makes good sense to buy a quality humidor at the best price. A cheap humidor doesn't mean you have to buy a bad one.
Holes in your cigars
You may find at some point that your cigars have tiny holes in them. If this is the case, you should immediately remove them from your cigar humidor. This is probably a tobacco weevil problem. Eggs or larva were not cleaned from the leaves before the cigar was rolled. Throw the cigars away. If you want to salvage them, place them in the freezer for at least 72 hours. This will kill the critters and ensure that no additional eggs hatch.
Cigar Humidity
Cigars are handmade with natural leaves and to preserve and age the tobacco, humidors need to be properly maintained. The ideal humidity in a cigar humidor is 65 to 75 percent. The internal temperature should be maintained precisely between 68 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don't keep the humidors in these ranges, you are just preparing a coffin for your cigars. Only use distilled water in the humidification devices. Choose a location outside of direct sunlight and extreme temperatures. Neither is good for the humidors or the care of the cigars.
Don't Store Cigars in the Refrigerator
It used to be sound advice to tell a cigar smoker to store premium cigars in the refrigerator in lieu of a real cigar humidor. This is no longer true. Most of today's refrigerators have active dehumidifaction systems built-in. This is the opposite of what you want. If you leave your premium cigar brands in the refrigerator as a humidor substitute, they will dry out and be ruined relatively quickly.
DIY Humidors
If you're handy with tools and have built furniture as a hobby, there's no reason you can't build your own cigar humidor to store your premium cigars. There are step-by-step instructions for building humidors available on the Web. It will likely take some time and some work, especially if you try to make a nice one. On the other hand, you can plan and build exactly what you want in a humidor and probably save some money over buying retail.
Humidors as accessories
Humidors are important cigar accessories. Keeping you cigars at the proper humidity and temperature is critical. A digital hygrometer is an item that is very helpful in maintaining the proper levels in your humidor. These hygrometers give accurate digital readings about your humidor humidity. This allows you to stay on top of your reading and keep you cigars in perfect condition.
Don't Skimp on a Humidor
If you're ready to invest in a cigar humidor, you've probably already invested enough in premium cigars and now need a place to store and age them. Here's a word of advice about humidors -- don't skimp. Pay for one with Spanish cedar insides and a working humidity gauge, called a hygrometer. You should be prepared to pay at least $150 for your humidor, more if you want a big one or one that fits the decor of your smoking room.
Too Wet or Too Dry? Here's What to Do
If your premium cigars are too dry inside your cigar humidor, add more water to your humidification device. You also might want to check to make sure the humidor is airtight and nothing is leaking out. If your premium cigar brands are too wet inside the humidor, open the lid for a while and let it dry out. You can also reduce or remove liquid in the humidifier.
Cigar Humidors
A cigar humidor is a container designed for storing cigars or other tobacco products at a constant level of humidity. The perfect temperature and humidity level for a cigar is 70 degrees Fahrenheit and 70% relative humidity. That reproduces the temperature that tobacco plants grow best. Maintaining your cigars under those conditions allows the cigars to age perfectly and improves their taste.
The Humidors have an exterior that is strictly for aesthetics and the options available are unlimited. It is a piece of furniture that enhances the surroundings of the room where it will be kept so buy a humidor based on the room that you will place it.
The interior of the humidor is made to maintain your cigars in the required environment. Cedar, and specifically Spanish cedar, is best. It helps retain humidity, while preserving the cigars and enhancing their aroma and taste. Cigar Humidors that are made for high altitudes usually have erable wood interiors that are harder than cedar and can seal tighter. This prevents the humidity from escaping in very dry weather but sacrifices the unique aroma of cedar.
Cheapest Alternative: A 'Coolador'
If you're spending all your cash on premium cigars you may not have a lot left over to spend on a cigar humidor. The cheapest discount humidor is what's called a "coolador," or in some cases a "tupperdor." It's simply a plastic, resealable bowl like Tupperware that acts as a temporary storage device for your cigar.
Drop a wet sponge at the bottom of a smaller container that will sit in the larger container. Use a seperator between the sponge and the rest of the bowl so that your cigar wrappers do not come in direct contact with the sponge. Reseal the lid and you have solid cigar storage for a limited number of cigars. If you're a serious premium cigar smoker, you're still going to want to eventually get a real humidor. But in the meantime, this can help out.
Build a humidor
If you are a carpenter, or someone ambitious looking for a terrific project, you can always build your own cigar humidor. The proper materials are necessary - including top quality cedar or wood to ensure the proper care of your cigar. You must also be careful about the dimensions since your humidor needs to be air tight. Think of how proud you would be placing a collection of premium cigars in a humidor built by your own hands.
Finding Heirloom Humidors
For a really unique and beautiful piece, you can also look for heirloom or antique humidors. There are some of particular beauty and just because it is older, does not mean it won't be airtight or properly store your cigars. Many are in beautiful wooden boxes, so well made that they work better than some humidors that are made today. You can find antique cigar humidors that hold hundreds of cigars and that look beautiful in your home as well. Just make sure the seal is tight.
Forever is a Long Time
Under the right conditions -- 70/70 temp and humidity and not too many openings of the cigar humidor -- you should be able to store your premium cigars in your humidor for a long time. In fact, aging premium cigar brands under proper conditions can really enhance the flavor and smokability. But this doesn't mean you can keep premium cigars in your humidor for years. Eventually, every cigar will lose its flavor. How long this takes is different with each premium cigar.
