Expert: James Yee - 12/23/2008

Question
QUESTION: Hello,
I must not be doing something right.
No matter what I do, Mold reappears not in my humidor, but just on and IN my cigars.

I own an Elie Bleu Humidor which hold about 20 cigars.
I have a Circular new Credo thing which I add Propylene Glycol to.

I recently purchased a Ci-gel, circular thing to maintain the perfect temperature (havent used yet.)

My digital hygrometer reads, 72 degrees and 75 RH.

I just got a gift of a few fresh Romeo+ Julieta No. 2 and Im scared to put them in my humidor.
My modest collection consists of Cubans and Dominicans.
I need to get all mold and bacteria out of my cigars and humidor! Help.

Is it possible its not mold but Plume/bloom? How can I tell?  Its fuzzy and appears on the outer wrapper and if your looking at the open end of the cigar, you can see it.


Juda


ANSWER: Hi Juda,

Cigar mold is typically thick and fuzzy in appearance and will grow in random patches that can quickly spread.  Cigar mold can be wiped away but will leave a discolorated stain on the cigar.  If you were to examine a mold particle with a microscope, it will appear to have a long stem and a mushroom cap head.  Mold is usually white in colour but can also be gray, blue, green and bluish-green in appearance.

Plume/bloom however, is less thick in texture and resembles dust.  It's very light in appearance and will usually cover the cigar in a light coating instead of growing in fuzzy patches.  Plume also accumulates at a very slow rate than mold.  It also does not leave any stains when removed.

A third powdered substance often found in humidors is called "mineral trace" and this occurs when water that is not distilled is used in a humidor.  This commonly occurs when tap, bottled, boiled or filtered water is used and what happens is that the mineral deposits in the water cannot dissolve inside the humidor.  Over a long period of time, these minerals will accumulate and develop into fine, white/gray powder.  This substance is not harmful to your cigars or humidor but your humidor will require a thorough cleaning with a vacuum and soft-bristle attachment.  Mineral trace slowly accumulates mostly upwards in a mound instead of outwards like fungus mold.  It resembles a fine powder like cornstarch and can also leave a dry, chalky residue on the humidification device.  To prevent this, you must be sure that you're using only 100% distilled water in your humidor.

Your current humidity level is a bit high at 75% so it's best to fine-tune your Propylene Glycol mixture by adding a few more drops of PG to your humidification device and lower the humidity to the 67-74% range.  I can't tell what the white substance in your humidor is without visually inspecting it but if you have mold, you will need to thoroughly vacuum your humidor clean, apply a little bit of rubbing alcohol/Isopropyl alcohol to the wood (to kill the mold) and then reseason the humidor before you reuse it.

Hopes this answers your question. If you have any more questions, please feel free to just ask and I will be happy to help.

Regards,
James

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: So ive done all that.
I was also told to put the isoloated cigars in the fridge. I did, and a while later I put them back into the cleaned reseasoned humidor, they remolded. So I repeated all the steps. I have a few new cigars which seem to be doing fine in my humidor. All the rest are in my fridge.
Are they safe to smoke? Bc I cant bare to throw them out.
Also Ive added PG to my humidor but still cant seem to get it lower than 75RH!! Does that make sense.

ANSWER: Hi Juda,

If the mold reappeared on the cigars, then the cigars still have mold particles on them so you will need to thoroughly wipe each cigar with Isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) to kill the mold particles.  First, use a damp paper towel (with distilled water) to remove as much mold off the cigars as possible.  Next, wipe each cigar with rubbing alcohol.  After wiping them with alcohol, re-wipe them with a small bit of distilled water to dilute the alcohol.  Don't use too much water or alcohol when wiping the cigars.  Use just enough to lightly moisten the cigars.

After cleaning the cigars with alcohol, put them in the refrigerator again for a week.  Refrigeration won't kill the mold but will slow it down so if there is still mold on the cigars, they will appear slowly and you can treat the cigars again with more alcohol before it spreads too quickly.

If the mold is caught and treated early, it's safe to smoke the cigars.  If the mold is left on the cigars and you smoke them, the mold will make you sick.

Also, it sounds like you don't have enough PG in your humidor because the humidity is still 75%.  Add some more PG until the humidity lowers.  Usually a 50/50 mixture is enough to produce 70% but some humidors are extremely tricky and require more PG.  Try a 60/40 mixture (60% PG, 40% distilled water) and see if this works.  If the humidity is still high, add a bit more PG.  If the humidity is too low, dilute the PG with more distilled water.

Hope this helps.

Regards,
James

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I can SEE mold in the cigar between the leaves.
Its not just on the wrapper.

Answer
Juda,

If you can see mold between the leaves, you may have to throw the cigars away. :( Once mold has spread to the filler tobacco and grows between the leaves, it is impossible to fully purge the mold from the cigar.  If you want to try and salvage your moldy cigars, you can try using a cigar cutter and cut the foot of the cigar off and hope the mold hasn't spread too deep inside the cigar.  If the mold has spread too deep inside the cigar, you will need to throw it away.

If you cut the foot of the cigar and the wrapper leave becomes loose, use vegatable glue, pectin or Cigar Dr. to mend the wrapper leaf.

Again, smoking a cigar with mold can be dangerous to your health.  Mold is not only a respiratory irritant but also a fungal/bacteria growth so smoking this can make you really sick.

Regards,
James