Expert: James Yee - 6/29/2009

Question
QUESTION: james,

i was recently given a humidor as a gift.  seasoned it, and  after a few days it was ready to go. initially, my humidity was up around 86%, so i left it open until it dropped to 72%.  i placed my sticks inside and over a two week period the humidity has spiked to 78% and has gone no lower than 75%.  the temperature has been maintained at an even 21 degrees C.  how long should i wait before this can become a problem to me?  i have looked everywhere and found nothing but how to INCREASE humidity.  i have been hoping the humidity would have stabilized by now, but i'm starting to enter panic mode.  any help would be GREATLY appreciated.

ANSWER: Hi JP,

To lower your humidity, you can add a 50/50 pre-mixed humidor solution to your humidification device.  These mixtures are available at most cigar stores and will automatically balance your humidor's humidity level at 70%.  IMPORTANT: You only need to add this mixture to your humidification device just once and afterwards, simply add distilled water when needed.

Once you've added this mixture to your humidor, your humidor will need approximately 1-2 weeks for the humidity to stabilize.

The key ingredient to these pre-mixed solutions is Propylene Glycol (PG) and you can actually mix your own humidor solution by mixing 50% distilled water with 50% Propylene Glycol (1 equal part distilled water + 1 equal part PG).  Normally a 50/50 mixture of distilled water and PG will create 70% humidity but if it doesn't (or you prefer a higher/lower humidity level), you can fine-tune the mixture by adding either more Propylene Glycol or more distilled water.  If the humidity is still too high, add a few small drops of PG.  If the humidity is too low, add a bit more distilled water to dilute the PG.

If you use a pre-mixed 50/50 mixture, you may still need to fine-tune it so having a small bottle of PG in your home is always good.  You can buy Propylene Glycol at major drug stores/pharmacies and chemical supply shops.  Many cigar stores may also carry PG or be able to order a bottle for you.  You can also order PG through various retailers on the Internet.  Remember, PG can last a long time in your humidor (on average 2 years) so you only need to add PG once.  After adding PG to your humidification device, simply add distilled water when needed.

As an alternative to using PG and humidor solutions, you should consider upgrading to an electronic humidification device (such as a Cigar Oasis) that allows you to custom set your desired humidity level.

Hopes this answers your questions.  As always, 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, for the record i am using madelaine's premixed PG solution with a madelaine's crystal humidifier.  with this humidifier it says that it will ONLY work with the solution that comes with it, because other 50/50 mixes are too viscous for these beads to abosrb properly.  with this being the case since i'm trying to lower the humidity, should i just add a few drops of that sholution or a few drop of straight PG? i'm hoping anything else wouldn't actually defect the product.  thanks again for your time!

Answer
Hi JP,

Adding a few small drops of straight PG is fine.  It won't harm your madeline humidifier.  Be sure add very small drops and allow your humidor to sit for a week to stabilize.  If the humidity continues to be too high, add a few more small drops of PG.

Regards,
James