Expert: M J Robbins - 11/12/2010

Question
hey MJ I got a solona humi and have had it for about 5 years and been smoking for 20 years my question is up until recently I have only used the humidifier that came with the humidor and have had a reading of 73% and sometimes as high as 83% in any event my cigars (perdomo oliva serie g /v  padron ) sometimes canoe about a couple of weeks ago I bought the crystals and up until recently my analog reading has been steady at 62--64% and not matter what I do it will not go past the 62-63% can it be that my analog has been off all this time or is their another problem  I may be having by the way I calibrated it  with the salt in the plastic bag when i first received it and moistened the cedar inside and have checked for any recent damage any help would be appreciated thanx ray from NY  

Answer
The analog hygro is not accurate, if you calibrate it the next day it can still be off by as much as several percent.
Digital is closer to accurate but still off by as much as 3 or 4% unless you spend $75 or more.
As long as you are near the right humidity that is fine.
Watch for a substantial drop in RH to put water in, with the beads you can see when they are dry.
Check your cigars, if they feel right and smoke right, then you are on the right track.

Canoe - could mean to much humidity so perhaps you always had it too high and the new beads reading 63% on the analog is closer to 70%?
Do not wet down the interior again as this is not good for the wood or the cigars.

For security add 1 Boveda 72% right on top of the cigars along with the beads, this is science and will be a commitment to perfection -especially if you have good cigars.
Of course Perdomo will not smoke evenly and canoeing, tunneling, running, can be ordinary for these cigars.


Enjoy
Mike