Beads + Gel ?

[joeobx]

With the cold weather and the heat running so much Im having a heck of a time holding 60-65 % in a Montague. I have a few gel type humidifiers left from when I first stated out. Any one know of any issues with having both in my humidor.

[CigarNut]

I will take a stab at this. First are your cigars smoking OK? If so, then there is no reason to panic.

Next, have you checked (tested and / or calibrated your hygrometer recently? If not that is the first step.

Third, have you checked your beads to see if they are still at your desired RH (I don't know what kind of beads you have, but the process to test this is the same for all cigar humidification beads -- Heartfelt, HCM, etc. NOT KL (beads in a ziplock with a hygrometer to check the RH). If your beads are at the desired RH then it sounds like you don't have enough beads for the size of your humidor. While you can certainly have too few beads, you can never have too much.

If your beads are not at the desired RH then you need to recharge them. Maybe recharging them a little higher to accomodate the lower ambient humidity would be a good idea.

As for the gel products: For the most part the gel products just release moisture. While the beads try to regulate RH. If the RH of your humidor is below the RH of your beads adding the gel products will raise the RH. I would not recommend putting it all in at once -- you want your RH to change slowly to avoid any damage to your cigars.

Good luck!

[joeobx]

Thanks Michael, I have HF 65% beads. Cigars have been smoking ok. Im having to add water to the beads about every 10 days. I don't remember how many I bought but I did go by the calculator and rounded up. I know it has to be leaking somewhere just haven't had time to find out where. I have beads on the bottom, middle and top shelf and in the drawer and they seam to dry out about the same.

[MajorCaptSilly]

I'm not a big fan of gel. It seems to attract mold more than anything I've used. I do buy some Boveda 69% packs to help with the humidity levels in the winter months.


MCS

[joeobx]

Thanks Scott, I've checked for those at a couple of shops near me without luck, guess I'll order some.

[bobarian]

If you are moistening 2/3 of your beads you can increase the percentage to provide more moisture. Just the opposite of high humidity times. I would raise to 80% clear, this will provide a bit of extra moisture and reduce the interval for wetting the beads. When Rh is high just reduce the amount to 50%.