BOXIDOR less expensive alternative to COOLERidor

[TOB9595]

I went out looking for a 120 - 150 qt marine (or not) cooler.
Nothing to be found. Biggest I saw was a 70 qt in Walmart. I could see the benefits of the doubled size, two door, 150 qt cooler..
I want one..

I'm not going to find one soon, for the price I want to pay, so I ended up with this 35 gallon Sterlite box...MY Boxidor!!!!!
I started with this




Hmmm, this has great promise. Just $12...
Sooo Starting to put the overflow in..Quite the overflow...Yes!



Ahhh Let's get some gasket material on this.


I didn't think this seals as well as I want so I put gasket material on the inside of the lid...


I like this storage as a CHEAP means of storing your cigars. It holds humidity well as you can see in this picture


I have a remote temp/humidity transmitter. I know this is a reliable sensor reading because I tested it over time.

I like this box a lot. I positioned it at a nice height for me and the boxes are stacked inside like a rubiks cube

Here it is filled today. As you can see I rely on this box to store my sticks properly.


For an inexpensive alternative to a large cooler we have THIS
Tom

[BamBam]

Be careful because these are not mice-proof. Mice will chew right through the plastic and nest inside. I would think the aroma of the cigars would lure them as well.

They would devour your cigars.

Be careful

I'll stick with a cooler.

[bobarian]

These type of storage boxes are not meant to be airtight. You may have a difficult time holding a constant Rh over long periods of time. Seems like a cheap way to kill a ton of nice smokes. Two smaller coolers would have been a better alternative IMHO. You have spent hundreds of dollars on smokes, I dont understand the obsession with finding a "cheap" way of storing them.

[TOB9595]

Originally Posted by bobarian

These type of storage boxes are not meant to be airtight. You may have a difficult time holding a constant Rh over long periods of time. Seems like a cheap way to kill a ton of nice smokes. Two smaller coolers would have been a better alternative IMHO. You have spent hundreds of dollars on smokes, I dont understand the obsession with finding a "cheap" way of storing them.

Whoa,

the obsession with finding a "cheap" way of storing them

It works...
Nuff said on my end...It's been in use for months now...
I do want to build a walk in...

I am sincere in the following questions.
What are better alternatives to storage?
I would love to hear the benefits of two coolers vs. the box. It will save me effort next time I need a storage means.
Tom

Tom

[TOB9595]

Originally Posted by BamBam

Be careful because these are not mice-proof. Mice will chew right through the plastic and nest inside. I would think the aroma of the cigars would lure them as well.

They would devour your cigars.

Be careful

This is a valid thought that I didn't think of.
Something to consider for sure.

I have three cats and my mouse population has dwindled..
Least any sign that I can see.

Here's Milo. He's aged by 8 months now


Here's Cocoa. She's a proven hunter


WHAT!!!!
NO PICS of scooter

I just took pics of Scoots now...





Tom

[Don Fernando]

Originally Posted by TOB9595

I don't think Scooter liked that drink very much

[TOB9595]

Originally Posted by Don Fernando

I don't think Scooter liked that drink very much

Don Fernando, I think Scoots was swishing the water round to cleanse the palate



hahahahahaha

MERRY CHRISTMAS
Tom

dball here is a few pics of my colman 150qt cooler that im starting

[UPHOTO]

I would have to agree with the others here......

You have what looks like over $2k in cigars right there in a $12 box that you spend time and effort in trying to make work. Sell one box of cigars in there and you can afford a 120qt cooler for the rest.

Or send them over here

[kayak_rat]

Not to beat on the subject, but the thinner walls of the plastic tub will not keep temp/humidity jumps tamed. A cooler is designed to minimize fluxes in the environment around it. Just something to think about.

[TOB9595]

You have what looks like over $2k in cigars right there in a $12 box that you spend time and effort in trying to make work. Sell one box of cigars in there and you can afford a 120qt cooler for the rest.

Not to beat on the subject, but the thinner walls of the plastic tub will not keep temp/humidity jumps tamed. A cooler is designed to minimize fluxes in the environment around it. Just something to think about.

These are all very valid thoughts.
The facts are that I spend NO more time on maintaining this box than I do any of my other boxes, big or small.
It was a wee bit of work to put the gasket on..then a day or two to see that the gasket on the one side was not sufficient. Thus the gasketed top.

I have two visual means of reading the Humidity. One visual station is in the basement local to the boxes. This pic is showing the base station temp and humidity in the basement space.


and the other station is located upstairs in a desk area. This is showing temp/humid inside one of the three boxes that I have transmitters. There's also a high and low between times I reset at the station.


Each station receives the same three transmitted humd/temp readings from a storage box.

[OLS]

Originally Posted by TOB9595

These are all very valid thoughts.
The facts are that I spend NO more time on maintaining this box than I do any of my other boxes, big or small.
It was a wee bit of work to put the gasket on..then a day or two to see that the gasket on the one side was not sufficient. Thus the gasketed top.

Seems to me an awful lot of modification and work and time and expense to make a bad idea work better. I don't think anyone in the thread menas you any ill will or wishes you a bad result, but we ALL at one time or another went to Walmart and rolled a buggy around the whole store looking for a way to store an increasing supply of cigars in the cheapest way possible. And I think all of us can say that was wasted money. I had a Tupperdor to start with, and now it is a repository of the junk drawer whenever I move. So THAT was not wasted, but giant vinyl buckets are no way to get your cigars to the next life. If you must go plastic, please use ice chests, and look for a decent seal.

I'm going to be sad when this ruins all those great smokes.

[TOB9595]

Now you have me starting to sweat, Darrell....no joke....

Why will I be better off with coolers?
Most humidors have thinner walls and looser fittings than a cooler.

No One wants to see these sticks at anything but optimum conditions. That's why I put any single sticks into cedar boxes; with the exception of a MONTECRISTO A that I will be needing in a short while.

I welcome any one who has experience with these containers to post here. It'll be informative.

Tom

[DBall]

Originally Posted by TOB9595

Why will I be better off with coolers?

Coolers are meant and designed to be airtight.

Originally Posted by TOB9595

Most humidors have thinner walls and looser fittings than a cooler.

Humidors, too, are meant and designed to be airtight.



I would not trust that box for a host of reasons, and coolers are fairly inexpensive (not $12, but not often over $100). Here's a nice Coleman 150qt I was planning on getting before I got my cabinet:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=9222616

This one has shelving and costs $0.97 to ship. That makes it about $81 (and they are in stock).

[UPHOTO]

Such a deal!!!

$80 now days you have a cabinet humidor.

[Volt]

As an opposing post to the naysayers to the Sterlite...... I started out with an 18 qt Sterlite and then a 70 qt Sterlite. Both worked exceptionally well. Only issue I had was they are quite a bit more reactive to temp changes than a cooler. If your room stays a constant temp, it should work fine. I used mine for over 6 months and the RH stayed constant. I have issues with the wife and what temp the house shuld be so I had to move to a cooler. Other than that, it worked just as well as my cooler does. They are cheap, easy to move and have alternate uses if you grow out of it.