Beginner Questions (Ask Them Here!)

[Big_Ern]

I just found mold on some cigars. what should I do next?

[chippewastud79]

Originally Posted by Big_Ern

I just found mold on some cigars. what should I do next?

How bad is it? Pictures? How humid is your humidor? How many cigars is it affecting?

Simple answer is to wipe it off. If it is on the foot or all of your cigars are effected, it might be more complicated.

[Ogre]

What color is it. A light gray color is a normal part of aging. If it is black or green it is mold. I picked up a Ashton VSG at my local B&M and got a lesson on how to ID this. If you are not sure, take one to you local and see what they say.

[Big_Ern]

a couple of pictures. do I throw them out? let them air dry?

[NCRadioMan]

Originally Posted by Big_Ern

a couple of pictures. do I throw them out? let them air dry?

That doesn't look good. Cut off a 1/4 inch off the foot of the cigar and see if mold is still there. If so, cut another 1/4 inch and check. If still there, I would toss them. If not, wipe down the rest of the cigar and keep them in a proper environment. Anything under 70%.

[NCRadioMan]

Originally Posted by Ogre3239

What color is it. A light gray color is a normal part of aging. If it is black or green it is mold. I picked up a Ashton VSG at my local B&M and got a lesson on how to ID this. If you are not sure, take one to you local and see what they say.

Never heard that before. I've got a number of 20+ year old cigars and none are a light gray color. Frankly, most b&m's don't know the difference between mold and plume. Plume takes a long time to appear (years) and if you bought a recently produced VSG, it will not have plume but mold. Mold can be gray. I opened 4 boxes of VSG's yesterday as a matter of fact and all of them were sopping wet and was starting to develop mold.

[Ogre]

I was told that lite gray spots may appear on a cigar as it ages. It wipes right off. When I first saw it I thought it was mold. Thanks for pointing that out to me. I am still learning myself.

[NCRadioMan]

Originally Posted by Ogre3239

I was told that lite gray spots may appear on a cigar as it ages. It wipes right off. When I first saw it I thought it was mold.

Your instinct is correct. That is mold. Plume may appear on a well aged cigar but appears as a light, uniform, dusting on the entire cigar. Not spotty. Spotty=mold.

[Big_Ern]

thanks for the replies but it turns out that it was mold and I had to chuck 6 of the 8 so thats not so bad. I have my stash of good ones in a little acrylic humi that are fine.

Hi Guys - I'm new to Cigars and to the site and had a question about my humi set-up.

The humi is about a 150ct and I was going to get 8oz of Shilala's beads for the humi. My Question is.. is it better to get one 8oz bag of beads and keep it at the bottom or top of the humidor OR is it better to get two 4oz bags and keep one at the bottom level and one on the top level. Is there a better combination? Does it even matter?

Thanks in advance for the help.

[pnoon]

Originally Posted by saru22

Hi Guys - I'm new to Cigars and to the site and had a question about my humi set-up.

The humi is about a 150ct and I was going to get 8oz of Shilala's beads for the humi. My Question is.. is it better to get one 8oz bag of beads and keep it at the bottom or top of the humidor OR is it better to get two 4oz bags and keep one at the bottom level and one on the top level. Is there a better combination? Does it even matter?

Thanks in advance for the help.

For a humi that size it won't really matter.

[CigarNut]

Originally Posted by pnoon

For a humi that size it won't really matter.

What he said!

[Samsquanch]

Originally Posted by pnoon

For a humi that size it won't really matter.

So size doesn't matter, mystery solved!!

[icehog3]

Originally Posted by andpeo23

So size doesn't matter, mystery solved!!

That's guys saying that...more important what women say.

[Samsquanch]

Originally Posted by icehog3

That's guys saying that...more important what women say.

Er, GREAT point!!!

[chachee52]

Originally Posted by saru22

Hi Guys - I'm new to Cigars and to the site and had a question about my humi set-up.

The humi is about a 150ct and I was going to get 8oz of Shilala's beads for the humi. My Question is.. is it better to get one 8oz bag of beads and keep it at the bottom or top of the humidor OR is it better to get two 4oz bags and keep one at the bottom level and one on the top level. Is there a better combination? Does it even matter?

Thanks in advance for the help.

So follow up question: What size of a humidor does it matter? I have a 250 ct. I have the beads at the bottom and the hydrometer at the top and it seems to be consistent, so I guess it's not a question for me right now, but down the road.

[chippewastud79]

Originally Posted by chachee52

So follow up question: What size of a humidor does it matter? I have a 250 ct. I have the beads at the bottom and the hydrometer at the top and it seems to be consistent, so I guess it's not a question for me right now, but down the road.

The larger the humidor, the more spread out your humidification will need to be. In my 300 counts I always just had the humidifiers at the bottom. The humidity will rise but until you are at the large cooler stage or a cabinet, there really isn't too much need to spread out the beads all over the humidor. Kind of like the argument of when is active humidification needed.

Thanks for all the insights guys. I appreciate it. I'm thinking i'm going to outgrow my 150ct REALLY quickly.

[MortonMilo]

Originally Posted by MortonMilo

I'm having a humidification problem and I can't seem to fix it!

I currently have an Edgestar 28, fit with 4 Chasidor drawers and 2 shelves. I have 3 pounds of Heartfelt beads spread throughout, and three 4 ounce bags of Shilala's beads put in the drawers. All beads are set to 65%.

The temp on my unit runs at 60 degrees, never wavering. The humidity is where the issue is. The humidity holds steady at 58%. I have the drain plugged, so there is a constant pool of water forming at the bottom of the unit (I think I'm gonna rig up somthing so it drains into a bowl inside the unit).

Am I doing something wrong? What can I do to help the unit keep my humidity?

As a followup to my above question, I still cant seem to get the humidity right! I still have my drain plugged, and have the condensation that is collecting draining into a bowl of heartfelt beads at the bottom. Beyond that I have 2 lbs of heartfelt beads and a pound of shilala beads spread throughout. Still trying to find a way to fix another condensation issue....condensation now collects on the bottom of the dish I use to collect it from the drain! Will keep working to solve that one...

Any suggestions on how I can fix the humidity issue?! Despite all my efforts, its still holding steady at 58%!

[bobarian]

How are your cigars smoking? That is more important than a number. It will be difficult to get the Rh higher without raising the temperature. Put a hygrometer inside a box and take a reading. I dont know if the Edgestar uses a compressor or a peltier cooler, if its a compressor you will need an external temp controller to raise the temp to 65.