Wineador Humidification

[T.G]

Was the drain plugged/sealed?

Sounds like you had a leak or you weren't using a great enough volume of beads for the humidor.

Originally Posted by T.G

Was the drain plugged/sealed?

Sounds like you had a leak or you weren't using a great enough volume of beads for the humidor.

I think you're right. I may need more.

[bobarian]

For something that small a couple of ounces of beads should be fine. Be sure the drain is plugged or sealed with electrical tape. Put the beads back in and forget about your hygrometer. As long as about 2/3 of the beads are clear you are good to go. Dont worry about fluctuations in Rh, over the long haul the beads will do their job. Anywhere between 60-65% is fine for your cigars. If you watch your hygrometer you will see fluctuations as the cooler cycles. Just leave the beads alone and you will be fine.

Originally Posted by bobarian

For something that small a couple of ounces of beads should be fine. Be sure the drain is plugged or sealed with electrical tape. Put the beads back in and forget about your hygrometer. As long as about 2/3 of the beads are clear you are good to go. Dont worry about fluctuations in Rh, over the long haul the beads will do their job. Anywhere between 60-65% is fine for your cigars. If you watch your hygrometer you will see fluctuations as the cooler cycles. Just leave the beads alone and you will be fine.

OK. I just wet the beads to your recommendations and put them back in. I'll try to stop being a slave to my hygrometer. LOL!

[bobarian]

Originally Posted by Joe Stogie

OK. I just wet the beads to your recommendations and put them back in. I'll try to stop being a slave to my hygrometer. LOL!

Give it time and things should stabilize. You will get spikes in Rh when you add a bunch of new sticks but over the long run you should be fine. Judge your Rh by how your cigars smoke. If they draw well with no wrapper issues, everything is just right.

Originally Posted by bobarian

For something that small a couple of ounces of beads should be fine.

I remeasured my box... silly me used the outside dimensions instead of the inside!!! I was using WAY too many beads which I believe could have caused the loss of some flavor to my sticks. 2 ounces was all I needed. Thanks, Bobarian!!!

[T.G]

Originally Posted by Joe Stogie

I remeasured my box... silly me used the outside dimensions instead of the inside!!! I was using WAY too many beads which I believe could have caused the loss of some flavor to my sticks. 2 ounces was all I needed. Thanks, Bobarian!!!

Too many beads just means that the beads can go longer without user intervention (typically, this means adding moisture).

[CigarNut]

Originally Posted by Joe Stogie

I remeasured my box... silly me used the outside dimensions instead of the inside!!! I was using WAY too many beadswhich I believe could have caused the loss of some flavor to my sticks. 2 ounces was all I needed. Thanks, Bobarian!!!

Just for clarification -- you really can't have too many beads (HF, HCM, etc. -- does not matter which kind). If you maintain your beads correctly they will do the job without harming your cigars even if you have more than you need.

The more beads you have the more capacity your humidor has to buffer against big changes (adding or removing lots of sticks, adding real wet or dry sticks, etc.).

I'm a wineador newb (a little over three weeks into using mine), but so far so good

I'm running a Hydra electronic humidifier, with two of the samll Hydra fans and a "jury-rigged" large 12 volt fan for air circulation. I also keep a pound and half of 70% heartfelt beads in there - partially to help with humidity, partially because it's a convenient place to keep the beads that I throw in my travel humidor when I'm not travelling. So far, the system is working great!