Quint Posted March 13, 2015 Posted March 13, 2015 Obviously RH is a critical component to cigar storage but just how important (especially for long term storage) is temperature and why? What are your ideal or what IS the ideal temp and RH values for long term storage?
earthson Posted March 13, 2015 Posted March 13, 2015 While too warm or too cold would obviously negatively affect aging (too cold would slow the chemical kinetics responsible for curing/aging and too warm could evaporate the oils and change the nature of the curing process), the most important thing is to keep the temp from fluctuating too wildly. Temperature directly influences RH (RH is a function of vapor pressure and pressure itself is a function of temperature), so without an approximately steady-state temperature (+/- a few degrees), the RH becomes unpredictable. As RH varies, the cigars & humidor adjust rather than simply existing in a target condition. Maintaining target temps is easiest when you can control the macro environment in which your humi/cab/coolerdor/walkin sits in. We maintain our house around 65-68 winter and 68 or so summer. Even after a year or two in my possession, I notice improvement in my smokes. With that, I've read of folks who recommend higher vs lower in terms of both temp and RH. Some age as low as high 50s F while others keep them at room temp. Same for RH - some age lower RH (59-65) while others age higher (70 or so) and then bring them down when they're ready to smoke. Additionally, some prefer smoking at higher RH vs lower RH. Much is a matter of preference and experience. I am not a long term ager (max 5-6 years) due to keeping my collection small, so hopefully some of the hoarders who have been at it for decades will chime in. If I were you, I'd keep them around your preferred RH and reasonable room temp and see how that works. In terms of long-term aging, you're looking at 10-20 years of experimentation before you can begin drawing conclusions! Happy travels! 1
LordAnubis Posted March 13, 2015 Posted March 13, 2015 rH is RELATIVE humidty, it is essentially the amount of water in the air, compared to the amount of water that air can hold AT THAT TEMPERATURE. So what does temperature have to do storage? Everything. rH is nothing without temperature. If your tempterature in a sealed environment goes up, then the cigars will generally loose some moisture, and hence that water goes into the air and then your hygrometer will read a higher rH. As for what temperatures and rH to store at, that is the million dollar question. I store mine at 18Celcius and 65rH. 2
Quint Posted March 13, 2015 Author Posted March 13, 2015 Some good stuff guys thanks. I understand the physics of relative humidity in relation to temperature. I guess I phrased the question incorrectly. Basically air with an RH of 68 at 65 Degrees is a lot "drier" then air with an RH of 68 at 78 Degrees. Besides its affects on RH does temp have an affect on the tobacco in any other way, or is it just a question of its affects on RH? I.E. do higher temps or, lower for that matter, slow down, or change the aging process. If its all about water content in the air and not temperature than 65RH at 68 degrees would be the same as say 48RH at 78 degrees as far as water content or water molecules is concerned. A rule of thumb is for every 20 degree rise in temp the RH value halves for the same amount of water molecules. 1
free85 Posted March 13, 2015 Posted March 13, 2015 I think a lot of people will say "this depends on the person." Piggy will bring some hard science to the discussion some of which will get very in depth. I think one thing that a lot of people can agree on is "consistency". This, in itself, can become one heck of a quest (although it doesn't have to if you've got a stable environment to work with from the get go). IF It's stability you end up looking for there's a few great threads around about "The Vault" / Freezerdor with some impressive data to backup the methods used to create this kind of stability. They're worth a good read if you've not seen them. Caveat! I'm not one of those "Read the manual d00d! Duh!" guys. Those guys really annoy me. It's just that the info contained in these threads is far beyond what I can either re-post or speak from experience on (for now. I'm gathering parts for a Freezerdor of my own). I figured I'd link these in your thread in the event you need to find them you can always come back here. The actual Freezerdor: http://www.friendsofhabanos.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=100310&hl=%26quot%3Bthe+vault%26quot%3B#entry221211 Discussion on Fridge vs Freezer: http://www.friendsofhabanos.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=111429&hl=%26quot%3Bthe+vault%26quot%3B#entry323115 Why maybe get a Freezer vs a Wine Cooler: http://www.friendsofhabanos.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=114256&hl=%26quot%3Bthe+vault%26quot%3B#entry382169 1
maxcjs0101 Posted March 14, 2015 Posted March 14, 2015 My tupperdor in my room has temperatures between 77-87F but the cigars are kept in individual bags in there. Can't really change my room temp..
wolfain Posted March 14, 2015 Posted March 14, 2015 I have a wineador (thermo) but it needs to babied from time to time. I was thinking if I had a condenser unit wineador for the temp (my ambient is about 26-28c) and have the cigars stores in sealed tupperwares (for long term storage), controlling the RH would be easier, but will this affect the aging process? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
vinnyvega Posted March 15, 2015 Posted March 15, 2015 Summer time rolls around and it's damn near 80 degrees in my room where the Aristocrat is. I have 3 pounds of 65% RH beads in there and my RH stays at 65% all summer. I freeze all my cigsrs and have been doing this since 2009. In the winter time, the room is at 65 degrees and the RH is at 65%. I can't control the temperature but I do well with the RH. My cigars taste fine. At least I think so.
Dozerhead Posted March 15, 2015 Posted March 15, 2015 Summers here make it tough to keep temps down, so I lower the humidity some. Too much moisture and heat and your asking for mold. So far, no worries.
ewipper Posted March 16, 2015 Posted March 16, 2015 Dew point of 62 is ideal with a temp over 70. Hotter means LESS mold.
terrantheman Posted March 16, 2015 Posted March 16, 2015 I keep mine in the basement where the temp stays in the 60°'s all year round. I don't trust freezing as the only way and I don't wanna risk being in the 70°'s for to long.
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