Aging Cubans at 62%?

[Rawbin23]

Hi

Can I store Cubans long term at 62% to no detriment or does it even matter? I will smoke some along the way but I want to avoid dry boxing and with the 65% boveda packs I originally had I found the humidity to creep up to 67% on a semi consistent basis. 

I even considered having my coolidor at 65 and getting a desk top humidor for ready smokes set at 62. 

Now im probably being too anal about it but it never hurts to ask. 

Thanks

 

 

 

[BuzzArd]

I do.   I Keep all my storage at about 62%.

[jcorona]

My long term storage is at 65%, but I have a small tupperware at 62% for my immediate go to smokes, so I don't need to dry box.

 

 

[PapaDisco]

I speculate, with no objective evidence whatsoever, that cigar aging chemistry would 'function' better with more moisture; but then it all depends on what those compounds are.  And of course you can't get much above 70%rH without putting your whole stash at risk.  My LT storage is at 65%.  If I liked smoking at 62%rH I'd likely store at that level as well.  the 3% difference doesn't seem like much to my amateur eye, but then Boveda went out of their way to make a product for it so some chemist somewhere thinks there is a meaningful difference.  

[ElPuro]

Store and smoke at 65 here. 

[BrightonCorgi]

62 or 65, is there that much a difference?  65 seems to be what the majority store cigars at from what I can see...

[hsmunoz]

60-62 here for all stock, I walk in and smoke anything right off the shelf. seams to work well for me, and no mold issues 

[MahDooRow]

6 hours ago, Rawbin23 said:

Hi

Can I store Cubans long term at 62% to no detriment or does it even matter? I will smoke some along the way but I want to avoid dry boxing and with the 65% boveda packs I originally had I found the humidity to creep up to 67% on a semi consistent basis. 

I even considered having my coolidor at 65 and getting a desk top humidor for ready smokes set at 62. 

Now im probably being too anal about it but it never hurts to ask. 

Thanks

Welcome to the forum Rawbin23!  Concern about cigar storage is healthy and good.  You'll get lots of positive and helpful feedback on this topic, and for the most part I don't think anyone will tell you that long-term storage at 62% rH is a bad idea.  In fact, quite the opposite.  Some folks like storing their sticks at 65% rH, some prefer 62% and some find that 60% delivers the best results.  The two-stage process similar to the scenario you have proposed is also a viable strategy.  I'd encourage you to experiment in order to find out what works best for you.  Ultimately, it's your own personal enjoyment of your cigars that matters most.  As long as you stay within the 60% rH to 65% rH range you will do no harm to your stock.

You didn't mention the temperature at which you store your cigars.  Temperature is more forgiving than rH, but 65F - 70F seems to be ideal.         

[Rawbin23]

Thank you everyone for their insight. I guess have to be patient and see for myself what works best for me. Seems like I really can't go wrong within that range of 62-65. 

[GuythePoolGuy]

How do you all deal with temperate?  I live in Florida.  I can't keep my entire house at 70 degrees F or below.  Well I can, but the wife already complains she's freezing constantly

and we keep the house around 75F.   I was considering a small wine fridge.  Any thoughts?

[BuzzArd]

@GuythePoolGuy

Welcome to FOH.  

Yes, i struggled with the same in the desert SW.  I do have a medium/large cigar refrigerator called The Redford which cools as well as humidifies and it does the job.   However, I also have two other similarly sized storage units which are not cooled.  I have no real issues with either. Personally, I'm far less concerned with humidity than with temps these days.  

[El Hoze]

Welcome to FOH! I am also a Florida resident. I would keep your humidity towards the lower end of the range, try to keep your sticks in a cool part of the house, and you should be OK. My father in law in Dominican Republic used to keep a treasure trove of Cuban cigars at fairly high temps. He never had a problem, but always kept the humidity around 60-62. 

[Mattygukas]

I keep the % at 65 and our house is as 71 degrees year round. I have never had an issue except for one stick provided by a friend which got mold on it in a matter of days. (Likely the cigar and not my storage)

That said I do need to dry box some sticks that are typically wet or let them sit longer. (SLR Regios, Partagas P2, & Monte 2s to name a few)

Good luck and welcome to the club!


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[ElPuro]

15 minutes ago, Mattygukas said:

I keep the % at 65 and our house is as 71 degrees year round. I have never had an issue except for one stick provided by a friend which got mold on it in a matter of days. (Likely the cigar and not my storage)

That said I do need to dry box some sticks that are typically wet or let them sit longer. (SLR Regios, Partagas P2, & Monte 2s to name a few)

Good luck and welcome to the club!


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Can you repeat that, please? 

[GuythePoolGuy]

Right ElPuro?  LOL.   Seriously, thanks for the welcome everyone!  Only been into cigars a few years but am reaching the addictive stage!

I am finding on FOH most seem to favor lower humidity.  A friend had strongly suggested 69% but I have recently started dropping that down a bit.  I also realize many

have good results within a semi-wide range of temp and humidity so I don't want to overthink it either.   

[PapaDisco]

I'd be curious to hear what some legacy storage has been at.  You know, those lockers with passive temp and humidity control with 1,000 pre-war sticks.    But seriously, some great grandpas around here have had stuff settling for 50 years and completely without sophisticated electronic controls.  I realize that stuff is a very different blend from today's stock, but it would be interesting to hear what those cellars sit at temp and rH-wise.

[Ethernut]

Drop that humidity like it's hot!

 

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[shall]

I typically age at a higher humidity (70%), thinking like some said above, that the moisture helps the process.  Just my electrons working, no real science.  I used to store my ready stock at 65-68 but the past year have dropped that to 63%, due to hard to smoke cigars.  Just that little change has done wonders.

[JR Kipling]

As others have said, it'll take some personal experimentation. Even if we store cigars at the same RH and temp, smoking conditions will be different. Some live in humid Florida, others in a semi-desert region. Some smoke indoors, and others only outside. And there's also the characteristics of the specific cigar to consider.

[Customsfan]

1 hour ago, shall said:

I typically age at a higher humidity (70%), thinking like some said above, that the moisture helps the process.  Just my electrons working, no real science.  I used to store my ready stock at 65-68 but the past year have dropped that to 63%, due to hard to smoke cigars.  Just that little change has done wonders.

Thought I was the only one who stores and ages cigars at 70RH. Seems like everyone is going the way of 65RH and below.  But I do bring them down a bit as you do before smoking. 

[mnzoui]

long term storage 5+ years

57-60%

55-60F

low temp is the secret. constant low temp

[GuythePoolGuy]

On ‎8‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 10:19 AM, Customsfan said:

Thought I was the only one who stores and ages cigars at 70RH. Seems like everyone is going the way of 65RH and below.  But I do bring them down a bit as you do before smoking. 

Definitely not.  My friend keeps 2 coolidors at 69% rh and 69 degrees, and I don't think he dry boxes at all.  The temp works out for him because the cooler is kept in his basement in Ohio.  I was doing the same with my humidors, but my florida home with no basement keeps temps at about 75-76 degrees.  I found my cigars a little hard to smoke at times.  Now keeping 1 humidor closer to 62% rh and the other 2 at 67% or so.  

[planetary]

Those of you with larger humidors understand that the conditions aren't described by a single value, but a range.  I find that my tightly packed wardrobe-sized humidor experiences variation of approximately 5-7 degrees RH.  I tend to place my set point so that the maximum humidity level doesn't exceed 67% -- thus keeping the majority of the volume in the low 60's.

[PigFish]

Discussions of rH without corresponding temperature is worthless! Percent moisture content, your goal, is derived from a binary process. Cigar condition is not dependent on rH alone.

Cheers! -Piggy

 

[OB1]

Discussions of rH without corresponding temperature is worthless! Percent moisture content, you goal, is derived from a binary process. Cigar condition is not dependent on rH alone.

Cheers! -Piggy

 

Great video! Watched it twice. Got a noob question: Is there a PMC range one wants to hit, or some rule of thumb to follow for PMC?



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