Cheap Humidor Woes

[rodwha]

I'm guessing the issue with cheap humidors is the seal leaving you struggling to maintain a set humidity point. Are there other issues? And what is done to fix seal issues (non glass issues)? Why spend the money on an expensive humidor?

[herman]

Humidors are just nice to look at. If you can't get yourself a decent humi then use tupperwares until you can. I speak from experience. I just couldn't bear to look at an ugly tupperware so bought several cheapies and they all leak. I have fixed them with weather sealant, and stack some, but it's difficult to place right and can begin leaking again with time. Some will even leak from the bottom so they might require extra work.

I won't even look at glass tops because I'd rather have something with design as priority. I just peek in mine every few days to check things out.

[Dijit]

Even expensive humidors can and do have issues. Better to take your time and do the research to get the right humidor for you. Dont forget aesthetics will play a roll here too. My $30 Bally II glass top after I sealed the glass was easily one of the best small humidors I have owned. If money is really the issue and nothing else I recommend Coleman or Igloo. Get some Spanish cedar sheets that your local B&M is about to throw out and line it. You can find storage for a few hundred sticks for under $100 including humidification devices.

[AlanS]

The glass tops allow me to visit with my smokes and hygrometer without opening and losing humidity. Pluses and minuses both ways.

[FireRunner]

There are a variety of opinions on this topic because money is money. Personally, I do not care for cheap humidors made overseas by machines. They may look nice but they are crap, and by crap I mean there is no seal and over time it's just a pain to maintain cigars well.

My family has eight humidors. Six of them are hand made by Michael Dixon from Maryland. He's an amazing woodworker. Yes, his humidors are more expensive than a machine made humidor. But, for me and my family the pros greatly outweigh the cons.

Quality humidors have better seals to maintain the RH. You don't need to maintain the cigars as much. In all our quality humidors they are refilled about once a month (maybe twice depending on if they are open often). They look better. They are heavy. They have a lifetime warranty (anything goes wrong we can send it back to the maker and it's fixed for free - anytime). Of course they cost more. However, cost is relative if you take into consideration the time/energy/cost of maintaining cigars more often or having cigars lost due to humidor issues. These humidors will be around for decades.

Cheap humidors work 100% fine, however typically they require more maintenance and can have build issues over time. We have two cheap machine made humidors and they require refilling every single week, the hinges squeak, etc. The seals are bad, the wood is very thin and overall it's just a cheap product. However, many people don't care or have an issue with maintaining a humidor each week.

Overall, the purchase of a quality humidor over a cheap humidor depends on the person. It's the same as asking a golfer why buy a set of irons for $800 when you can buy a cheaper set for $300.

[rodwha]

I'm using a Tupperware container that stands them upright that I'm keeping in my fermentation chamber at 64*. It works well enough for now and is holding 24 ~50 ring cigars and a Drymistat humidifier with room for a few more. I'm OK with his for now, but would like a humidor for the desk top. For now it seems like ~100 ct would be sufficient.

I don't have any puffing friends yet, but would prefer a nice lookin (nothing fancy per se) humidor. Cost is always an issue to some extent and being a simple kind of guy don't care for frills, but also believe you get what you pay for to an extent.

I do have nearly a dozen ice chests of varying sizes, but would prefer a proper humidor.

As it stands now I'd likely purchase from Cheap Humidors from what little I've seen.

[TreySC]

You could go with one of these

http://www.bovedainc.com/store/tobac...rylic-humidor/

[StogieNinja]

I'm guessing the issue with cheap humidors is the seal leaving you struggling to maintain a set humidity point. Are there other issues? And what is done to fix seal issues (non glass issues)? Why spend the money on an expensive humidor?

There's also the very, very, very thin bottoms that are unfinished with felt glued to it. Even if you have a good seal around the lid, it's possible you'll lose rH right out the bottom.

Additionally, a lot of what looks like solid spanish cedar is in fact just mdf with a spanish cedar veneer.

Its really up to you, and you have three basic options:

1. Non-traditional, primarily functional options like cooler or tupperware
Pro: Hassle free, inexpensive
Con: Aesthetics

2. Inexpensive imported wood humidor
Pro: inexpensive, aesthetics
Con: Hassle to maintain proper rH due to poor seals, thin bottoms, etc

3. Quality wood humidor
Pro: Hassle free, aesthetics
Con: can be very expensive compared to the other options


Personally, function>form so I'll always skip Option 2. Money and preference dictate whether you go to Option 1 or 3.

[rodwha]

There's always Christmas too! I'm in no hurry for a proper humidor really, and getting a nice one as a present sounds like a much better option as I have too many other hobbies to spend my hobby funds on.

[RenoH414]

I have a cheap glass top one I bought years ago that never worked well. When I got back into cigar smoking a few weeks ago I tried to use it once again. It struggles to hold rh at all and it is nothing more than junk at this point. I keep it around thinking one of these days I will try the marine seal around the glass and see if that helps it. It is nice looking and I like to be able to see some of my sticks. At this point no better than it works I don't trust it and it really is just an oversized paper weight. If you're gonna buy a wood humidor do it right the first time. You'll be money ahead in the end. My next move will be to a winedor.

Reno