Gap in Cedar between humdior wall and floor...Bad Seal? (With Pics)

[shilala]

Originally Posted by heelsfan729

Thanks for the help guys,

I seasoned with multiple Boveda packs for 10 days and the humidity did get to the stated 84% quite quickly and remained constant for a week . I got the glass top just so I wouldn't have to open it very much. I tend to be obsessive with monitoring my sticks haha I did the flashlight test and it seems to be sealed well as there was no light escaping from anywhere. After all the leak tests I've done, I'm thinking that it's just the winter dryness. Like I said, the beads are 65% rh, so I'm only 5% under what it's supposed to be. I'll try sliding down the cedar. I'm thinking of just replacing the 65% beads with 70% beads. Maybe that will compensate for the lower humidity.

Good ideas, Samson.
Changing out the beads isn't likely to help. They'll still give off water at the same speed.
If you want to check your beads to see what they're doing, just stick them in a ziplock with your hygrometer. After an hour or so, maybe sooner, it will show you the setpoint of your beads.
Another thing...
You didn't mention what RH your cigars had been. They may just be drawing up the moisture faster than the beads can put it out. It's super important to have enough beads, too. Rather than switching beads, maybe add some more, or try Michael's beads. (cigarnut up there^)
His beads offer mo0re than 500% more available water than the ones you're using, and they give up the water to the air over 800% faster. They might be able to keep up.
If you have some wood clamps, fill that thing with distilled water and clamp it shut. Turn it over and see where water runs out. That will tell you if it's leaking, and exactly where, and you can patch the leaks. It won't hurt the humi one iota, I do it all the time, even to new builds. It's my secret to making humis that actually work. Don't tell anyone, that's top secret stuff.

[Kreth]

Originally Posted by shilala

If you have some wood clamps, fill that thing with distilled water and clamp it shut. Turn it over and see where water runs out. That will tell you if it's leaking, and exactly where, and you can patch the leaks. It won't hurt the humi one iota, I do it all the time, even to new builds. It's my secret to making humis that actually work. Don't tell anyone, that's top secret stuff.

I'm just about to this point. I have a glass-top that was fine for a year, then within the last couple of months, would not hold RH. It passed the dollar bill and lid drop tests. I ran a bead of silicone around the inside of the glass and also around the analog hygro, let it air out for a couple of weeks, then re-seasoned. In addition to finding any leaks, I'm thinking this method might help get the cedar to max saturation. Right now it seems really dry, even after several days of seasoning.
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[shilala]

Originally Posted by Kreth

I'm just about to this point. I have a glass-top that was fine for a year, then within the last couple of months, would not hold RH. It passed the dollar bill and lid drop tests. I ran a bead of silicone around the inside of the glass and also around the analog hygro, let it air out for a couple of weeks, then re-seasoned. In addition to finding any leaks, I'm thinking this method might help get the cedar to max saturation. Right now it seems really dry, even after several days of seasoning.
Posted via Mobile Device

I'm upstairs fixing sofaman's leaky cheaphumidor glass top (and sides) humi right now. It's definately getting filled with water. It'll be airtight before it goes out of here.
I put a seal on the top earlier this year, still didn't help. It's that bad.
I found, as I expected, that there's no seal whatsoever around the glass. It's a lot of work, but he really loves that thing and it fits perfect on top of his winador. If it weren't for that, it'd be better served in the garbage can.
Sumb!tch sure is pretty, though. (Not sofaman, his humi.)

Originally Posted by shilala

Good ideas, Samson.
Changing out the beads isn't likely to help. They'll still give off water at the same speed.
If you want to check your beads to see what they're doing, just stick them in a ziplock with your hygrometer. After an hour or so, maybe sooner, it will show you the setpoint of your beads.
Another thing...
You didn't mention what RH your cigars had been. They may just be drawing up the moisture faster than the beads can put it out. It's super important to have enough beads, too. Rather than switching beads, maybe add some more, or try Michael's beads. (cigarnut up there^)
His beads offer mo0re than 500% more available water than the ones you're using, and they give up the water to the air over 800% faster. They might be able to keep up.

Thanks Scott, there's a wealth of knowledge on this site. All one has to do is look. I couldn't find anything about Michael's (cigarnut) beads. How do they compare to your's? And how do they both compare to heartfelt's? I know Shilala's beads are legendary around these parts.

[aich75013]

Originally Posted by heelsfan729

Thanks Scott, there's a wealth of knowledge on this site. All one has to do is look. I couldn't find anything about Michael's (cigarnut) beads. How do they compare to your's? And how do they both compare to heartfelt's? I know Shilala's beads are legendary around these parts.

Cigarnut bought Shilala's bead business. They are the same. And they work great!
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showthread.php?t=28368