Coolidor and Temperature Control

[macster]

I'm a noob here and definitely sliding down the slippery slope.

Currently I have a 25 and 20 count traditional wood humidors. However, my collection is growing quickly and to avoid the rut of continuing to purchase more and bigger humidors I think its time to consider putting together a coolidor.

My concern is living here in FL I can't afford to keep the house temp below 70*F. Usually the temp runs 75* in the house, of course too warm for cigar storage.

Being a homebrewer and craft beer collector I have a chest freezer in my garage with an external Johnson Digital Contoller. I am currently storing my 2 wood humidors in the freezer (along with my beer) set at 63*F which seems to work well. However, with my beer collection no room to store a big cooler of stogies.

Was wondering how I may go the coolidor route and still keep the internal temp in the 65* range? Would the refreezable blue ice packs inside the cooler work? (of corse with a humidity beads, Oust fan, etc.)

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. THANKS!!

[ucubed]

I too live in Florida. The freezer packs will cause the humidty to dry up and then exceed limitations, even with beads. I've tried it with frozen distilled water. I tend not to bother with the temp because I can't get it down anyways. I did freeze all my cigars so the beetle thing won't be as prevelant, other than that a vino is the way to go.

[wharfrathoss]

the refreezeable blue ice pks work fine for me-i just wrap them in an old tshirt or towel & put 'em in the cooler, switch 'em out in the AM-never had the RH "dry up" personally-the cooler is sealed, doesn't breathe unlike a humi-there's no place for the humidity to go-if condensation forms on the ice pks (which is why i wrap them in a towel) the moisture is already in the cooler, it's just forming on the ice pks since they're colder-you may notice some wierd hygro readings, for some reason the temp they're at when calibrated is the temp they're accurate at-i'm not going to get into the relative vs. actual humidity discussion but if you search for it you'll see what i'm talking about-using beads i don't worry-hope this helps

[DonnieW]

Originally Posted by macster

My concern is living here in FL I can't afford to keep the house temp below 70*F. Usually the temp runs 75* in the house, of course too warm for cigar storage.

75 degrees is perfectly fine. Sheesh, my office often hits 80 with all the stuff running in here. 4 years, no humidity problems, no mold, no bugs, no bad sticks period!

Aging stuff, different story if the temps are excessively warm (75+) all the time.

[DonnieW]

And on behalf of all us Northern/Canadian folks... Stop complaining about your beautiful 75 degree Florida weather, we know it's rough!.

It's snowing here... I can't get the temp above freezing.

[hoax]

Personally I freeze my sticks to kill off an beetles then just don't worry to much about the temperature.

Just think how hot it is in warehouses where they store the tobacco.

[borndead1]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Coleman-ThermoEl...QQcmdZViewItem

Thermoelectric cooler.






But you may as well just shell out another hundred or so and get a VinoTemp.

http://cgi.ebay.com/AVANTI-EWC28-BOT...QQcmdZViewItem

[sqhertz]

i was just about to ask something similar to this.
since im in miami with our oh-so nice 90+* weather and soaking high humidity , my room stays around 80* with the computer and everything running.

-just checked with my temp gun , and everything seems to be 80-86* in here and probably a little cooler at night.

i havnt started my coolerdor yet , but would i have a problem keeping the cooler in here with temps that high? i did order a tube of the beads and am calibrating the hygrometer as i type.

[DonnieW]

Originally Posted by sqhertz

i was just about to ask something similar to this.
since im in miami with our oh-so nice 90+* weather and soaking high humidity , my room stays around 80* with the computer and everything running.

-just checked with my temp gun , and everything seems to be 80-86* in here and probably a little cooler at night.

i havnt started my coolerdor yet , but would i have a problem keeping the cooler in here with temps that high? i did order a tube of the beads and am calibrating the hygrometer as i type.

If it's just a coolerdor, why not keep it in a room without the computer, or even the basement if one exists??

[sqhertz]

lol. no basement in south florida unless you either have money to dig through coral , dont mind your house flooding , or both.
i dont really have anywhere else to put it and the house is really about the same temp everywhere this time of year.

[DonnieW]

Ahh, Miami.

Like borndead1 posted, you can do the cooled coolerdor. How low does the temp go in the evenings in Miami?

[sqhertz]

i could go that route , but id prefer not to. i already have enough things in here giving off heat , i dont need anymore.

http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/USFL0316.html

highs in the upper 80's-90s , lows in the high 70's.

[ucubed]

Surprised the icepacks worked for you. I've tried many ways with icepacks and what not, and none of them work

[macster]

I appreciate all the input and feedback on this guys.

Some addtional thoughts:

* The Coleman Thermoelectric Cooler looked like the answer for something affordable. However, customer reviews of the product on Amazon and Wal-Mart rated its reliability and function quite poorly.

* I have been doing the 24-48-24 fridge/freezer/fridge routine with all of my cigar purchases so I would guess this should(?) take care of the beetles. However, from a lot of what I have read storing your cigars at 75-76* F is NOT recommended.

* Perhaps I should just buy a few old cigar boxes or some of the cheaper 20 ct. humis you can find on CBid alonf with some beads and just use my chest freezer. With it set in the 63-65* range isn't it the same concept as the VinoTemp? I keep a few containers of Damp Rid inside the freezer to soak up most of the condensation that builds up due to it being in a hot, humid garage.

* One question I did have is when I see postings of pics of coolidors I see many times they will have their sacks or trays of humidity beads, but have many of their cigars in plastic zip lock bags. How can the proper level of humidity reach and effect the cigars placed in sealed plastic bags?

* The other option is trying the refreezable blue ice packs in a sealed palstic bag wrapped in a towel in the cooler.

Thanks to all again.

[Sting Ray]

[quote=sqhertz;1780877]i was just about to ask something similar to this.
since im in miami with our oh-so nice 90+* weather and soaking high humidity , my room stays around 80* with the computer and everything running.

-just checked with my temp gun , and everything seems to be 80-86* in here and probably a little cooler at night.

i havnt started my coolerdor yet , but would i have a problem keeping the cooler in here with temps that high? i did order a tube of the beads and am calibrating the hygrometer as i type.

[/quo

I live in the area too. What are you planning to use? I have a eurocave, but the cooling system is broken. Know of anyone that canfix or suggest a solutions?