Humidity stable in my humi, having more trouble regulating temp

[Aaron]

I have a 12x12 shed that was converted to my office where I do my web work behind my house.

The temperature inside my shed rarely touches 80 but it can get into the low 60's.

My humi runs at a stable 67-70%, hot or cold shed, according to my digital hygrometer. The problem is that this time of year the shed runs cold and the inside of the humi is 63-67 degrees. All summer, I'm grateful that my humi insides never exceeded 72 degrees. I run the A/C during the day in the summers and evenings are cool in Los Angeles.

Lower temps are supposed to dehydrate smokes, but as long as the RH remains in the high 60's do I have anything to worry about?

Any tips on very localized temperature control if I should be more concerned about trying to get and keep the optimal 70-70?

I know that too cool is better than too warm for little stick critters we don't ever want to see come to life.

Thanks in advance.

[AAlmeter]

You're fine. Living in Buffalo, I dont think my cigars have seen the sunny side of 60.

[Aaron]

Originally Posted by AAlmeter

You're fine. Living in Buffalo, I dont think my cigars have seen the sunny side of 60.

That's good to know. I've been happier when my ratio is about 68/68, anyway. In Southern California, I don't think my indoor temp ever falls below 58. If my windows are closed in the shed, because of the computer equipment, there's plenty of ambient heat thrown off to keep the inside temp from getting as cold as the outside temp.

I used to live in New Jersey and New Hampshire, so I learned to put on a sweater when temps dropped. But I'm a 1-yr herfer and wanted to make sure I wasn't risking anything. I'd have gotten a flannel blanket to wrap around my humi if it was advisable.

[palm55]

FWIW... From what I've read, so long as the RH is right, lower temperatures will have no effect other than to slow the aging process. I have plans to humidify a small refrigerator in my barn (kept at 55 degrees with the benefit of a furnace), and store a few boxes of the cheaper sticks. Be glad your ambient temperatures don't freeze the suckers, as they do here in Michigan!!

[Ron1YY]

Aaron,
Your fine with that setup. As long as your RH stays stable and you keep the temp between 60 -75 degrees your should have no problem.

Ron

[NCRadioMan]

Sounds ok. As long as the temp is below 75 I wouldn't think twice about it. RH definatly more important than temp IMO.


NCRM

[Bruce]

I would rather have my temp in the low 60's as opposed to 70 degrees. This decreases the chance of beetle outbreaks.
Also, do not increase your humidity to compensate for lower temps. You will damage your cigars.

My Aristocrat is around 64 degrees and the humidity at a constance 62 to 64%.

[Bruce]

PS: 75 degrees is WAY TOO high of a temp IMHO.

[Da Klugs]

Originally Posted by Bruce

I would rather have my temp in the low 60's as opposed to 70 degrees. This decreases the chance of beetle outbreaks.
Also, do not increase your humidity to compensate for lower temps. You will damage your cigars.

My Aristocrat is around 64 degrees and the humidity at a constance 64 to 64%.

Or thereabouts.

Aaron - Paranoia sets in above 70 degrees.

Sustained temps in the mid to high 70's are an invitation for disaster.

[Bruce]

whoops!
Ok Dave, I corrected it!

[Da Klugs]

Originally Posted by Bruce

whoops!
Ok Dave, I corrected it!

I didn't think you made a mistake. (Like I would know) Just thought you were stating your preferred range of humidity. I wrote it down in the "from above commandments" notebook I keep.

[SeanGAR]

The beetles are warm weather critters and need higher temperatures to hatch. With biological things there is no absolute ... but temperatures higher than 70F are associated with increased risk of any beetle eggs hatching. That doesn't mean you are perfectly safe at 65F and that doesn't mean you are definately going to get beetles at 75F. I'd be comfortable with 72F as long as I didn't have a particularly valuable stash or rarely opened humidor.

Lowering the temperature in a closed system will increase the relative humidity, http://www.sensirion.com/images/getFile?id=115, but your humidor is not a closed system, you have a humidification device that will modulate the humidity change. So lower temperature by itself is not a problem as long as you have a good humidification setup. If I had valuable cigars exposed to temperatures much above 70F and I was ageing them (i.e., not looking at them too often) I'd consider freezing to decrease the risk of beetle infestation. OTOH I'd not worry too much with 72F with cigars I'm planning to smoke within a few months.

[Aaron]

Originally Posted by SeanGAR

The beetles are warm weather critters and need higher temperatures to hatch. With biological things there is no absolute ... but temperatures higher than 70F are associated with increased risk of any beetle eggs hatching. That doesn't mean you are perfectly safe at 65F and that doesn't mean you are definately going to get beetles at 75F. I'd be comfortable with 72F as long as I didn't have a particularly valuable stash or rarely opened humidor.

Lowering the temperature in a closed system will increase the relative humidity, http://www.sensirion.com/images/getFile?id=115, but your humidor is not a closed system, you have a humidification device that will modulate the humidity change. So lower temperature by itself is not a problem as long as you have a good humidification setup. If I had valuable cigars exposed to temperatures much above 70F and I was ageing them (i.e., not looking at them too often) I'd consider freezing to decrease the risk of beetle infestation. OTOH I'd not worry too much with 72F with cigars I'm planning to smoke within a few months.

I've heard such mixed things about freezing. I don't want to start a Mac/PC war thread, but my inclination was NEVER to freeze.

I don't have enough of a collection to really age my smokes yet. I open my one humi often because, hey, how am I going to get another smoke??? I have a bigger humi, a Cuesta Rey I bought on EBAY many moons ago, that I'm conditioning to store the first couple of boxes I purchase. That might need a once-a-fortnight peek, especially the first few months until I begin to feel more confident. Here in SoCal, in my back office, sustained temps (like more than 2-3 hours) > 75 degrees is rare, like maybe a couple of times a year, max. Since I want to keep my computer equipment from overheating, in the summertimes, you could almost hang meat with me as I keep my working temp in the mid-60's, as I like it.

I'm actually more concerned about the low temp (OK, Michigan folk, Minnesotans, et al... what we Angelenos consider low temps) and what a few day's in the mid-50's would do to the RH and, in turn, to my smokes.

Slowing the aging doesn't bug me more than the risk of beetles!