Humidors in the wine cooler

[LEOinFL]

Did a search with no luck.....

I am looking at buying a Vinotemp wine cooler from Target. I see people are putting beads in the wine cooler to maintain humidity.
Here is my question.....If you were to put a whole humidor in the wine cooler, with the proper humidity inside it, would it still be necessary to use beads in the wine cooler?

I can go either way, but was wondering.

Thanks,
LEOinFL

[jinny]

Originally Posted by LEOinFL

Did a search with no luck.....

I am looking at buying a Vinotemp wine cooler from Target. I see people are putting beads in the wine cooler to maintain humidity.
Here is my question.....If you were to put a whole humidor in the wine cooler, with the proper humidity inside it, would it still be necessary to use beads in the wine cooler?

I can go either way, but was wondering.

Thanks,
LEOinFL

as long as all your cigars are kept inside the humidor, I think you won't need any beads outside.

[NCRadioMan]

They are using the wine cooler itself as the humidor. Not putting a humidor in it.

[garilla]

Originally Posted by NCRadioMan

They are using the wine cooler itself as the humidor. Not putting a humidor in it.

True, most investing in a "wineador" are using the whole thing as a humidor. However, I definitely see his point in putting a smaller modest collection in a wine cooler. Florida temps can be brutal for months.

I know I've probably been pushing it when mine is running 78 - 79 degrees (humi is 68%, RH bead magic no worries there). I'm constantly concerned about the temp though, and can't afford to drop the temp levels in my house much more (less than 2000SF and a $360 electric bill. In September. Bastages.)

- Garilla

[jinny]

Originally Posted by NCRadioMan

They are using the wine cooler itself as the humidor. Not putting a humidor in it.

I'm guessing our friend in FL is interested in using the vinotemp for both wine and as way to keep his cigars cool... I've seen it done... although it's been much larger wine coolers... I think the only one's I've seen at Target are on the smaller side... although they may carry larger ones online...

if you are using a smaller wine cooler, there is hardly any room to have it to double duty... even a modest humidor would fill that sucker up... I'd consider ditching the humi and use the whole thing as cigar storage as most people do and as NCRadioMan points out.

good luck! have fun!

[tedrodgerscpa]

Just my

I use my wine cooler (a 28 ct vinotemp from Target, which is the same you're likely looking at) as storage for both sticks and my small desktop humidor.

Here's a pic...



I keep singles in the Curly head boxes and label them. There's actually only one curlyhead in the whole cooler!

At the top of the wine cooler is my desktop humidor, which has humidification (beads) inside of it... because the desktop has a good seal, I'm using the wine cooler for those sticks as purely a temparature control.

However, the loose sticks in the curly head boxes DO need humidification... I've got about 1 1/2 lbs of beads in the open air of the wine cooler, a few ounces in each curly head box, and a few ounces in the desktop.

I considered scooping up a ton of the CI Cigar Brand humidors from cbid, and humidify each one. If I went that route, I'd only need to control the temperature in the vinotemp.

However, the curly head boxes were hella-cheaper (i.e. free) and do just as good a job of keeping my loosies stored.

The whole unit sits comfortably at 65% and 68 degrees 24/7

Hope that helps you figure out what you're gonna do with your vinotemp.

[LEOinFL]

No wine in the wine cooler...hate the stuff myself....lol.

Pretty much like tedrodgerscpa has his set up. but since I'm new to this the wine cooler would hold my 2 humidors. Once I out grow them...I'd go with the beads.

tedrodgerscpa.....That is the same wine cooler I was planning on getting.

LEOinFL

[kvm]

I have two wine coolers and use both methods at the moment. One has three humidors in it with each having beads and one has a humi and boxes that the beads control the wine cooler. They both have required the same amount of attention. I would start working on controlling the wine cooler. You'll need more room faster than you think.

[tedrodgerscpa]

Originally Posted by LEOinFL

No wine in the wine cooler...hate the stuff myself....lol.

Pretty much like tedrodgerscpa has his set up. but since I'm new to this the wine cooler would hold my 2 humidors. Once I out grow them...I'd go with the beads.

tedrodgerscpa.....That is the same wine cooler I was planning on getting.

LEOinFL

If money is no option, you could go ahead and invest in some beads and start the process of getting your humidity straight... It will likely take some time to get the RH straight in the wine cooler.

I believe the heartfelt calculator said about a pound... I bought two, and haven't regretted it one bit. All two pounds are in the cooler as we speak.

Some folks keep their sticks out in the open. I choose not to and am pretty happy with my curly head boxes. They fit so well.

If you do use boxes to store your loose sticks, they'll need to be seasoned/re-seasoned depending on how long they've been out.

Bottom line, I'd order beads (or an active electric humidification system such as a Cigar Oasis or a Hydra humidifier) as soon as you can and start working towards regulating the rh in your wine cooler.

Oh, and a full cooler (even if the boxes themselves are empty) is more easily regulated than an empty cooler

Good luck, and post questions if you've got em.

[thrillafrommanila]

In my setup i have 2 200-300 ct humi's inside, with other boxes with cigars in them. I have beads inside (single sticks) and outside (2lbs) of the cooler. Never had a problem with RH. I guess you can say its overkill haha.