Antietam Humidor Question from newbie

[CurlyGQ2]

Hi,

Just want to say hello to everyone, as I'm a newbie here. I've been smoking cigars for about 5 years now and decided its time to upgrade my storage capabilities. I went and purchased the Antietam Humidor with a Cigar Oasis Plus from bargain humidors, which I recieved yesterday.

I noticed the door really doesn't have a good seal, in fact I'm not sure that it will seal at all. There is a 1/16 inch approximate gap between the door and the cabinet base. During winters my heater has made it very difficult to keep my cigars moist with the smaller desktop type humidors I currently own. (They don't have a good seal either) My question is this:
Does anyone have any experience with this humidor in a wintertime heated environment?
Will the humidor hold 65-70% humidity with these air spaces?
Does your Antietam Humidor door have air spaces?
Do you think I should return it?

Any help, comments or opinons is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[SeanGAR]

Originally Posted by CurlyGQ2

Hi,

I noticed the door really doesn't have a good seal, in fact I'm not sure that it will seal at all. There is a 1/16 inch approximate gap between the door and the cabinet base. During winters my heater has made it very difficult to keep my cigars moist with the smaller desktop type humidors I currently own. (They don't have a good seal either) My question is this:

Any help, comments or opinons is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Looking at the picture, I can see that the door and cabinet base don't make a seal, the door makes a seal against the rim around the front of the humidor. If you mean that there is a 1/16 inch gap at the bottom of the door where it meets the bottom front rim of the humidor, then the door is warped and the humidor should be returned (the entire thing, not just the front door, see below). If you mean there is a space between the bottom of the door and varnished cabinet base, I assume that is supposed to be there to allow easy opening without rubbing.

Picture without permission from BH.


And now for something completely different.

We had a recent infestation of CF trolls (Bargainhatero rabidensis). Thankfully everybody showered and washed with antibacterial soap and they went away. Nonetheless, I am obligated to make the following statement. If perchance you are a CF troll, please see below. If you are not, the following might be instructive.

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away there lived two groups of cigar smoking primates. One family lived on the plains, they were the baboons. The other family dwelled in the jungle. This jungle family was a happy family, and the gorillas, chimps and spider monkeys in the family got along well. Food was plentiful, they liked to share, and they were a happy bunch. The baboons were not happy however. Life on the plains was tough, with lions often eating them and spitting out their bones. Their favorite passtimes were backbiting, to remove parasites, and playing with their feces. From time to time they would invade the jungle, throwing feces at the inhabitants, and then with howls, hoots and chatters, they would run back to their holes, that they called home, and giggle about their brave feces-throwing exploits. Inhabitants of the jungle would scratch their heads and shrug it off as a reminder of how much better it is to live in the jungle than on the plain.

[Scott M]

1) Welcome aboard.

2) does the humidor maintain a fairly constant humidity right now?

3) have you spoken with the BH people to see if you need to send it back?

4) what SeanGAR said


Scott"tryin'tohelp"M

[CurlyGQ2]

SeanGAR and Scott M,

Thanks for your reply. I appreciate your help.
The gap in the humidor is located between the front face of cabinet which mates to the inside face of the door. I thought that the inside door surface would come into contact with front surface of the cabinet, or at least be a little closer, but it does not. There are 2 magnets that hold the door closed on the cabinet's leftside and these magnets protrude out of these surfaces creating the gap.

On the cabinet's rightside are the door hinges. I can see a small shim under the top hinge which creates a small gap on this side of the door too.

I know this is not a high quality piece, as it is built in China; but, just thought I'd see if it will get the job done.

I just recieved the humidor yesterday and have not primed it yet...I could give it a try. I'm just concerned by the time I prime it, I might be past the 15 day return window.

Great suggestion...I'll give BH a call too.

Thanks again for your assistance.

[SeanGAR]

Originally Posted by CurlyGQ2

Great suggestion...I'll give BH a call too.

You paid good money for that humidor, it should make a good seal, period. Even my cheap ebay humidors (desktop models albeit) make a whoosh when closed and show no light using the flashlight test (flashlight inside the humidor in dark room, look for light - obviously a glass door makes that inpractical).

Any open space at the sealing surface will play havoc on your attempts at humidity control even though you have the Oasis which brings humidity up quickly. Call them, sounds like one that needs replacement to me.

[GOAT LOCKER]

I've heard this complaint from other Antietam owners, and that it still holds humidity fine. I would still try to reduce the gap. Have you tried tapping the magnets back in, so they are flush? Personally, I would install a gasket around the inside of the box face that seals against the door.

There are a few others here with the Antietam that can give you first hand feedback.

[CurlyGQ2]

Thanks for all of your advise. I just spoke to BH where they said I could take my time and prime the cabinet to see how it holds. If it doesn't hold humidity to my satisfaction, they'll take it back.

Anyone have any experience with this box?? I'd welcome any feedback.

Thanks again.

[SeanGAR]

Originally Posted by CurlyGQ2

Thanks for all of your advise. I just spoke to BH where they said I could take my time and prime the cabinet to see how it holds. If it doesn't hold humidity to my satisfaction, they'll take it back.

Anyone have any experience with this box?? I'd welcome any feedback.

Thanks again.

I don't have one myself but I've heard good things about it. You have the best Oasis because you can add distilled water directly instead of diddling around with adding water to the cartridges or converting them to polymer (which is what I did). Should definately help that humidoir keep an even humidity.

[MocoBird]

Give it some time to get settled in and you'll be just fine. I've had mine for 3-4 years now and they are doing just fine. Very little upkeep anymore.

http://www.clubstogie.com/photo/show...cat/500/page/1

You might find that you will have a variation in the humidy between the top of the box and the bottom of the box. Some of have found the addition of a fan to move the air around will correct this. Might want to check this out if thats a problem.....

http://www.clubstogie.com/vb/showthr...light=humi+101

[CurlyGQ2]

SeanGar, Mocobird,
That's re-assuring...Thank you. I've started priming the unit with (3) bowls of water, next I'll throw in the Oasis after a day or so.

Mocobird, you have a quite a setup. Very Nice!!!
How do the doors fit on your units?

The magnets on my unit cause the door to have about 1/16 inch gap on the leftside because they protrude from the cabinet surface. Do your magnets protrude from their mounting surface?
And on the rightside, the upper door hinged is shimmed which causes an uneven gap, about the same 1/16 inch at the top that gradually decreases to a tight fit at the bottom.

Your fan idea is excellent too. Judging by my door, I'm certain that I will need to do something extra too.

[Da Klugs]

I have a similar cab at home (manassas maybe) one drawer. With the cigar oasis it is always rock solid at where I set it 68%. The only downside of cabs vs coolidors is that they breath. You are going to use more distilled than in an airtight Coleman cooler. I burn through a gallon every 2-3 months. @ $ .85 its not that big a deal though. If you were using just beads it would be an issue. Since the CO is an active device a little leakage can be helpful as the fan comes on to humidify and also circulates the air elimiinating the humidity stratification a sealed environment wouild create. Put a gasket around the door if you think your getting too much leakage.

[RPB67]

I have the Antietam Humidor. The seal is fine. You need to make sure that the screws on the door hinges are tight. Otherwise the door will close at an angle and not make a good seal with the magnets. You could also lock it. This will insure a good seal. I use the cigar oassis as well and have never had a problem. I keep my humi at 65-67% humidity and around 68 degrees.

Good choice in humidors.