Diamond Crown Hygrometer?

[jsteel508]

I bought this hygrometer a couple of months ago and it seem to have a bug. From time to time when I open my humidor the thing reads 15%. Then will change a few seconds latter to 65%. The humidor seems to stay between 65% to 68%. I have noticed that it when it does read 15% it will always change back to 65% but if it is at anything other it will always read correct. What should I do.

[PuffDaddy]

It may have a battery that is weak. That can cause them to do strange things (like jump from F to C without touching it). At least it does go back to the right reading shortly after opening.

[Diselfitter]

I have a two Diamond Crown Hygrometers. I keep both of them in my Winecooler-a-Dor. One thing I noticed is that these are not as accurate as they claim.

I copied their advertisement claim on the Hygrometer.

The Diamond Crown Precision Hygrometer uses state-of-the-art digital technology to ensure a precise and accurate reading of the level of humidity and temperature in your humidor. And with the new large LCD read-out that instantly converts the temperature reading from Farenheit to Celsius at a flip of the switch, the Diamond Crown Precision Hygrometer has become the most popular hygrometer on the market today.

On the instruction Paper that comes with it.
It states that it is with in +/- 3% points.

The reality is that it is more around 5%. The temp is spot on, with both.

I know, some are thinking that maybe the placement of the hygrometer would make a difference, and I agree, but I did place them right next to each other for a day to see if they are about the same.
Also when I purchased them, I had the store owner up up six of them, and place them in his Walk in humidor, next to his most accurate, hygrometer, and these two were the closest to being accurate, and accurate when compared to each other.

What is a down side to them is that you cannot reset the Rh, on them... so it is what you see is what you get.

So why Bother? right... I think as long as you know how much the hygrometer is off, be it + or - a certain % points, you can at a glance gauge how your humidor is doing, and that beats squeezing your cigars to tell... lol

If and when you buy a digital hygrometer, whether it is Diamond Crown or any other... check it against one that is very accurate, something like a analog hygrometer, that has been set and tested, and memorize the difference.
Because it would suck if you were trying to keep your cigars around ..say 63%.. and it was off by 5% and your cigars were either really kept at 58rh or 68rh... or if you keep it at 70% rh and in reality your cigars were over humidified at 75%.. or what ever it is.. depending on the inaccuracy.

I am not not trying to bag on Diamond Crown.. I think they are great.. I am saying, not everything is as it is claimed to be, and you should know your equipment before you trust it with your cigars.

Deez

[Teninx]

Until recently, I worked for a manufacturing firm that made test equipment, including humidity sensors. The company had an NIST-certified lab for callibration and repair of these devices as well as others. Our top-selling humidity unit was warranted to maintain +/-3% and had an MSRP slightly over $100.00. (It was also much too large for typical cigar humi use). Getting a 5% range out of an inexpensive humidor unit is pretty good.

[Diselfitter]

True Teninx.. A 5% variation is not bad all things considered.
But when you apply it to cigars and a lot of people try to stay within a couple of rh% points of what they feel is ideal storage conditions for their cigars..5% points could mean the difference between too dry or too moist.
My point is to check it against a Hygrometer that is known to be pretty accurate, so that when you do bring it home and use it you can make any adjustments in your head. Just a safe way to maintain rh%.


Deez

[illuminatus]

I have a diamond crown that does the exact same thing.. I don't worry about it.. I use beads.. they keep me happy!

[Teninx]

Originally Posted by Diselfitter

True Teninx.. A 5% variation is not bad all things considered.
But when you apply it to cigars and a lot of people try to stay within a couple of rh% points of what they feel is ideal storage conditions for their cigars..5% points could mean the difference between too dry or too moist.
My point is to check it against a Hygrometer that is known to be pretty accurate, so that when you do bring it home and use it you can make any adjustments in your head. Just a safe way to maintain rh%.


Deez

Absolutly, brother. But my point is that you can't rely on the reading from the hygrometer for an absolute indication. It's useful for monitoring trends and dips or spikes in RH, but I fear that it's unrealistic to expect a dead-on accurate reading.