Damaged Humi?

[mhsrunner]

I thought I was done seasoning, and probably was, but the minor detail is that im an idiot. I had the humidor at 69 and 71 on the two hygros, so im pretty sure that gives me my constant stable 70 mark. Unfortunately, i bumped the shelf it was on and sloshed water out without knowing it. It sat for atleast an hour before i opened the humi and saw a puddle of water on about 1/5th or the floor, pressed up against the sides. Now, i wiped it was best i could and the would doesn't SEEM to have warped, but now my digital reads 65%. Could water seeping under the sides open up a way for air to escape from the BOTTOM seal? I would've figured that the water would only make the wood swell, not widen the seal, but do you think the 65% was caused by the water i spilled? Man, all I had to do was wait for the freakin' beads to come in the mail...

[wharfrathoss]

i don't think the wood would warp that quick, but it might have swollen a little (that just don't sound right!)-i'd leave the lid open for a day or so, then close it & check where the RH is at-reseason if you need to, i think it'll be alright

[RPB67]

The wood would not warp that fast.

Just wipe up the mess. Dry it the best you can and sart all over again with the seasoning process.

[screwbag]

shouldn't be a problem...just let it dry slowly...and you'll be good...

[OtterAKL4987]

I doubt it warped it as others have said. How long after you cleaned it all up did it read 65? If you had it open for 5 min. or so while cleaning, it will take a long time for an empty humi to regain humidity. Just a thought.

[mhsrunner]

Can woold swell and then go back down? Because i yesterday I left the humi open for about 10 minutes so that what I couldn't wipe would just dry naturally. After the spill it was hard to close, as the top and bottom pieces didn't fit evenly, but rather more snugly than they had before.If it just dropped the lid it wouldn't close, I actually had to push it down. I let the humi sit open for an hour today and now it fits like it did before the spill. So does this mean that the wood was too saturated and swollen and by leaving it open i let that water out of the wood? While it was swollen humidity was screwy, but now that the humi fits the way it did before and its sat closed for a few hours im back to 69 and 71 on the hygros.

[Silound]

Wood will expand and contract with the presence or absence of moisture, which fills the small cellular pores of the wood.

Wood will NOT "warp" under moisture. Wood warps because the cut goes against the grain of the wood, causing the expansion and contraction to work in off-angle ways.

Your humidor is fine, give it time to stabilize, then re-season it if needed.

[wharfrathoss]

Originally Posted by mhsrunner

Can woold swell and then go back down? yesBecause i yesterday I left the humi open for about 10 minutes so that what I couldn't wipe would just dry naturally. After the spill it was hard to close, as the top and bottom pieces didn't fit evenly, but rather more snugly than they had before.If it just dropped the lid it wouldn't close, I actually had to push it down. I let the humi sit open for an hour today and now it fits like it did before the spill. So does this mean that the wood was too saturated and swollen and by leaving it open i let that water out of the wood? yesWhile it was swollen humidity was screwy, but now that the humi fits the way it did before and its sat closed for a few hours im back to 69 and 71 on the hygros.

let it sit for 24hrs to make sure it's stable, then add sticks-you're good to go, no harm no foul

[bazookajoe]

As most have said, it'll be fine. The only other thing you might check for is whether the grain raised up on the wood that got wet. If it did, a light sanding will fix it (don't breathe in the dust). You just don't want a rough area that might tear a wrapper on one of your prized smokes.

[mhsrunner]

The humidity is off again. The digital was giving me a reading of 66%, so im calibrating it with the salt test right now. My analog, which was one degree off when i calibrated it, is reading at 75% for some reason. Everysince my readings leveled off its been where it should at 70%. I wonder if the spilled water actually did throw something off. Using distilled water, does humidity continue rising after 70%? Should it be staying at 70% right now?

[Silound]

Originally Posted by mhsrunner

The humidity is off again. The digital was giving me a reading of 66%, so im calibrating it with the salt test right now. My analog, which was one degree off when i calibrated it, is reading at 75% for some reason. Everysince my readings leveled off its been where it should at 70%. I wonder if the spilled water actually did throw something off. Using distilled water, does humidity continue rising after 70%? Should it be staying at 70% right now?

No matter what kind of water you use, it is possible to reach a nearly 100% humidity environment. Difficult, but possible.


Your hygrometers are probably off. Just leave the humidor open for a day to vent some, and salt test your hygrometers while it's open. You should salt test for at least 24 hours, more if possible, but close the humidor after about 24 hours.