How To Season Your New Humidor

All wooden humidors must be seasoned before use. If you live in a dry climate, it’s best to season it about once a year. Seasoning your humidor is vital because it raises the moisture level of the wood so that it will be consistent with the moisture of the cigars it carries. This is important because it keeps both your cigars and your humidor in perfect condition. If you do not adequately season your humidor the wood will absorb too much moisture from the cigars and dry them out. Also, improper seasoning, or failure to do so at all, can cause the wood of the humidor not to close properly as the wood will begin to warp.

There are several methods for seasoning humidors, and in this article, we will cover some of the common ones.

Boveda

With this method, you need to buy Boveda Seasoning Bags, which is a brand that sells seasoning packs by humidity level for various products like cigars. Costs can vary, but in this case, you will probably spend around $20 for a package of four 84% humidity packs. Once you have your bags, take out all cigars (store them safely), place the correct amount of packs inside the humidor, close the lid, and wait for the instructed amount of days (usually 14 days). Boveda recommends using one packet for every 25 cigars that your humidor can hold (see here). The purpose of this process is to get your humidors humidity level up to the best moisture level for cigars. After the two weeks, throw away the packs and replace the seasoning Boveda with something more standard like 70%. Go ahead and put your cigars back and enjoy your perfectly seasoned humidor. For information on this method, go to the Boveda website.

Active Seasoning

Active seasoning is considered the old-school method and can be quite complicated; however, when done correctly, it is an excellent seasoning technique. First, place an unused kitchen sponge in a bowl and soak it with distilled water or a propylene glycol solution. It’s vital that you use distilled water because tap or bottled water will leave minerals in the wood that can prevent it from absorbing moisture. While the sponge is in the bowl, prepare the humidor by placing a plastic bag inside it. Be sure the bag is a little larger than the sponge. With the bag in place, the sponge will not over-saturate the wood that it touches.

Once the sponge is saturated, wring it out until it is not sopping wet but, still has a lot of water content. Place it on the plastic bag in the humidor.

The next step requires a cigar humidifier. Take the humidifier in a bowl and soak it in distilled water or propylene glycol. Once it is saturated, remove it and place it face down on a paper towel. Let it sit for 20 minutes to drain out all excess water. This is to prevent it from leaking inside the humidor.

Once complete, place the cigar humidifier and the hydrometer inside the humidor. Now close the lid securely and wait for 48 hours.

After the two days of waiting, repeat the first steps. Take the sponge, put it in a bowl, and soak with distilled water or the propylene glycol solution. Wring out the excess liquid and place it back in the humidor. Close the lid and wait for another 24 hours.

After the 24 hours, check your hygrometer. If it reads 80 – 85% humidity, that’s ok. Your humidor should typically be at about 70% humidity, but during the seasoning process, it can be higher. What are you looking for is a humidity of 72 – 73%.  Once you put your cigars back, they will soak up a little of the extra moisture and bring the humidity down to 70%. If you check and the percentage is at 74% or higher, close the lid and wait another 24 hours or until your humidity reading gets down to the 72 – 73%.

The Wipe Down Method

This method is controversial. It saves time, but it is risky and can harm your humidor. If you choose this method, please go about it very carefully.

The wipe down method starts with taking a new kitchen sponge and soaking it in distilled water. Once it’s fully saturated, wring out the excess water. You can also buy pre-moistened seasoning wipes, specially made for this process.

If using the sponge, take out the hygrometer and the cigar humidifier and wipe down all exposed surfaces inside the humidor. Be very careful and gentle with this process; make sure that no pools of water form. You only want to dampen the wood slightly. You also need to wipe down any wood trays, and dividers that go in the humidor. Once complete, place trays or dividers back in the humidor and wait for 24 hours. During the waiting period, calibrate your hygrometer (see below).

After the 24 hours, soak your cigar humidifier in distilled water, and drain the excess for 20 minutes. Now open your humidor and place the humidifier and hygrometer inside, close the lid and wait another 24 hours.

After the 24 hours have passed, open the lid and check the humidity percentage. If it is 72 – 73%, everything is done and ready for the cigars. If not, close the lid and wait again until it reads the correct humidity percentage.

Calibrating Your Hygrometer

Before using any of these seasoning methods, you need to calibrate your hygrometer, so you get an accurate reading. To do this, you need:

1. 1. 1. Table Salt
      2. Distilled Water
      3. A Bottle Cap
      4. Resealable Plastic Bag

If your hygrometer is analog, you will also need a screwdriver.

Once you have all the supplies, fill the bottle cap with salt. You are looking to get a teaspoon of salt. You may want to use an actual teaspoon to measure. A teaspoon of salt mixed with water should emit 75% humidity. Now add a few drops of water until the salt has a wet cake-mixture like consistency. If your salt is dissolving, you added too much water and need to start again.

Once you get the consistency right, place the bottle cap and hygrometer in the plastic bag, seal the bag shut, and wait for 8 – 12 hours. After waiting, check the hygrometer, it should read 75%. If it does not read 75%, try adjusting the settings. Analog hygrometers have a slot in the back where you can adjust the dial. Use the screwdriver to turn it until it reads 75%. Once you have the correct reading, you are all set! Reinstall your hygrometer and start the seasoning process.