6 Cigar Humidification Methods

Now that you have a solid comprehension of what a hygrometer does and everything can happen if your humidity is too high or too low, let's discuss how to actually control the humidity in your humidor. Regrettably, you can't just use a moist paper towel in a ziplock bag...

1. The Hockey Puck Humidification Method
The unofficial hockey puck method was my very first means to control the humidity in my humidor and boy  was it trying. This is the"puck" which is included with humidors most of the time and requires one to boil it into propylene glycol. I found it for a little bit of a guessing game because you need to make sure that your"puck" doesn't run out of juice. It had been mainly stressful since I used the crummy free version from my humidor so results may vary. I discovered I needed to soak the puck every 15 days or so with a humidor of 30 cigars.   I only had to re-soak every 30-45 days and found it to be   more consistent. Soaking a humidor puck is quite easy. It takes approximately 30 minutes and you just purchase the propylene glycol separately. This remedy is odorless and just replaces water as a more pure form of moisture. Using tap water can create problems due to chlorine or other chemicals, and distilled water won't stay moist provided that propylene glycol.

2. The Tubes or Mini Jars Cigar Humidification Method
Xikar and Drymistat make very easy to use products which you may merely open and pop it in a humidor such as this 
whynter arc-14s. These have a much more controlled way of managing humidity than the puck technique. The only bad thing is   you have to replace these completely most of the time every 3-6 months completely. I don't recommend trying to"re-soak" them with the propylene glycol. The attractiveness of these, especially the tubes  is that they don't take up much space in your humidor. But, depending on how big the jar arrangement will work better:

3. The Boveda Packs Cigar Humidification Method
Similar to the tubes or jar from Xikar and Drymistat, you can go with a very controlled system of Boveda humidity packs. These are my favorite cigar humidification method and ones that I use for my tupperdor today. But they can err a little on the large side concerning humidity if you use them at a tupperdor. I'd like to go a few percentages lower in the desired humidity as a result if you have a tupperdor.   Otherwise they do a fantastic job of absorbing humidity whether it's too high and increasing if it is too low. Once your pack is stiff, you then just throw it off. That having been said, many claim to be able to recharge these quite easily simply by soaking them for a few days after they become stiff. Although this may be a terrific way to save money, the recharged packs definitely will not be as precise as a first. To find out more about the way to recharge, take a look at this YouTube tutorial. For me personally, I really don't recharge because   I'm going to spend hundreds of bucks on cigars, I do not want to cut any corners to save a few dollars on Boveda packs.

4. The Heartfelt Beads Humidification Method
Heartfelt beads are a common humidity method that many recommend across cigar forums. This provider revolves round these beads and they have a lot of diehard followers to their product. These are popular with larger humidors or even wineadors. These are probably one of the costlier options but continue forever. They do require spraying of   water after two or week though so you have to abide by a program. This method is somewhat more geared towards the   advanced cigar collectors. Typically, cigar collectors will have a pouch of these beads or a layer at the bottom of their wineador.

5. The Electric Cigar Humidification Method
There is nothing better than the set it and forget of a electric humidifier, particularly in the event that you have a big or valuable collection. These are a bit expensive compared to the other options such as 
electric cigar humidor but there is the benefit of very little upkeep. The components also work great if plugged   -- so you'll be required to run a flat cord to the exterior of your humidor. However some of these units have some really cool features like wi-fi capacities and can humidify up to 1,000 cigars! (That could be a good deal of Boveda packs...) You do need to replace the cartridge every 6 -- 12 weeks but it's comparatively inexpensive.

6. The Kitty Litter Cigar Humidification Method
For a larger wineador setup, many recommend kitty litter as a viable choice to control humidity. I've personally never done this but many swear by it. This is a very similar technique to the Heartfelt beads strategy outlined above. The crucial thing is to get a kitty litter without a odor and spray on distilled water every two to three weeks as required. I have seen very positive testimonials out of Exquisicat Crystals with very low dust nor scent.