If you are relatively new to cigars, I would suggest two things. Start with a cooler!
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I say this never owning one, but building sophisticated controlled humidors as a sideline. Simpler is better, if your ambient supports your tastes and desires as a 'humidor administrator.' You can always undo cooler project without much loss.
The next comes to analyzing your environment. One must assess how ones own ambient is going to affect your cigars and your smoking experience. If you don't have a position or beliefs today, I say why force your own hand? Unless you have a great enough understanding of cigars and ambients to know that you will be facing problems, especially ones that can cost you your cigars, or prevent you from smoking in months where you cannot control the condition of your cigars, a decision for more complex storage my be a costly exchange for lack of knowledge.
Storage and how people store is steeped in beliefs and there are certainly ample doses of myth surrounding the subject. Take some time to learn and understand what you can expect to get for your money.
My specialty is controlled cigar microclimates. They can be costly and complex... If you need it, there is no doubting it... If you don't then the money you spend on storage can be spent on cigars instead. You don't need a backhoe to pot a plant... Needs and wants will both play roles. Understanding both is my best advice before you spend the money.
Best of luck on your search! -the Pig
12 hours ago, BellevilleMXZ said:With the bad influence this place is , I'm thinking of a decent size humidor. Something in the size of a Whynter 251 . Now that said, is something like this decent? I have thought of building/repurposing an old ice box etc, but really don't want to spend the time I guess. So really the question is, is something like the above a decent humidor? I really don't want to use a cooler, etc, as I don't think the temp will be consistent enough in my house.
While I'm not going to debate whether to use a cooler or winedor I will tell you that you will be overpaying for any of the pre-set units that come with cedar tray/shelves. FOH influence will soon have you stocking that thing to the max. Trust me it will.... and you'll get plenty of spanish cedar with the boxes.
You'll wind up using just 1 shelf (whether the stainless that comes with it or finding a spanish cedar one) and maybe a small tray or 2 for singles ($16 each Amazon). The rest of that thing will be maxed out with 18-22 boxes.
For a winedor, look into the Newair 281 (I have 2 of them and lots here have them too) which was on sale recently for about $160 shipped in USA. Air-N-Water does ship to Canada but I don't know the extra $$. They have many different "scratch/dent" models for under $180 (that's with Free Delivery to USA so work out a deal for Canada after you tell them to start by re-pricing the unit after deducting for the free USA shipping!)
For a regular cooler Walmart has Coleman Xtreme/Marine 120/150 qt coolers for under $80.
Good luck on your journey to Camp Winnipesaukee.............
To the OP, great advice given above. Explore and develop your interests and knowledge, then refine and work from there as you hone in on your hobby. There is much to learn about, but far too many of us are absorbed and engrossed with perfect climate control - a habit that can be costly and extremely time consuming. Depending on your obsession, it can develop into a major preoccupation, or simply a minor concern in the greater context of enjoying cigars. Jumping in too soon without first discerning how deep you want to dive into your hobby could be wasteful and more expensive than you ever bargained.
It may be important to note that most of the concern about temperature control is driven out of fear of cigar beetles. Is this why you're considering a temperature controlled humidor? If so, note that in nearly 25 years of collecting cigars I've only ever seen one in my humidor and it came from a questionable non-Cuban source. There are far cheaper and more practical means to attain peace of mind and prevent an outbreak. Take it from a seasoned collector with Haier wineador that has been unplugged for 15 years, you don't need temperature control to enjoy cigars. Focus on the best means to keep your humidification stable, and consistent throughout your humidor. Then later when you have some experience sampling cigars are various humidity levels you can decide if you want to dive deeper into the world of sophisticated temperature and humidity control.
To @Realmikemeadows, I have worked on my beer fridge and have replaced most things that can go wrong in modern fridges. At $30 that fridge is a steal, even if it needs a new compressor, but chances are very likely that it is something much less involved. They are very simple devices. Often, if a fridge won't cool it is likely a relay/capacitor switch for triggering the compressor, or a temperature sensor. In rarer cases it could be the logic board. Once you have it you can test for these things relatively easy, and you will find a lot of content on the Internet to diagnose your specific model.
Honestly, for $30 I would buy that and leave it unplugged. It will make a great humidor without the cooling.
Just my .02, I was at the same fork in the road as your are currently at BellevilleMXZ. I was concerned because I have my thermostat programmed to raise/lower the temp in my home when we are not there. After basically getting the same replies as you have, I decided to go for the cooler and heartfelt beads. I am very glad I did, at this point of my collecting I much rather be spending the money on growing my collection. After doing some research on coolers and the insulation testing they do (ex: how long the cooler will keep ice) I have been able to keep a rock steady temp and humidity in mine. If you are extremely worried about high temps, you can get a marine cooler which is rated to hold temperatures for a longer time. My reasoning for the cooler was if I ever decided to get a huge cabinet or expensive automated system (like pigfish's systems) you are not out a huge amount <$50 USD and you can always use it for overflow!
Anyways good luck on your choice, you can't go wrong with either!
Happy smoking and long ashes to you!
If there is a humidor-maker to the stars, it’s probably Daniel Marshall. Self-taught with a talent for wood-working, the 58-year-old has been crafting humidors out of California for nearly four decades and does not take the word “craft” lightly. But he’s been equally attentive to both the quality of his products and the image of his brand as a luxury good. His celebrity clientele, penchant for exotic woods and respect among cigar connoisseurs has made him one of the top names in humidor production. Managing editor Greg Mottola talked to Marshall and discussed the challenges of making a humidor functional, beautiful and, at the same time, affordable.
MOTTOLA: Let’s get right down to it Danny, you’re one of the top names in desktop humidors and I don’t think anybody knowledgeable is going to argue that. But luxury goods are expensive and it’s sometimes tough to get people to part with their money. How do you convince cigar lovers that your humidors are better than the cheap stuff made in China?
MARSHALL: One word: Trust.
Q: Trust in what? The name? The reputation?
A: Trust that the humidor will stand the test of time. Trust that we use the best woods, best materials available and best workmanship. That their precious cigars will be taken care of in a Daniel Marshal humidor, age properly and become worth more in value and pleasure over time.
Q: There are some people who don’t think a humidor at any price is worth the investment. What do you say to someone who insists that a Tupperware full of Humidipaks is as good as anything?
A: I would love them to take this challenge. Blind taste a fine cigar that has been in a plastic container for two months and blind test a fine cigar that has been in a Daniel Marshall humidor for two months. This way they can taste the difference.
Q: Someone would have to have access to one of your humidors to do that, wouldn’t they?
A: What we offer to your readers now is this: Get two of the same brand and size cigars purchased at the same time and send us one of those cigars. We will then age it in one of our humidors for two months. We will pay the postage for the cigar to be sent from your reader to us. After two months, we will send the cigar back and they can then remove the cigar from their plastic box, do the taste test and see for themselves.
Q: You mean like taking the Pepsi Challenge?
A: If they like the taste of the one that was aged in my humidor, we will offer them a special Daniel Marshall Campfire Club price on a humidor. We are big believers in box aging and know what happens to a cigar when time is added to it on top of resting and aging in a Daniel Marshall humidor.
Q: Your humidors are all constructed of a cedar base, right?
A: Correct. Spanish Brazilian cedar. This is the one and only best cedar to use. We get the widest, oil-free or sap-free cedar.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website Cigar humidor factory.
Q: But it’s the rare-wood finishes that really make the box stand out. I imagine the quality of your materials is crucial.
A: Materials are everything. Chefs cannot make food that is beyond food without the best materials.
Q: Is it difficult to source the materials?
A: Yes, however as with everything in life, it’s who you know and how long you know them. We pay top price for all our raw materials, and insist on only the best. The suppliers are proud to work with us. They know who we are.
Q: You have stated in the past that affordability was very important, but aren’t the best materials expensive by nature? How can you use top materials yet keep it affordable?
A: By maintaining a team that loves what they do and keeping our margins as tight to the bone as possible. No one wants to overpay for a brand. We have been told we should raise our pricing significantly and I have refused. I want our humidors to be approachable as anyone who invests in one of our humidors knows that it will last lifetimes and that they can trust it to perform decade in and decade out. Highest value at a fair price is a hallmark of our brand.
Q: What’s the price range of your humidors, from the cheapest to the most expensive one you’ve ever produced?
A: A $45 leather cigar case that the Gianni Versace factory in Milano made for us to a 14 kt gold humidor that we sold for $500,000.
Q: What about something in between?
A: Our Precious Wood collection. It’s our top-selling collection. The bestsellers range in the 100 to 165 cigar capacity sizes.
Q: How much do they cost?
A: $495 to $995.
Q: That’s seems pretty reasonable considering the quality and rarity of your boxes. As a top name in this arena, naturally, you are compared to Elie Bleu. What do you think about the comparison?
A: I have deep respect and honor for all of the brands that have persisted throughout the decades. Elie Bleu, Michel Perrenoud, Davidoff I consider good colleagues and friends. I believe we all bring to the collector something different.
Q: They have the advantage of being made in Europe, the world’s cradle of luxury goods, but you have the advantage of being made in the U.S.A.
A: Yes, in Santa Ana, California.
Q: At your own factory?
A: Yes. We moved there [from the first factory] 25 years ago.
Q: Were you a carpenter by trade before entering this business?
A: No. A self-taught dreamer. If I could see it in my mind, I could carve, cut and create it in wood. I had no formal training or trade school. Just books with a spirit of quest for quality and creating the best I could imagine.
Q: Tell me about the first cigar accessory you ever made.
A: I made it as a gift for my girlfriend’s grandfather, Mr. Joseph D. Bain, in . It was a unique design carved out of teak wood that held three of his favorite cigars.
Q: That’s a creative way to score points with your girlfriend.
A: It was a thank-you gift for always being interested and inspirational in my dream to build a sailboat and sail around the world. I was building a Westsail 32. I bought the hull and deck and had to complete the interior and melt 7,000 pounds of lead for the ballast in the keel.
Q: Then, clearly, you had some skill in woodworking. How did you transition that into a humidor business?
A: Mr. Joe Bain saw my future, or potential future, as all visionaries can see. When he looked at the cigar case I made him, he said to me: “This is really nice. Dunhill would buy it.”
Q: That’s an encouraging vote of confidence. I guess you took it to heart.
A: I listened to him and he was right. Dunhill did buy the three-cigar case and asked me if I could make humidors. I responded to the buyer: “Of course I can make humidors! What’s a humidor?” [Laughs]
Q: Weren’t you a cigar smoker?
A: No, I had no idea what a cigar was, much less a humidor. But he did not miss a beat and brought me a French-made Dunhill humidor to replicate.
Q: So, Dunhill was your first official customer?
A: Yes, Alfred Dunhill of London.
Q: Were you working out of your home at that point?
A: My garage, yes. We set up the factory after I received a $250,000 purchase order from Alfred Dunhill to make their humidors for the USA. The first factory was in Costa Mesa.
Q: Who else was making high-end humidors in the ’80s? The market must have been pretty small.
A: Tiny. There were only two in the world. Michel Perrenoud of Switzerland and Elie Bleu of Paris. Alain Berda was the original owner when I began. Prior to Cigar Aficionado, there was only Dunhill and Nat Sherman offering higher-quality humidors [for sale at retail].
Q: The cigar market in general was pretty dead in the ’80s. When did things really pick up for you?
A: We were always busy with creating jewelry boxes, complete desk set collections, clocks, chests for Dunhill, Tiffany, Hermés, but the humidor division of our company took off when Marvin Shanken started Cigar Aficionado and the famous Big Smoke events.
Q: Well, the magazine came out in . Big Smokes started in ’95, so that would be Boom time.
A: Once the magazine was published, we were able to build our brand name, and I’m confident everyone in the cigar world will tell you the same thing.
Q: Yes, I’ve heard that a lot. But exhibitors at Big Smokes give away cigars. You weren’t giving away humidors, were you?
A: No. Big Smokes allowed us to meet and connect with the readers. Prior to the magazine I did mostly private labels.
Q: Let’s get back to the nuts and bolts of humidors. How difficult is it to make a humidor that functions properly and consistently?
A: There are over 100 individual steps the humidor must live through and many more quality standards that have to be met by the time a Daniel Marshall humidor comes off the final QC table. Any one of those steps is critical to make a proper humidor. We love what we do, so we don’t know “difficult.” But it’s challenging due to weather changes, humidity swings, veneer suppliers spraying the veneer with a chemical that will make the wood flat. Our trademark “ Coat” finish will not adhere to any veneer that has been treated this way. So, yes, there are challenges. However, we keep pushing and keep reminding all our raw wood suppliers to never forget that we demand the best.
Q: There’s conflicting advice out there about seasoning your humidor. Some say to actually dab the humidor walls with a wet sponge. Does one need to season a Daniel Marshall humidor before it maintains steady RH?
A: Never wipe a Daniel Marshall down with water and no need for any seasoning or to buy any seasoning kits sold by other companies. Save your money for cigars. We spend a lot of time sanding the cedar super smooth. Wiping with water lifts the grain of the wood, making it rough, defeating the purpose of our labor. Our time-tested humidification system supplies ample humidity from day one.
Q: What type of humidification system is that?
A: We have two humidification systems. One tried-and-true system of distilled water that provides and allows humidity to be adjusted to suit the taste of the cigar collector. The other is a disposable humidity stabilizer for those collectors who want more carefree maintenance. Place in the stabilizer in the same sliding wood cover that houses the original model humidifier and you are good for 60 days until they have to be replaced.
Q: How about analog hygrometers vs. digital?
A: Analog has much more error. As far as the digital hygrometers, they are accurate within 10 percent which is OK, as we recommend to use them only as a reference point. Note what it reads when your cigar feels, draws and tastes the way you want it and that’s the sweet spot range you can target.
Q: Do you have a personal favorite humidor that you’ve made or make?
A: It would be the humidor that has the most wow factor and that raises the most money for vital international causes. Some of my personal favorites would be those that I made in collaboration with [Arnold] Schwarzenegger over the past 26 years. [Schwarzenegger] and I are working on two very historic and revolutionary humidors right now that we are confident will be huge successes at auction.
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