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lasttango

lasttango

Part of the Furniture Now
Sep 29, 2012
875
17
Wilmington, De / Ithaca, NY
Hey friends. Forgive me for the novice questions... I have searched through the forums and internet and have some idea...
Question #1: Is really dry tobacco a bad thing? I just unsealed some daughters and ryan Rimboche SJ with Perique and it's a very dry tobacco. I smoked some and while I liked the flavor, it did burn rather hot and fast. I have some other tobaccos that have seemed to dry out from age... Are they degraded? Can/should I revive them? Are they perfect the way they are?
I guess I don't know if dryness/moisture is always/never a bad thing.

At what point do you throw tobacco away or attempt to revive it... if that's even possible.
Question #2: It seems some folks like aging tobaccos... I like the idea of buying a lot of something I like so I still have it with the Tobaccolypse occurs... do I need the tightly packed tins or are the loosely packed tins also good? I understand less air and more densely packed is better - are those loosely packed sealed tins good enough to preserve the qualities of the tobacco?
Thanks, G

 
jpmcwjr

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,739
27,336
Carmel Valley, CA
Some hours with a wet piece of terra cotta in the bag/jar will bring up the moisture. Check it every few hours as you don't want to overdo it. Do a few ounces at a time.

 
hawke

hawke

Lifer
Feb 1, 2014
1,346
4
Augusta, Ga
How is this moisture level measured? I have a good feel for what works best for me, just curious how one would measure the moisture content?
Found This

and These
Anyone ever used any of these meters? How about the cheap dampness testers for wood that painters use before applying paint?

 
hawke

hawke

Lifer
Feb 1, 2014
1,346
4
Augusta, Ga
That link of G.L. Pease spoke of how moisture is an important factor for aging tobacco. I have found that a certain amount is needed to give the optimum results.

 
jpmcwjr

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,739
27,336
Carmel Valley, CA
Hawke-
Those moisture meters might be useful for pro's, but I have found a ten buck humidity meter on Amazon that works fine for me. It measures the relative humidity in the bag or jar, but it takes some time to stabilize and give a meaningful reading.
Somewhere between 75 and 85% RH seems to work for me. Note the huge difference in the moisture content (usually in the teens) and the RH, usually well above 50%.

 
mikestanley

mikestanley

Lifer
May 10, 2009
1,698
1,126
Akron area of Ohio
In my experience, moisture of pipe tobacco is more of a feel than an RH level. That being said, I would guess the "optimum" RH is less than 75%. To calibrate your hygometer, try this. Mix a slurry of table salt and water into something like a baby food jar lid. Put the slurry into a one gallon zip lock bag along with your device and seal it so there is plenty of room in the bag. That slurry will release a 75% RH. Look at your number and adjust from there. Aireguide makes a nice unit with temp and RH.
Mike S.

 
jpmcwjr

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,739
27,336
Carmel Valley, CA
75% is at the low end of my preferred range, and for longtime smokers of relatively few blends, experience is all that's needed.
But for your experiment/calibrator, I'd need to know the proportions of salt to water, and the temperature for the test.

 
mikestanley

mikestanley

Lifer
May 10, 2009
1,698
1,126
Akron area of Ohio
Room temp. A slurry is kind of like quicksand. Not solid but not liquid. Chances are,in my experience a reading of 75 RH on a low cost hygrometer is about 15% elevated. What you see as 75 is more likely than not...not
Mike S.

 
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