Oxygen Adsorbers for Long-Term Storage. Yes or No?

[greatdane]

Should oxygen absorbers be used with Mylar cellaring? I have read conflicting information.

I only smoke Burley or Burley/Cav blends. Not looking to age tobacco, just preserve taste/longevity.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

If you are not interested in aging your tobacco, then it doesn't matter, unnecessary but...

For aging, the tobacco needs oxygen to fuel the enzymes till it is depleted, then a new set of enzymes take over.

 

[sablebrush52]

Are you trying to slow down the aging process? Then removing oxygen will help, according to an article on the GL Pease site.

Burley doesn’t change all that much anyway.

 

[telescopes]

No

 

[greeneyes]

If you're putting tins that could potentially rust (oxidize) from the outside, inside mylar, then yes. At least, I have.

 

[Brad H]

I kept some Mylar bags (unopened) in another Mylar bag that I tossed some O2 absorbers in.
Will let you know the results in 10 years.

Now the loose bulk, no O2 absorbers added when sealing them in Mylar. However I did vacuum seal the Mylar bags with loose.

 

[pantsBoots]

Sounds like you need to experiment. The effects of aerobic vs. anaerobic aging are largely unknown. Could be one produced better results than the other, could be both play an important role, could be a wash with no noticeable change.

Just because it's "how it's always been done," doesn't mean O2 absorbers are bad or play no significant role. Who knows?

 

[Brad H]

I will go with @woodsroad in the thought process of storing what I want to smoke for later, any added age is just a bonus.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I haven't tried it so I can't offer an experienced based opinion. From most everything I've read, oxygen is needed as part of the aging process. The aged tobacco I smoke from my cellar every day seems to support that theory. If I wanted to "preserve" my tobacco for 20 + years, I suppose I would consider it. But not likely.