Can I Leave Tobacco In A Hot Car?

[music4cash]

Will it hurt my tobacco to leave it in a hot car for a few hours? I smoke a lot while commuting, and so I usually just leave the tin in there, but now that it is getting warmer I'm a little worried about it. Also could it hurt my pipes?

 

[deathmetal]

Depends on where you live.
In Finland? No.
In Austin? You've just stoved your tobacco.

 

[hawky454]

I wouldn't do it (I'm in Austin). I just take a backpack full of tobacco and pipes everywhere I go.

 

[jpmcwjr]

I say no to any real danger, while at the same time recommending avoiding it. (Make sense? Maybe a little.)

 

[mayfair70]

Pipes -I wouldn't worry about cobs, but leave your good briar at home.

Tobacco -What deathmetal said.

 

[mikestanley]

In my experience in Ohio, the water turns the tin into a terrarium. The water condenses onto the lid. It era orbs back into the tobacco. I'm confident it is ok.

Mike S.

 

[iamn8]

Yes, you can leave it in a hot care. What you can't do is store your stash in a geostationary orbit above one of the moons of Uranus

 

[mso489]

Limited quantities that you expect to smoke soon, like over the next few days, no harm done. It's inevitable on a car trip. Likewise with pipes, I don't think I'd take my treasured briars, but some sturdy mid-range work horse pipes and cobs, sure.

 

[deathmetal]

I keep Royal Yacht in my car all the time during summer, but those tins last only a few days. I would not do it for an extended time.

 

[onestrangeone]

I have a few inexpensive pipes that are for the jobsite, Baraccini, Aldo Velani, Etc. and have not noticed any problems from the heat, I don't think I would want to leave one of my nicer pipes in the truck for very long but I doubt that it would actually hurt anything.

I'm in Austin and yes leaving a tin in the truck would be the same as baking it. I load two pipes the morning for the drive, any extra tobacco get put in a leather pouch and is fine for a few days. A plastic baggie is a big nono!

 

[newbroom]

You can leave Captain Black in your car and not worry about it getting too dry.

I worry (heh heh) about cobs in a hot car because they're glued together.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Leave sealed Virginia tins on your dash for a few days and let them bake. Open afterwards and smoke. You're welcome. :wink:

 

[reniaeats]

I wouldn't leave a briar pipe or tobacco in my car during the summer, but I'm in Florida where the temperature inside the car can reach 120 during the summer and the humidity is basically like walking around in a sauna every day from June through September. We see issues with mailing certain things in July and August, so a car has to be a no-no in a hot and humid climate.
In more mild weather, you're fine.
Just keep in mind that the heat amplifies the smell too. Put a little tobacco in your pouch, leave it in the car at even 80 degrees and when you come back it's going to be pretty overwhelming. A smell that you love can become cloying at that level.
At times like these I'm glad to be female, a purse comes in mighty handy. :puffpipe:

 

[deathmetal]

We see issues with mailing certain things in July and August

Can you tell us more? I wish more online merchants noticed this, especially in regards to the destination area.

At times like these I'm glad to be female

As opposed to other times?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I leave pipes (nicest Beckers to beaters) in my car in the Alabama heat all the time. I'm not sure what the terrible thing is that is supposed to happen to them, but it hasn't happened yet. And, tobacco, why keeping it in the heat makes it awesome!!! I sometimes will keep a tin of Erinmore Flake on my dash for a few days on purpose. YMMV

 

[deathmetal]

I wouldn't worry about the pipes. Tobacco, maybe... it depends on how long it's there, and the moisture content of it relative to the atmosphere.

 

[michaelmirza]

My concern with the pipes would be the stems. Depending on the material, they could get soft and lose shape.

 

[ssjones]

I think it depends on the packaging. Tins seem to be OK. Once I left a couple of bags of bulk in the trunk of my car in the Maryland summer (90 degrees plus). That baked it to trash.

 

[reniaeats]

deathmetal, regarding mailing in the hot weather: We've seen issues with anything glued going between hot climates. Usually things going north are fine, but Florida to Texas or South America, for instance, can be an issue. Also, occasionally you will see some issues with stem fit after a particularly hot trip. It doesn't happen often, but it does happen and it's always hot humid climate-to-hot humid climate combined with longer-than-average shipping times (ex. over a long weekend, like 4th of July).
If a few days in a hot UPS/Fed Ex truck can cause a problem, then a few days in a hot car could too. Again, it doesn't happen often. I guess it's possible that it happens because of other issues with the pipe and the heat/humidity just exposes the issues, but I wouldn't risk it with a pipe I really love.

 

[reniaeats]

Oh, and tobacco in tins is probably fine. It's tobacco in plastic of any sort I would worry about. Southern summers will start to melt the plastic a bit and that's not great for your favorite blend or your health. That's why you're not supposed to drink out of a plastic water bottle after it's been left in the heat.
Anyone else here ever have your favorite cassette tape ruined by the heat, back-in-the-day? I lost my favorite Nirvana tape to a hot car when I was around 12. Never left another plastic anything baking in the Florida heat after that.