Humidity Disks

[CliftonD87]

Hey guys,

So I am looking at adding a humidity disk to my mason jars that have some tobacco I bought from a local B&M, generally his stuff is spot on but today I got quite a few that were really dry. I plan to say something next time I am in there but the main question I have is, are these humidity disks releasing the correct moisture or should I keep a close eye on the jars they are in and remove when they are to desired wetness?

 

[yanoJL]

FYI: There is a pretty informative thread (and article) dedicated to rehydrating dry tobacco:

How to Re-Hydrate Pipe Tobacco :: Pipe Tobacco Discussion

Here is an article that I wrote awhile ago that shows a few different methods of re-hydrating pipe tobacco: How to Rehydrate Pipe Tobacco

pipesmagazine.com

 

[Wet Dottle]

The disks work fine for that purpose. When needed, I use 2 disks for 2 to 4 oz of tobacco. They work slowly, but slow is good. Put the tobacco in a jar or other container that you can close shut and place the disks on top. I like to use a little of tin foil just to prevent the disks from touching the tobacco directly, like a little dish. Then take a look every couple of days. Depending on how much tobacco and how dry it is, the disks may have to be rewetted. It may take a week or more. Once the tobacco is good, remove the disks and enjoy. If the tobacco becomes dry with time, just add a disk to keep it good.

 

[OzPiper]

You can use Boveda packs which will take the guesswork out
The packs will rehydrate if the tobacco is too dry or absorb XS water is too wet

 

[Peterson314]

I have a medicine dropper bottle with distilled water near my pipe stash. If my tobacco is too dry, I'll drop four drops into my jar (half-pint jars/2-oz tobacco) and check the next day. If it's still too dry, I'll drop in four more drops and check the next day. As far as I can remember, I've never needed more than eight drops.

 

[Doctor Chopper]

You can use Boveda packs which will take the guesswork out
The packs will rehydrate if the tobacco is too dry or absorb XS water is too wet

Have you used Boveda packs? I would think that they keep the moisture level too high for pipe tobacco. Am I wrong?

 

[OzPiper]

Have you used Boveda packs? I would think that they keep the moisture level too high for pipe tobacco. Am I wrong?

Boveda packs come in varying degrees of humidity

I have not had any need to rehydrate or humidify my pipe tobacco. They seem to be fine in their tins or jars at ambient humidity

I keep a stash of cigars and like to keep them at 65%
- 70% humidity for long term storage

 

[Doctor Chopper]

Boveda packs come in varying degrees of humidity

I have not had any need to rehydrate or humidify my pipe tobacco. They seem to be fine in their tins or jars at ambient humidity

I keep a stash of cigars and like to keep them at 65%
- 70% humidity for long term storage

I use them for my cigars as well, but I don't want to keep my pipe tobacco as humid as a cigar.

 

[AJL67]

I bought a $5 misting bottle off amazon, filled it with distilled water, spread the tobacco out on a cookie sheet, gave it a fine mist, mixed it all up, put it back in the jar and now it's as good as new. YMMV

 

[AJL67]

Then again i just saw that there are people bidding hundreds of dollars on esoterica blends from "the 90s" from an estate sale that are admittedly "bone dry" according to the seller, jesus there is one born every minute.

 

[jpmcwjr]

In place of a disk, you can wet some shards of pottery, drop them straight in, and keep testing the moisture.

 

[RustiePyles CPG]

FYI, humidiscs do not come pre moistened. You have to
Soak them in water.

 

[cersono]

It's a good idea to disinfect the disk thoroughly between moving it from jar to jar. Once, I transplanted a mold infection with it from a problem moldy batch to two other jars. Since the disk is wet, it's very succeptible to mold infection.

Since then, I don't use disks, I put a small vial of Distilled water into the jar I need to rehydrate, then check it often and remove it when the moisture level is right.

 

[shermnatman]

Just as Brother @rustiepyles posted, you must hydrate these style discs.

It is imperative that you use Distilled Water - as opposed to Tap Water - especially if you plan to store for sometime. I made this mistake when I first started using these style discs, and mold was the result.

- Sherm 'No Mold' Natman

 

[bullet08]

Typical newspaper stand in NYC would put wet rag on top of cigars in the morning for 30 min or so to keep 'em hydrated. I don't suggest that for your pipe tobacco.

 

[Zeno Marx]

Every X-mas, I seem to get something with a small tin of mints or candies or something. I wash them, poke a few holes in the top, and put a couple of damp squares of toilet paper in them. I use discs too, but I actually prefer these tins. Keep monitoring the tobacco. It's best not not yo-yo from too little to too much to just right etc.

 

[haebar]

For those of you that use the disks, how do you go about disinfecting them to prevent transmitting mold from one jar to another?

 

[Wet Dottle]

For those of you that use the disks, how do you go about disinfecting them to prevent transmitting mold from one jar to another?

I never disinfected mine and never had mold, but I live in Colorado, which has a dry climate. Just dunk them in the sink for one minute or so and they're ready to go. Don't put them in direct contact with the tobacco, use something to act like a little dish (I use aluminum foil) and put the disks on top of it. Never had problems with this method.

 

[Peterson314]

For those of you that use the disks, how do you go about disinfecting them to prevent transmitting mold from one jar to another?

I use distilled water to rehydrate my cigar disks, and I haven't seen a problem. If you have the plastic ones, you can throw them in the microwave for 10 seconds to kill anything.

 

[Homer]

I have 65% Bovedas in my cigar humidor in summer and 69% in winter. I have 55% bovedas for pipe tobacco if I need to rehydrate.