Maintaining and Re-Hydrating

[kaitlyn3837]

I have read a few posts about this but I was curious about what other people are doing. I have started using small boveda packs that come in boxes of cigars to maintain my tobacco humidity when I can't get to it before it will dry out. I have used them in jars and in ziploc bags too. Have any of you tried the Boveda packets or water pillows?

Also, I have a bad habit of starting a tin or just leaving an ounce of bulk for too long. I end up with a lot of dried out tobacco. Have any of you tried using the Boveda packets to rehydrate tobacco? I have seen multiple people say that they use distilled water and a paper towel over the tobacco. It is certainly a tried and true method. I have used that method too. But I'm hoping the Boveda packs will be a simple, no-mess, convenient way to get them back up and smoke-able.

I will update after a couple days on my findings in regards to rehydrating with Boveda packs!

 

[Ozark Wizard]

I haven't tried those, but I do use those disc thingies(spelling?) and they seem to do the trick.

 

[DrumsAndBeer]

Never used the Boveda's with my pipe tobacco. I am firmly in the camp of re-hydrating tobacco in small increments using distilled water on a paper towel. The paper towel should be damp, not sopping wet and don't let it touch the tobacco in the process.

This way I know what I am putting into my tobacco. I have never been able to get a straight answer on what Boveda uses in their packs, so I have no use for them, plus they're spendy

 

[Richard Burley]

Good question, Kaitlyn. A definitive answer would be useful, methinks. Seems like they would be more for maintenance than re-hydrating, if I understand the way they work.

 

[kaitlyn3837]

Never used the Boveda's with my pipe tobacco. I am firmly in the camp of re-hydrating tobacco in small increments using distilled water on a paper towel. The paper towel should be damp, not sopping wet and don't let it touch the tobacco in the process.

This way I know what I am putting into my tobacco. I have never been able to get a straight answer on what Boveda uses in their packs, so I have no use for them, plus they're spendy

They use a balance of salts with water. Different salts together maintain different humidity levels like 68%, 69%, 72% etc. This also allows for them to be absorb humidity if it exceeds that specific level.

They are spendy for some people but I get them free from cigar boxes that I open for the shop. Many cigar companies are using them to maintain the humidity level in the cigar boxes when in transport. Pretty cool stuff.

 

[kaitlyn3837]

Good question, Kaitlyn. A definitive answer would be useful, methinks. Seems like they would be more for maintenance than re-hydrating, if I understand the way they work.

Yeah, I was thinking that too. I might just use them to maintain and the distilled water method for re-hydrating.

 

[Lonecoyote]

The paper towel works well as mentioned prior, especially if your tobacco is super dry. To maintain blends that are not jarred but are in tobacco humidors I use natural terracotta stone. I soak the stone in distilled water for 4 minutes then place in the humidor. Worked well for me for years. Re-soak every 2 weeks. Here is a picture of the stones I purchase on eBay. They last a lifetime if not dropped. Hope this helps you.

KEEP ON PUFFING!!!

 

[idbowman]

Never used the Boveda's with my pipe tobacco. I am firmly in the camp of re-hydrating tobacco in small increments using distilled water on a paper towel. The paper towel should be damp, not sopping wet and don't let it touch the tobacco in the process.

Same.

And, of course, if it's dry and you know you won't smoke it very often, get it rehydrated (as above, IMO), the move it to a mason jar.

 

[Richard Burley]

Open tins go through four stages with me: #1--way too moist, #2--moist, #3--just right, and #4--way too dry. When I get to the last, I have taken to exhaling the last molecule of air in my lungs into the open can, and then slapping the lid on as quickly as possible. Works with glass containers also, but with those you can actually see the condensation form on the glass. Works fairly well, but seems a bit gross. What if I've been eating onions or garlic, or am suffering from terminal TB? Hate to get blood in my 'baccy. Seems odd that nobody thought of using these before now for maintaining pipe tobacco. Or am I just out of the loop?

 

[Stick]

Never used the Boveda's with my pipe tobacco. I am firmly in the camp of re-hydrating tobacco in small increments using distilled water on a paper towel. The paper towel should be damp, not sopping wet and don't let it touch the tobacco in the process.

Same.  

And, of course, if it's dry and you know you won't smoke it very often, get it rehydrated (as above, IMO), the move it to a mason jar.

+2. The mason jars, or kilners as we call them here in Blighty, have made a huge difference for my 'baccy storage. As yet, once the 'baccy has gone into a jar, I've not had to rehydrate again. Highly recommended. If you goodly folks across the Pond have Ikea (perish the thought), they have very cheap own brand jobbers that come in different sizes. Well worth a look.

 

[Brewdude]

I am firmly in the camp of re-hydrating tobacco in small increments using distilled water on a paper towel. The paper towel should be damp, not sopping wet and don't let it touch the tobacco in the process.

This is basically what I've done on the rare occasion any 'baccy needs re-hydrating. Except I use a clean white washcloth that hasn't had any perfumed fabric softener.

I leave it over the bowl of 'baccy for a couple hrs, and then check it through touch. I pretty much know the sweet spot by feel. Rarely, it requires another treatment on a separate occasion if I don't have the time to monitor it that particular day.

And I'm careful to spread the 'baccy in a rather thin layer around the bowl to increase the potential for absorption. Works for me anyways.

HTH


Cheers,

RR

 

[KevinM]

I'm hoping the Boveda packs will be a simple, no-mess, convenient way to get them back up and smoke-able.

They may well work, but the strategy described seems counter to the modus operandi of many pipers. I like the little Atmos disks for small quantities of dry tobacco, and for a direct, effective approach I'd say it's hard to beat a little distilled water in a spritz bottle. The trick is to NOT directly spray the tobacco, but to lightly spray above it and allow the water to descend on the tobak like a light morning dew. Easy Peasy. But your willingness to share your Boveda experiment's result is admirable.

 

[kaitlyn3837]

After an evening with two of the small Boveda 69% packs in a bag of some Virginia Creme, I can tell a difference in the humidity level for sure. It still isn't where I want it too be, so with this batch I am going to switch back over to the distilled water method... Because I'm impatient!

BUT I do know that the humidity packs work well in maintaining humidity for my traveling tobaccos. The few ounces I keep with me everyday that travel to and from work have been successfully maintained this way.

I have a couple other ounces that were dry that I am using Boveda packs on because I'm not as impatient to smoke those blends LOL. Will update again after a couple days have passed to see if there is a larger increase in the moisture of the tobaccos.

 

[nismo270r]

A good friend of mine uses the saucer part of mini terracotta pots. They work just like the little tobacco leaf shaped humidifiers, just a whole lot cheaper. They saucers are probably around the size of a half dollar piece or so, maybe smaller.

I'll see if I can find out where she gets them from and post it up.

 

[Richard Burley]

...I have never been able to get a straight answer on what Boveda uses in their packs, so I have no use for them, plus they're spendy

But not anywhere near as spendy as ruining cigars by drying out, overhydration, or mold--but I'm admittedly a bit careless. The Material Safety Data Sheets are available on Boveda's site, downloadable as a PDF. Sodium chloride, aluminum chloride, and guar gum, if memory serves. Toxicity and carcinogenic risk zip. Seem like a great product to me. Think I'll try them

 

[standaman]

I learned this solution from an article written by Greg Pease. You need to find a plastic container with a sealed lid like the type you'd get with a take out order of pasta or wings (about ten inches across with a black plastic bottom and a clear lid) and a smaller ceramic or glass shallow bowl with some weight to it, that fits inside the larger container, with maybe an inch of space left around the bowl, not touching the sides. Placing the heavier bowl inside, fill the container with enough water (tap will do) to come up about half way up the sides of the bowl. You fill the bowl with your dry tobacco and pop the lid on. The idea is to never let water touch the leaf directly. Only the water VAPOR will humidify the tobacco (much like a Ban Marie is used for baking custard deserts for all you bakers out there). This can take a day or two in the warmer months, or a week or more in the winter. Colder ambient temperatures will create less vapor. But the idea is to SLOWLY hydrate, and not to over hydrate the leaf. Check it daily, fluffing and turning the tobacco each time. It works like a charm. The trick is finding the right container and bowl. The bowl needs weight to fight the buoyancy that the water will produce. A light bowl will float, raising the bowl to the lid of the container and blocking the vapor from touching the leaf.
For a simple solution to hydrate an individual tin, I take a piece of tin foil and fold it into a square small enough to fit in the tin. Further folding the corners of the square foil to form a bowl shape, I take a clean piece of paper towel or paper napkin and again fold it into a smaller square to fit inside the foil bowl. Simply wet the paper and drop it into the dry tin. I usually press down the center of the pile of tobacco to form a divot that can support the foil bowl, to keep the water in the paper, and only vapor hydrating the tobacco. Check it daily and look for signs of mold on the white paper. If any spots show up, simply throw out the paper and fold up a fresh new one.
I hope these help you as much as they've helped me. There's no such thing as too dry tobacco. Done right, this can be done as often as you desire. Avoid quick solutions. Think SLOW and VAPOR. By the way, the container method can be modified for cigars. Simply use a rectangular container and bowl. You can do as much as a half dozen or so cigars at a time, depending on their size.

Happy Smoking, Stan Nigro