Do it right from the start: seasoning your humidor

So you just ordered or received a humidor... now what?

One of the best things you can do when you get a humidor is to season it the correct way, before you put any cigars in. "Seasoning your humidor" means using humidifiers to prep your humidor to keep your stogies at the correct humidification levels.

If you don't properly season your humidor, you may find that it is very difficult to keep the cigars properly humidified even when you use the right humidifiers afterward (more about that below). If you do season your humidor correctly, it will be very easy to maintain the right humidification levels for your cigars.

So how do you season your humidor? There are a few different methods that are widely used; first of all, you can manually season your humidor; you can use specially designed seasoning wipes; and you can use seasoning pillows that do the work for you.

Manual seasoning

To manually season your humidor, you will need a clean unscented piece of cloth of sponge and some distilled water (NOT tap water). This is the cheapest humidification method but not necessarily the easiest or the best - if you're entirely new to cigars, you may want to use one of the methods below. Still, we'll describe this manual method here.

  • First, dampen the sponge or cloth and wipe down the interior of your humidor. Don't oversaturate it - that will only damage the cedar lining of your humidor.
  • Then, place the wet piece of cloth or sponge on some cellophane or something else to make sure it doesn't touch the wood, and put the sponge in the humidor. Close the lid and do not re-open it for at least 24 hours.
  • After the 24 hours (or more) have passed, open the humidor and repeat the procedure. However, instead of placing the sponge back inside, instead fill your humidifier as per the directions and close the lid - and then wait another 24 hours.
  • After this, your humidor should be ready to use. Check your hygrometer to make sure your humdification is around 70%, and if it is, you're ready to store your cigars. If the percentage is too low, repeat the humidification process.

Using seasoning wipes

Another cheap but more reliable method is to use special seasoning wipes. These pre-soaked wipes are formulated to prep your humidor (for usually up to 200 cigars) correctly and quickly. Using the wipes is simple: wipe down your humidor with them, close the lid and wait 24 hours, then repeat this procedure, and you're ready to store your cigars.

The big advantage of using these wipes is that you can't oversaturate (and therefore damage) your humidor. If you're interested, you can get these wipes here.

Using Boveda humidifier packages

The easiest - and most expensive - way to season your humidor is to use Boveda seasoning packages. However, this method also gives you a properly seasoned humidor without really having to lift a finger and without risk. I've used this method myself and have been very happy with end result.

So how does it work? Well, just get some Boveda 84% humidifier packages (one per 50 cigars) and place them in your unseasoned humidor. Wait 14 days, and voila, you have one perfectly seasoned humidor!

If you're wondering why it takes 14 days when the other methods take so much less time, it's because the Boveda packages release their humidification very slowly to avoid oversaturating your humidor. In other words, if you're the impatient kind (I know I usually am), this humidifier may not be your cup of tea. Then again, it does really do the job well and you may decide that it's worth the wait. (I did.)

You can usually get the Boveda 84% humidifiers at your local cigar shop, but you can also order them online, e.g. here and have them delivered to your home in a couple of days.

So which humidification method is best?

To be honest, there really is no right answer here. Ask any group of cigar smokers and you'll likely find that everyone has their own personal preference. As with most things related to cigar smoking, whatever method you prefer is the right one. If you feel unsure about whether you can do this right, go with one of the last two methods described above. If you want to do things the old-fashioned way, go ahead and use your own stuff.

Ready to learn more about keeping your humidor humidified? Click here for more about humidifiers.