On a different note, since we're talking about building a cabinet, is there any reason why you shouldn't build one out of nice cabinet grade plywood? I was thinking plywood with wood trim would be an easier route than solid wood for the main carcass. Solid wood on a cabinet is so much clamping and planing and sanding, etc.
Absolutely no reason why you couldn't build it out of plywood. I'd line it with solid spanish cedar though. You could go with 1/4 inch or so. Another thing about that guys humi, its not made of spanish cedar, its not even lined with it. I think his shelves may be.
It looks like the guy built is more for the enjoyment and satisfaction of saying "See that humi right there? I built the sucker from scratch." The cooling system he uses looks awfully complicated and a bit over the top. I mean, he says in his post that he is using the Cigar Oasis + beads to regulate the Rh, so what the heck is he doing adding all the other stuff? Also, I went to his site to look at his final steps pictures and it looks like he is further drifting away from using the beads and Oasis.
I think that if I was going to be building my own humi, I would just plan on installing an area for the Oasis and then a cage on the top and bottom for the beads, a whole lot easier and there isn't a huge chance for me to shock the absolute crap outta myself. The cabinet looks cool though. Needs drawers, maybe even some nameplates for dates or stuff like that.
ive been thinking about this thread alot in my spare time. I think i may have solved the condensation issue. its kind of a blend of a few different ideas in this thread.
the issue at hand is not just temp control but ease of upkeep as well. if the only water in the humidor is being added to the humidor as distilled then it is condensing (being distilled AGAIN) then shouldt that water be safe to reuse? and if there is a true seal on the humidor then no water is being added or taken away. so once an equilibrium is reached i should only have to add or decharge beads or empty out the condensation every now and then? i mean, the humidity CANT go up if no new water is being added to the system.... right?
so here is my 30 second sketch on a plan that could, in theory work:
if you have yet to figure it out, this is a cross section of a would be humidor. the peltier would be mounted on the wall with a removable seal, so if it should fail i can replace it with another. under the cold side of the heat pump (inside the humidor) there would be a collection trough for condensation. this would have a tube that runs down to the reservoir of an oasis that has been modded to accept the tube.
so in short, im recycling the water rather than fussing with it every few days.
I've been contemplating this and the only flaw i can see is you're assuming the oasis would still function properly with that tube in it. From the factory the water resevoir is practically a sealed unit. WOuld punching some kind of hole in to accept water from an outside source affect its functionality? I don't know, the nice thing is that you can get a replacement cartridge for $10-15 so its a theory you could test without ruining the oasis completely.
I like the theory just don't know if it would work or not.
That's a clever looking system. I wonder if collecting the condensation is going to jive with the level of water you want in the resevoir?
thats an interesting thought. i dont know why it wouldnt. is there a window in the Oasis to show you how full it is? if not, im already modding the oasis reservoir, why not just build a new one and REPLACE it with a clear, easily detachable one? assuming the humidor is seasoned when the entire unit is switched on, all i would have to do is start out with the reservoir only half full. this way i have some play in it.
im sure in the winter months ill be adding water and in the summer removing it, but thats part of my routine anyway. im always gunna have beads in any humidor i have just for stability reasons.
That's a clever looking system. I wonder if collecting the condensation is going to jive with the level of water you want in the resevoir?
thats an interesting thought. i dont know why it wouldnt. is there a window in the Oasis to show you how full it is? if not, im already modding the oasis reservoir, why not just build a new one and REPLACE it with a clear, easily detachable one? assuming the humidor is seasoned when the entire unit is switched on, all i would have to do is start out with the reservoir only half full. this way i have some play in it.
im sure in the winter months ill be adding water and in the summer removing it, but thats part of my routine anyway. im always gunna have beads in any humidor i have just for stability reasons.
im thinking this is why the reservoir needs to be clear (so you can see how full it is) and detachable (so it can be emptied) however a backup system is not a bad idea at all.
THe resevoir is detachable but it is not clear anywhere. You have any links to people modding the oasis. I've heard of people taking the foam brick out and filling it with bead, but I'm curious how they did that.
I think the problem with recycling the condensate is that whatever the water condensates on will impart some ions into the water. Not much, but over a period of time it will build up. I've been looking into this and the idea in the hand drawing is good, but i'd J-trap out the condensate into an external reservoir and dump it every now and then, rather than trying to recycle it.
Commercial distillers use stainless steel. I beleive SS is inert with water (not 100% sure, but you'd think it'd have to be if that's what distillers are made of..?..)...I'm not thinking that the condensate will affect the cigars, but rather the humidifier...Kinda like using mineral water instead of distilled water.
what kid of effect would Ions have on cigars? im not sure this is a big deal anyway. we use distilled water in our humidors all the time.
distillation is actively heating water and the actively condensing it back to liquid form.
so wouldnt our humis all have ionized water as is?
Distilled water is deionized water. Water in its natural state can act as a weak acid or a weak base and will be slightly ionized, the purpose of distilling it is to remove these ions. What the distillers don't tell you is that once the container is open to the air it takes on ions again and is no longer deionized.
what kid of effect would Ions have on cigars? im not sure this is a big deal anyway. we use distilled water in our humidors all the time.
distillation is actively heating water and the actively condensing it back to liquid form.
so wouldnt our humis all have ionized water as is?
Distilled water is deionized water. Water in its natural state can act as a weak acid or a weak base and will be slightly ionized, the purpose of distilling it is to remove these ions. What the distillers don't tell you is that once the container is open to the air it takes on ions again and is no longer deionized.
nice to see you again.
now we have conflicting statements here
cabinetmaker:
I think the problem with recycling the condensate is that whatever the water condensates on will impart some ions into the water. Not much, but over a period of time it will build up. I've been looking into this and the idea in the hand drawing is good, but i'd J-trap out the condensate into an external reservoir and dump it every now and then, rather than trying to recycle it.
can anyone provide a link or a source that we can go to and find out for sure?
Opening a bottle of distilled water instantly changes the pH from neutral (7) to acidic from all the CO2 in the air creating carbonic acid (HCO3). This does not affect much of anything (except pH in pure water from 7 to low 2's and 3's). It's normal, there is dissolved CO2 in all water exposed to normal air.
When you start picking up metal ions, though, then you have a chance for a precipitate. Think about the cake of white stuff (CaCO3) on the top of aquariums that use tap water in areas with high calcium content.
Totally different than dissolved CO2 in water. There is no practical way to keep CO2 out of your water, other than a hyperbaric chamber...
since we would not recycle the water a J trap would be used to drain the water to an outside dish that could be emptied. during the dry winter months would the j trap dry out and let all the humidity out of the humidor?
The vinotemp as a v shaped track from the peltier down to the drain hole. I set the beads right on top of the drain hole to absorb an moisture. Why not just have the device drain into an extra dish of beads. The KL beads would probably be great for that purpose. Or into a dish of polymers.
wouldnt this just get deposits like discussed above on the beads?
im really starting to think that there is no way to add temp control to a home made wood humidor without a ton of hassle. wine cooler may be the way to go.
Comments
I think that if I was going to be building my own humi, I would just plan on installing an area for the Oasis and then a cage on the top and bottom for the beads, a whole lot easier and there isn't a huge chance for me to shock the absolute crap outta myself. The cabinet looks cool though. Needs drawers, maybe even some nameplates for dates or stuff like that.
Check this out. http://cgi.ebay.com/Gigantic-62mm-545-Watt-Thermoelectric-Peltier-Cooler_W0QQitemZ310143551739QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item4835ff08fb&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72:1205|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:0|293:1|294:50
ive been thinking about this thread alot in my spare time.
I think i may have solved the condensation issue. its kind of a blend of a few different ideas in this thread.
the issue at hand is not just temp control but ease of upkeep as well.
if the only water in the humidor is being added to the humidor as distilled then it is condensing (being distilled AGAIN) then shouldt that water be safe to reuse?
and if there is a true seal on the humidor then no water is being added or taken away. so once an equilibrium is reached i should only have to add or decharge beads or empty out the condensation every now and then? i mean, the humidity CANT go up if no new water is being added to the system.... right?
so here is my 30 second sketch on a plan that could, in theory work:
if you have yet to figure it out, this is a cross section of a would be humidor.
the peltier would be mounted on the wall with a removable seal, so if it should fail i can replace it with another. under the cold side of the heat pump (inside the humidor) there would be a collection trough for condensation. this would have a tube that runs down to the reservoir of an oasis that has been modded to accept the tube.
so in short, im recycling the water rather than fussing with it every few days.
thoughts? find flaws.
I like the theory just don't know if it would work or not.
i ask that in seriousness because ive never actually seen an oasis in action or know it in uses a pump for any kind of suction or whatnot.
i dont know why it wouldnt. is there a window in the Oasis to show you how full it is? if not, im already modding the oasis reservoir, why not just build a new one and REPLACE it with a clear, easily detachable one?
assuming the humidor is seasoned when the entire unit is switched on, all i would have to do is start out with the reservoir only half full. this way i have some play in it.
im sure in the winter months ill be adding water and in the summer removing it, but thats part of my routine anyway. im always gunna have beads in any humidor i have just for stability reasons.
i just have to find them.
That and damn hospital trips....
these were modded to hold humidity polymers, but mine would be modded to just pick up the drip from the peltier.
JMO~
distillation is actively heating water and the actively condensing it back to liquid form.
so wouldnt our humis all have ionized water as is?
now we have conflicting statements here can anyone provide a link or a source that we can go to and find out for sure?
When you start picking up metal ions, though, then you have a chance for a precipitate. Think about the cake of white stuff (CaCO3) on the top of aquariums that use tap water in areas with high calcium content.
Totally different than dissolved CO2 in water. There is no practical way to keep CO2 out of your water, other than a hyperbaric chamber...
Now that's some deep chit!
and now the link~~~:
http://www.purdue.edu/dp/dptour/FAQ sheet.pdf
there we have it.
next question would be...
since we would not recycle the water a J trap would be used to drain the water to an outside dish that could be emptied. during the dry winter months would the j trap dry out and let all the humidity out of the humidor?
im really starting to think that there is no way to add temp control to a home made wood humidor without a ton of hassle. wine cooler may be the way to go.