When it comes to seasoning your cabinet humidor we've heard everything under the sun. From taking your humidor into the bathroom with you during a hot, steamy shower to setting a boiling pot of water inside and shutting the door, there's some really bad advice out there.
Let's start with the basics of seasoning. The idea of seasoning your cigar humidor, regardless of the size, is to create an environment in your humidor which is very similar to the environment in which the tobacco leaves that comprise your precious stogies were grown in. Since it’s a fact that all great cigars are grown in or around the Earth’s equator, you’ll want the humidity level in your humidor to be between 65-75%. This will insure that every time you grab a smoke from your humidor it’ll be perfectly aged, soft to the touch but not over-saturated with humidity which makes for a bad burn.
The most important part of your cabinet humidor: the cedar wood
Cedar is a wood that is very porous, much like a sponge. This fact and the fact that bugs tend to hate cedar make it the perfect candidate to line your humidor. Many people forget that while very durable, cedar is still a wood and will behave like wood normally does when you abuse it. Would you take a bucket of water and wipe down your wife’s Grandmother’s prized antique end table? No, you’d ruin the finish, the wood would warp and you’d end up sleeping on the couch that night. Same goes for Cedar. You want the cedar wood which lines your humidor to absorb the humidity over a long period of time rather than shock the hell out if all in one shot.
Our recommendation for seasoning a cabinet humidor
The best way to season a cabinet humidor is with time and patience. Get a couple gallons of distilled water (distilled water has zero impurities, minerals or salts, unlike tap or bottled water), pour a few dishes full and place in your cabinet humidor. This process should take at least a week to let the cedar slowly absorb as much as it wants to. Keep an eye on the humidity level and when you’ve leveled out at around 60% for a few days you can place your electronic humidifier in your cabinet humidor and let it run. After you’ve let your electronic humidifier run for a few days and you’re still maintaining a stable humidity level THEN you can start storing your cigars in your cabinet humidor. What you’re doing here is allowing the wood to cure on its own terms and you’re also making less initial work for your electronic cigar humidifier by bringing the relative humidity of the wood up to a stable level before you introduce it.
Avoid all the pitfalls and bad advice out there and realize that all good things in life are born of time and patience. Besides, we’re sure you spent a pretty penny on that cabinet humidor and being hasty during the seasoning process can not only ruin your humidor but ruin your prized stock of cigars as well.