Cigars are a delicious, albeit expensive hobby. But if you enjoy smoking the odd cigar after a long day, you might be interested in expanding your lonely cigar into a more hearty collection. However, you need a humidor to store cigars properly, and you’ll need to learn how to season a humidor to ensure your cigar storage remains optimal. 

How do you season a humidor? It’s not as complicated as it sounds. You can prepare a humidor to store cigars with items from around the house and some distilled water. Here is a step-by-step guide to seasoning a humidor. 

How To Season a Humidor

Before you begin the seasoning process, you will need to gather a few items, including:

• Distilled water
• A sponge
• Your unseasoned humidor
• Airtight containers or bags 

You can store your cigars in airtight containers or bags during this process, but make sure that they aren’t too dry. 

Calibrate Your Hygrometer

Before adding any water to the humidor, you’ll need to calibrate the hygrometer. If left uncalibrated, it won’t record the correct humidity and ruin your cigars. Calculating humidity is a tricky mathematical formula, so a hygrometer will save you time and brain space every time you check on your humidor. 

To calibrate the device, you’ll need to follow the instructions for your particular hygrometer. Some hygrometers are analog, and some are digital, but each brand has different instructions. Your humidor might come with a built-in hygrometer. If this is the case, you should still calibrate it to your altitude and home. 

Calibrating a hygrometer is essential because the natural temperature and humidity in your storage area differ from where the manufacturer created the humidor. Ensure that you complete this step where you will keep the humidor so the readings will be accurate. 

Fill the Cigar Humidifier

The next step is simple: fill the humidifier with water. This small humidifier works like large ones - it uses the water to keep the air at a specific temperature. However, most home humidifiers don’t aim for 70%, ideal for cigars. 

Every humidor has slightly different settings, so follow the instructions given to you in the box or by the manufacturer to set up the humidifier aspect. However, you should do this before completing the seasoning. Otherwise, your humidor won’t calibrate fully, and the cigars will dry out. 

Many humidors require a propylene glycol solution for the humidifier. However, distilled water should work fine if it’s adequately filtered and distilled. Unfiltered or tap water will create mold on the inside of the box and the cigars themselves.

Let the Box Humidify

Now that the humidifier portion is full of water, you can let the internal part of the humidor humidify. Soak a clean sponge in your filtered or distilled water to do this. Wring it out partially but not fully (it should be wet but not dripping). Place a ziplock bag or other plastic protectant on the bottom of the humidor and put the sponge inside. 

In addition to the water in the humidifier, this sponge will act to soak the wood interior without damaging it. Over the next few days, it will naturally increase the humidity levels in the box to prepare it for cigar storage. 

Once you have placed the sponge, close the humidor and leave it for a few days. If your box is wood-lined, three to five days is probably enough. However, a humidor made entirely of wood might need a week or two. You can always leave it longer–the more seasoning a humidor gets, the better it will be for your cigars. 

Add Cigars 

After a few days, you can check the humidity and prepare to add cigars. Although the ideal humidity for cigars is normally 70%, the first seasoning should last until the internal humidity of the box is 75-80%. The higher initial humidity is necessary because your cigars have never been in this humidor, and they will suck up excess moisture for the first few days. 

Once you have humidified the box, you can add your cigars. It’s generally good to keep the box half-filled with cigars so that the internal pressure and humidity don’t vary too much. However, your humidor will adjust to whatever amount of cigars you have available. 

Humidor Maintenance

Regular humidor maintenance is crucial to maintaining the proper humidity and temperature in the cigar humidifier box. There are two main steps to keeping the humidor working properly: filling the humidifier box and rotating your cigars. 

You don’t have to open the humidor or the humidifier box on a schedule to check if it’s empty. Instead, keep an eye on the humidity levels in the box itself. A healthy humidity level is near 70%, so you should add water if the humidor is below 65%. 

A less well-known step in humidor maintenance is cigar rotation. Although the humidor keeps cigars relatively well hydrated, the side with contact to the cedar will be a little moister than the side that touches only air. Rotate your cigars every time you refill the humidifier with water for optimal cigar humidity and the best taste balance. 

What Is a Humidor?

The true humidor definition is simply a humidified box that holds cigars. Humidors are usually made of cedar wood or have a cedar lining with a mini humidifier and tank. While every humidor is made of different materials and is a different size, they are all lined with wood and are airtight. 

Humidor Seasoning Frequently Asked Questions

If you are still curious or have further concerns about humidors and the seasoning process, here are some commonly asked questions. 

Why do humidors need to be seasoned?

Humidors need to be seasoned to be able to complete their only function. A humidor keeps the cigars at the proper humidity level and temperature. If you put cigars into a humidor without properly humidifying the box first, it will soak up all the moisture from the cigars and dry them out. 

An unseasoned humidor will damage the cigars almost as much as leaving them out in the open would. It’s essential to be able to leave your cigars in a humidor and not have to worry about them getting too dry or too moist.  

Do I need a humidor?

Most cigar owners with more than two or three cigars own a humidor box. Cigar humidors will keep your cigars from drying out and losing flavor or from getting too moist and developing mold. Either extreme can damage or ruin a cigar, so a humidor is essential. 

If you only buy one or two cigars a year and don’t store them very long, you probably don’t need a cigar humidor box. Keeping cigars in a regular box or airtight container is fine for a few days, as long as you check them for cigar beetles or dryness before smoking. However, those who buy and store cigars would be wise to invest in a humidor. 

What should I do with my cigars while I’m seasoning my humidor?

The key to cigar storage is the 70/70 rule: keep them at around 70℉ and 70% humidity. However, this isn’t always possible while actively seasoning your humidor. To temporarily store your cigars, you can keep them in an airtight container with some moisture. 

Whether you keep your cigars in a sealed plastic bag or container, make sure to store them in a warm and somewhat humid room. Check your cigars daily until your humidor seasons. After that, the humidor will monitor the humidity and temperature for you.  

Are humidors expensive?

The price of a humidor depends on the quality of the cigar humidor and the size of your cigar collection. Like most cigar accessories, the range of options and their quality will dictate the price. 

You can purchase entry-level humidors for under $20 and go into the thousands for more elegant or sophisticated products.

What wood is used in humidors?

The most common material for a humidor is Spanish cedar. This wood helps the cigars retain moisture without becoming too moist and is a better choice than many other types of wood. Another typical humidor lining is mahogany or mahogany veneer. 

Final Thoughts

Now that you know how to season a humidor, you can make your first big cigar purchase and not worry about them getting too dry or moldy. Using a humidor directly depends on how well you can season it, and now you’ll be able to do it with the items you have from around the house.