Subject: Re: will humidor mosture lift finish on outside of box?

From: Daniel Morris DeRight <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 8 Feb 1997 01:42:28 -0500

Excerpts from netnews.rec.woodworking: 7-Feb-97 Re: will humidor mosture
li.. by Kenneth [email-masked] 
>
> Must have been crappy glue or crappy joints if it fell apart.  An 
> unfinished-on-the-inside-humidor should hold just fine with Titebond 
> II or Gorilla Glue.  I'd be more concerned about the finish on the 
> inside permeating the spanish cedar or at least causing undesireable 
> aromas inside the box.  Also, remember that you do _NOT_ want an 
> airtight seal, or you could get mold.  So, a little breathing isn't 
> bad.

    Having made more than a few of these, actually I made my living
making these for about three years, I can say that that is not really
accurate.  I have seen quality humidors split, and it wasn't due to
crappy glue or joints.  When you are in a dry area, where humidity dips
into the single digits, and the interior is being artificially
maintained at ~72%, the stresses involved are tremendous.  Depending on
the wood involved, it may well split if the interior is not properly
finished.  You might be able to lock the joint shut with glue, in which
case the wood itself will split.

    The finish on the inside should be shellac.  Not poly, not varnish,
not lacquer, shellac.  If it is, and you let the final coat dry
overnight, it will never leak into the cedar.

    As for an airtight seal, go for it.  You'll never really get it, but
you should try.  The fact is, assuming you actually smoke cigars and
don't just store them, you will be opening the humidor a few times a day
anyway, which will exchange all the air inside.  There is no good reason
for the box to breathe, as evidenced by the success of lexan humidors,
Tupperdors and Igloodors.

    Look, if you can get a wood box to hermetically seal, you're enough
of a craftsman that I certainly am in no position to give you tips,
regardless of my experience!

==========================
Dan DeRight          [email-masked]

Necessity is the plea of every infringement of human freedom.  It is
the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.    -William Pitt

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From: [email-masked] (WScott1678)
Date: 9 Feb 1997 22:21:37 GMT

hi,
i have concidered making humadors for one of the local smoke shops.
do you have any plans that you can share ?  or know where i can find plans
to look at.  i would like to see a hand full of different plans to get an
idea of what is possible.

thanks

trav.

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From: "C.E.(Chuck)Ring" <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 15:32:58 -0700

> idea of what is possible.

Go to http://theoak.com/gary/index.html and click on Odds And Ends
-- 
C.E."Chuck"Ring
Madera Encantada "Enchanted Wood"
e-mail to:[email-masked]
<http://www.woodworking.com/magazine/jul96/poly/index.html>

---

From: Daniel Morris DeRight <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 10 Feb 1997 13:07:40 -0500

Excerpts from netnews.rec.woodworking: 5-Feb-97 Re: will humidor mosture
li.. by Ron [email-masked] 
> In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked]
> wrote:
> 
> > I plan to finish a very large (2 ft on a side, 3 drawers) humidor on
> > the outside only.  will the moisture inside migrate through and cause
> > the exterior finish to lift?  If so, should I use tung oil?  wouldn't
> > that hold?
> > 
> > tom
> > pls cc your post w/email to [email-masked]
> 
> I'd say the humidor will probably fall apart ("Blow out" its joints as they

    I don't know if it will blow out, but it certainly will be a bear to
use.  Sealing the interior is a necessary step to containing the
interior humidity.

> say). I built a Red Oak humidor for a friend, lined it with Spanish Cedar
> and saw it fall to pieces about a month later. The inside of the humidor
> must be sealed against moisture transfer before the cedar is installed. All
> you need is the required 70% humidity inside the box and a heated winter
> room with 40 or 50% humidity and its all over. 

    Even better, you could live in the Northeast, where the 70-72%
inside is dealing with the 20-30% outside!  If it's not completely
sealed, forget it!

> I'd reccommend something
> like West System Epoxy for an inside coating. Good luck.

    Well, we agreed up to here.  I wouldn't use any heavy finish for the
interior, and certainly not epoxy.  I use several coats of shellac, and
have found it to work wonderfully.  Best of all, there is not outgassing
with shellac, so you don't have to wait a week or so for the finish to
cure.  It may seem like epoxy or poly has little smell after 24 hours,
but put some in a closed box and you'll get a surprise!

    Another tip I would offer is to miter, rather than glue the cedar
into the box.  I cover the bottom with one flat piece, which is fitted
with a tiny bit of room to spare.  Then I tightly miter the four side
pieces in, such that they can barely be fit in, and pin the bottom in
place.  This way, in case you ever get tobacco bettles or the like, the
liner can be removed and replaced, rather than disposing of the whole
box.