Cardboard boxes in humidor

[IcedCanuck]

Some cigar boxes are placed inside cardboard boxes, such as the Cohiba Maduro 5 series, and have some of the stickers put on the cardboard box rather than the wood box the cigars are in. I've noticed that the factory code and date are also on the cardboard box and not the wood box. I'm curious to know if people are taking the wood box out of the cardboard box before putting it in their humidor(s) or if they simply leave the wood box in the cardboard box and shove the whole thing in their humi(s). Is having cardboard in a humidor a bad idea?

[Colt45]

I don't know if leaving them in the cardboard is a bad idea or not, but I take them out prior to storing.

[Hohenthal]

I don't know if leaving them in the cardboard is a bad idea or not, but I take them out prior to storing.

I would do the same.

[maverickdrinker]

I take them out of the cardboard and write down the box code on the bottom of the box.

[BrotherBear]

To each their own, but don't the distributors & retailers leave the cardboard on...? No harm in leaving it if you want, it just comes down to personal choice.

[IcedCanuck]

I have been thinking about removing the cardboard box simply because it takes up just enough additional space that some of the larger boxes do not fit nicely in my coolidors. I also was not sure if mould issues could develop from having the cardboard in there but I suppose if the vendors keep the cardboard box on then there shouldn't be an issue with mould.

[Colt45]

I have been thinking about removing the cardboard box simply because it takes up just enough additional space....

Same here.

Any cardboard, sealed plastic on boxes (put by vendor), etc should be removed prior to storing boxes in humidors. The less obstruction, the better. On the other hand, cellophane on individual cigars is perfectly fine as it does not have a negative effect on maturation.

If this is the case, wouldn't it be best to remove cigars from their boxes and store them unboxed? What's the difference between the cellophane

used to seal boxes and that used on individual cigars?

[IcedCanuck]

Cigars should breathe to continue maturation (aging). Any cardboard, sealed plastic on boxes (put by vendor), etc should be removed prior to storing boxes in humidors. The less obstruction, the better. On the other hand, cellophane on individual cigars is perfectly fine as it does not have a negative effect on maturation.

That actually makes a whole lot of sense. I think I'm definitely leaning towards removing the cardboard boxes now.

[goalie204]

Cardboard isn't going to stop cigars from breathing. I've kept cigars that came in cardboard boxes in them for years in my humidors, and they still get humidified properly.

As bear said, manufacturers and retailers leave them in these, i do too.

[Orion21]

Cardboard will breakdown, unlike cedar, and possibly change the dynamic of your humidor. I would not let my cigars rest on cardboard because it will absorb the oils from the cigar without imparting a positive on the cigars themselves. When in doubt just ditch the cardboard. Like Hovy said, I am pretty sure it is for shipping reasons to protect the expensive dress boxes.

[goalie204]

I still believe that cardboards have no point. Most of the time, they are used to protect the black lacquer finish of high end CC boxes i.e. Genios, Magicos, Secretos, GR, etc. For some reason, NCs have plastic seal on them more often.

And yes, like Bear said, it just comes down to personal choice.

I'm not disagreeing about them having a point, i was simply replying to your post where you say that Cardboard should be removed prior to storing where you implyed that they prevent cigars from breathing or aging:

Cigars should breathe to continue maturation (aging). Any cardboard, sealed plastic on boxes (put by vendor), etc should be removed prior to storing boxes in humidors. The less obstruction, the better.

~~~

Cardboard will breakdown, unlike cedar, and possibly change the dynamic of your humidor. I would not let my cigars rest on cardboard because it will absorb the oils from the cigar without imparting a positive on the cigars themselves. When in doubt just ditch the cardboard. Like Hovy said, I am pretty sure it is for shipping reasons to protect the expensive dress boxes.

The cigars don't touch the cardboard directly, they are in their own boxes within the cardboard. What do you think dress boxes are made of? They certainly aren't wood

[Colt45]

No difference I assume, plastic is plastic. However, sealed plastic on boxes is often air tight while cellophane on cigars is not.

Cellophane itself "breathes", but I guess my point is that, as you've mentioned, it comes down to personal preference. We have a number of

members who seal their boxes in ziploc bags (which also "breathe") prior to storing. I would not say they should or shouldn't do so.

[CptKloss]

on a side note: manufacturers of cereals are moving away from a practice of using recycled cardboard packaging, as it has been proven, that (toxic, of course) chemicals (paint) are penetrating the inner box and "infuse" the contents. it is a fairly new development

[CBL]

I take off the cardboard boxes because 1) They take up a little more space. 2) It looks butt ugly in my humidor. 3) The cardboard tends to smell bad and I'm worried that smell might get into some cigars.

But the most important reason for not keeping a cardboard box around the box... the cardboard adds NOTHING in your humidor, as long as your humidor doesn't move around on a daily basis and if you don't continuously smack boxes onto one another, the cardboard has nothing to protect. I understand that if you have a beautiful varnished or piano black box you want to keep it scratch-free, but if the beauty of the box is hidden in ugly cardboard, it has no use and you're stuck with a Hardy's paradox where you're protecting something that can only be damaged if observed, when opened and exposed.

[SethG]

Cardboard is one of the main breeding places for cockroaches, they lay their eggs inside and then bam.

So, in général don't keep cardboard that has arrived from any warehouse in the world anywhere in your home.

[canadianbeaver]

When I read this thread originally, I thought you meant boxes themselves, which have so much paper and card on them sometimes. In the case of the Behike, they have the cardboard outer box, the sleeve and the highly lacquered box. No way any humidification is getting in there? And there is bulk from that that I cannot store. So off that cardboard box went, and the fabric sleeve. Whether humidity went past all that lacquer? Who knows.

When the smokes went down to 2 or three, I put them in with my singles and put the box away.

CB

[Colt45]

So you knew the difference between cellophane and plastic seal on boxes before asking (?). Hmmm, interesting.

True, it may seem a bit "off", but I have no dubious intent. In my mind, just a point of discussion.

I posed this question a couple of months back in a discussion on bagging:

"Is it possible that bagging allows for maturation (melding of flavor, etc) without the detrimental effects (flavor loss, etc) of aging (time) ?"

[Guest rob]

I USED to leave the cardboard boxes in place.... I had a whole fridge where I put all my boxes that had cardboard outers left on the wooden boxes.

That is until early this year when I noticed doing my yearly inspection that the inside white moulding of the fridge had discoloured completely - it had turned from stark white to a tan colour - like tea.

I had bought a number of fridges on the same day back in 2007 and the other fridges had not discoloured at all. The only difference between them was that one was storing cardboard packaged boxes exclusively. (P898, Sir Winston's, Cohiba 2006 EL)

Even though from a scientific view my sample size is too smsll - I'm convinced that the cardboard outers were responsible. There was no other difference between these.

[Lotusguy]

I take them out - looks better, IMO