Do you Smoke in the Car? (Carmidor)

[Smoker]

Do you smoke cigars in your car?  I find that I am doing this quite a lot lately, especially if I am driving for an hour or more.  I actually have an old classic that was never smoked in, and the interior is near immaculate.  As much as I would like to preserve this, especially that 'old car' smell of the leather interior, I find a cigar to be the perfect compensation for either long driving trips, or an extended period of slow meandering through severe traffic to travel 2 miles (welcome to London).  I always make sure to keep the car well ventilated, and have not yet encountered the smell of stale cigars when I re-enter the car.  For fast driving on the motorway, I keep the side windows up, and the sunroof open.  When it rains, I sadly have to abstain, as smoking with the windows shut feels like pure vandalism.

As the frequency of my 'car smoking' has increased, I have decided to keep a supply of cigars in the car at all times...after all, you never know when you're going to be stuck in traffic, or even suffer a breakdown!  So, here is my 'Carmidor'...actually I should trademark that phrase!  I Googled it, and counld not find any use of it in this context hahaha.

I already use 'tupperwares' to store my cigars, and I swear by this Australian (what a coincidence!) brand called 'Lock & Lock'.  They have an excellent seal that I trust, and are available in many many different shapes and sizes.  This one has a screw top for an even better seal than the usual clip-top ones.

Without any humidification, a bunch of cigars stored in a small airtight container like this would probably last well for many weeks, but for extra safety, and to account for the constant temperature changes, I include a 65% Boveda.  This does cut down on the number of cigars that can be stored, but offers me peace of mind in return!  As you can see in the last pic above, this is the 760ml size and I find it's the perfect size for what I need.  It's available from Amazon.co.uk for only £4.87!

As you can see, the storage size is pretty confortable - holding these 15 cigars at the moment, along with a 60g Boveda.  I like to keep a selection on hand, and I always snip the ends off in advance so that I don't have to mess about in the car.  The longest cigars here are the Bolivar Tubos #1, which is 142mm long, followed by the Super Partagas at 140mm.  With the caps snipped off, they just about fit into the container, so consider this the maximum length you can store.  In case anyone was wondering about the date on the Boveda...whenever I start a new Boveda, I mark it with the date it was opened - this is so that I can monitor how long it lasts.  When the time comes to rejuvinate them with distilled water, I mark that date on there too.  As you can see, this one has been going for almost a year with no recharge yet!  I usually store my carmidor under one of the seats, or in the passenger footwell.  Leaving it on the passenger seat is ok at night, but not a good idea in direct sunlight, and I have found that the glove box is susceptible to severe temperature changes when I use hot or cold air in the car.

So, what arrangements do you guys have for enjoying cigars on the road?

 

Oh, if anyone is interested, the cigars pictured are as follows (from left to right):

2 x Monte Media Corona, Monte Petit Edmundo, Cohiba Secretos (from the box that was made famous in the 24:24 guide ), H. Upmann PC, PL Panetela, 2 x Party Shorts, 2 x Super Partagas, Bolivar: Tubos No.1, PC, Tubos No.3, 2 x Royal Coronas.

[zappaFREAK]

That's awesome! I smoke in the car but don't drive much so I tend to plan a little bit ahead.  You should patent it! Nice work.

[Akela3rd]

I use my Xikar 5 count, which can take up to 10 HUHC, Monte 5, Cuaba Divinos etc or a combination of large and small. It's waterproof and floats which is handy if you park your car by Richmond Lock bridge on a Thames spring tide and get back to it too late. Never again, it took weeks to get the river water smell out of the carpets.

Thunder & Lightening '75-'15

[zeedubbya]

Nearly every day.  Two hour roundtrip commute.  I am ordering that container immediately. I like it.  I dont leave the cigars in the car for any extended period of time if I can avoid it.  I pack my travel humidor up every Monday with the cigars for the week.  Most times they don't last the whole week but sometimes they do just depending on my mood for the week.  

[Knilas]

Very rarely anymore, as I smoked cigarettes for over 20 years (quit 4 years ago) and can't stand a vehicle that smells like "ash". Lol. For long trips or for a quick smoke on the way to and from work, I'll smoke a pipe.

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[PigFish]

Bovida pack or no mates, don't leave the cigars in an airtight container in the car. The heat fluctuations will drive water in and out of the cigars willy-nilly and I proffer that this is the cause of what people term 'travel sickness.'

While the total water in the system may remain the same, water will leave the inner most parts of the cigar in the heat of day, and then deposit on the wrapper binder as the first exposed later on. This means that some parts will be saturated while some left dry. That will be a poor tasting cigar.

Cigars left in this environment for any protracted period will likely end up moldy!

I would suggest taking fewer cigars, or if you live in a net dry environment, just leave them in a case that is not air tight. I used to leave whole boxes of cigars in my work truck on or under the back seat. The cigars would get very dry, not a problem for me, as they would be typically gone within a week.

If you are going to use a hydration system here, use a 'dryer' than the cigar desiccant. Desiccants, unlike aqueous salts, have isotherms nearer to tobacco and therefore act more like tobacco and will support it better. Like the cigar, they will give up more water when hot making it easier for the cigar to keep some of its natural water. When the system cools, if not too fast the desiccant will likely take some of that water back first and not leave the cigars wrappers too wet.

This action all depends on the heat swings, the isotherms of all the contents and the hysteresis of each of the components. Unless you live in a very stable temperature state, sealing cigars that are ready to smoke in a high rate of temperature change environment is a poor idea. MHO!

-the Pig

[joeypots]

I love to smoke cigars in my car. The sun roof has an up - down function that cracks it about three inches and creates great air exhaust right out of the car. It's a bit noisy and the car will smell for a day but there is no saturation of smoke in the car and no one has ever said my car smells of smoke. 

[cigaraholic]

I only smoke in my car when I'm driving ?

I don't keep cigars in the car.....except for 1 emergency smoke

 

[kuma]

reason I bought a Camary (Toyota) with a sliding sun roof was so I could smoke with unlimited ventilation.

It is great I also get a tan when I smoking / reading or what ever.  Yes I do!  Cigar shop on wheels!

 

[JohnInCleveland]

10 hours ago, PigFish said:

Bovida pack or no mates, don't leave the cigars in an airtight container in the car. The heat fluctuations will drive water in and out of the cigars willy-nilly and I proffer that this is the cause of what people term 'travel sickness.'

While the total water in the system may remain the same, water will leave the inner most parts of the cigar in the heat of day, and then deposit on the wrapper binder as the first exposed later on. This means that some parts will be saturated while some left dry. That will be a poor tasting cigar.

Cigars left in this environment for any protracted period will likely end up moldy!

I would suggest taking fewer cigars, or if you live in a net dry environment, just leave them in a case that is not air tight. I used to leave whole boxes of cigars in my work truck on or under the back seat. The cigars would get very dry, not a problem for me, as they would be typically gone within a week.

If you are going to use a hydration system here, use a 'dryer' than the cigar desiccant. Desiccants, unlike aqueous salts, have isotherms nearer to tobacco and therefore act more like tobacco and will support it better. Like the cigar, they will give up more water when hot making it easier for the cigar to keep some of its natural water. When the system cools, if not too fast the desiccant will likely take some of that water back first and not leave the cigars wrappers too wet.

This action all depends on the heat swings, the isotherms of all the contents and the hysteresis of each of the components. Unless you live in a very stable temperature state, sealing cigars that are ready to smoke in a high rate of temperature change environment is a poor idea. MHO!

-the Pig

I read your posts, take your advice, and then zone our for your scientific explanations bc I'm not smart enough to understand them.  

 

However they are always helpful and appreciated.    

[Smoker]

13 hours ago, PigFish said:

Bovida pack or no mates, don't leave the cigars in an airtight container in the car. The heat fluctuations will drive water in and out of the cigars willy-nilly and I proffer that this is the cause of what people term 'travel sickness.'

While the total water in the system may remain the same, water will leave the inner most parts of the cigar in the heat of day, and then deposit on the wrapper binder as the first exposed later on. This means that some parts will be saturated while some left dry. That will be a poor tasting cigar.

Cigars left in this environment for any protracted period will likely end up moldy!

I would suggest taking fewer cigars, or if you live in a net dry environment, just leave them in a case that is not air tight. I used to leave whole boxes of cigars in my work truck on or under the back seat. The cigars would get very dry, not a problem for me, as they would be typically gone within a week.

If you are going to use a hydration system here, use a 'dryer' than the cigar desiccant. Desiccants, unlike aqueous salts, have isotherms nearer to tobacco and therefore act more like tobacco and will support it better. Like the cigar, they will give up more water when hot making it easier for the cigar to keep some of its natural water. When the system cools, if not too fast the desiccant will likely take some of that water back first and not leave the cigars wrappers too wet.

This action all depends on the heat swings, the isotherms of all the contents and the hysteresis of each of the components. Unless you live in a very stable temperature state, sealing cigars that are ready to smoke in a high rate of temperature change environment is a poor idea. MHO!

-the Pig

I find this all quite interesting. First, I should mention that I get through, and replace most of the cigars in a few weeks generally, and have never noticed any issues with the cigars, so perhaps my temperature fluctuations are not so huge, or maybe it takes longer to notice the ill-effects.  I take your point, that in a sealed container, the moisture will leave the cigars as the temperature increases, but this means that any humidification system fails unless there is temperature control!  This should be a concern for me, as I do not have any temperature control in my regular storage.  About the mould though...what actually causes this to form?  Doesn't some foreign bacteria need to be introduced in order for mould to form, or are all the necessary elements continuously present?  Why does moisture moving around cause mould to form?  I thought that increasing the moisture was a major cause of mould forming?

Since joining this forum, I have noticed that there is little concern for cigars drying out.  There are even suggestions to 'dry box' cigars before smoking.  I am always surprised by this, as I have not had good results, over the years, with dryed out cigars. The cigars seem really harsh to me, along with the fact that the wrapper becomes brittle and easily cracked.  There is also the opinion that fully dryed out cigars can eventually be saved by storing in humidified conditions.  Again, I tried this years ago, and never found the cigars to be as good as they were originally.  Still, I see it time and time again, so there must be something to it!

I need to look into the whole 'cigar desiccant' subject.  When are you going to write us a huge sticky on this topic?

[topdiesel]

I would venture to say that London is pretty safe cool environment.  Where I live it can get up to 115 degrees and down below freezing.  My cigars would not fare well if left in the car here in the summer (winter probably wouldn't be a problem).  I smoke regularly on my drive to work or home. Xikar travel humidor works for me.

I leave my windows open in the garage and I am aware that my car still smells of cigar.  I didn't buy my car as an investment.  It will diminish my resale value, but not by the amount of enjoyment I have received.  It is my car, not the next guy's.

[PigFish]

8 hours ago, Smoker said:

I find this all quite interesting. First, I should mention that I get through, and replace most of the cigars in a few weeks generally, and have never noticed any issues with the cigars, so perhaps my temperature fluctuations are not so huge, or maybe it takes longer to notice the ill-effects.  I take your point, that in a sealed container, the moisture will leave the cigars as the temperature increases, but this means that any humidification system fails unless there is temperature control!  This should be a concern for me, as I do not have any temperature control in my regular storage.  About the mould though...what actually causes this to form?  Doesn't some foreign bacteria need to be introduced in order for mould to form, or are all the necessary elements continuously present?  Why does moisture moving around cause mould to form?  I thought that increasing the moisture was a major cause of mould forming?

Since joining this forum, I have noticed that there is little concern for cigars drying out.  There are even suggestions to 'dry box' cigars before smoking.  I am always surprised by this, as I have not had good results, over the years, with dryed out cigars. The cigars seem really harsh to me, along with the fact that the wrapper becomes brittle and easily cracked.  There is also the opinion that fully dryed out cigars can eventually be saved by storing in humidified conditions.  Again, I tried this years ago, and never found the cigars to be as good as they were originally.  Still, I see it time and time again, so there must be something to it!

I need to look into the whole 'cigar desiccant' subject.  When are you going to write us a huge sticky on this topic?

Desiccant is a word I often use, as all forms of beaded cigar humidity products 'generally' fall under that umbrella.

I have written thousands of words regarding desiccant use with cigars on this forum. I don't run the forum so I don't 'stick' anything! If you search pigfish + desiccant you will find a lot about the topic. I have studied many of the materials extensively.

I don't tell others how to store cigars. I do make a lot of comments about best practices (my opinions) some of which are empirically proven to me, while others have sound scientific explanations. I often separate the two for clarity.

One needs to understand that temperature plays an equal role in maintaining a percent moisture content in the cigar. It is true that the cigar is less sensitive to temperature than rH in the 60 to 75F range, but as you move away from that range, the energy of water (the temperature) can play a major role. There gets to be a point where tobacco cannot bond to water due to the energy and while the point is not known to me, you just might find that you get close enough to it to move a high percentage of water out of your cigar in a hot parked car!

If you take a cigar that is not a favorite. Put it in a small, airtight container, bovida or no, and go place it in the sun for a couple of hours on a hot day and bring it back into a cool house, you will find condensation on the insides of the container. This is water extracted from the cigar!

Eventually it will make its way back into the cigar, given the right conditions. However the first to touch the water, or be exposed to the water will be the 'skin' of the cigar. That skin is your wrapper and binder. This material will saturate in your sealed 100rH environment rather rapidly as it cools and tobacco becomes more attractive than free space. The percent moisture content of the exposed tobacco may grow very high, high enough to support capillary water, and if mold spores are alive in your container they will start to blossom on your cigars.

My wife feeds hummingbirds. They drink sugar water... While the water is boiled, the feeders can become polluted with mold in very short order given the food source and the water! Mold is everywhere and spores are likely living dormant on your cigars all the time. What it takes is capillary water to bring them to life.

Many years ago I used a sealed mason jar to transport cigars. I noticed this very action. It was long before I thought much about the 'processes' of cigar keeping, maybe 20 or so years ago. The mason jar now is used to keep homemade salsa... and not cigars!

Best of luck on your projects! -Piggy

[planetary]

Nope, for four reasons:

1) I like to be able to pay attention to the cigar, physically and sensorily.  (Solved by self-driving cars in ~10 years.)
2) Smoking odor in cars is gross, and a showstopper for me.  (No idea how to solve.)
3) For professional reasons, I don't want to smell of smoke while at work.  (Solved by smoking on the return commute only.)
4) I'm somewhat concerned what would happen in the event of an accident.  (No idea how to solve.)

[JohnInCleveland]

40 minutes ago, planetary said:

Nope, for four reasons:

1) I like to be able to pay attention to the cigar, physically and sensorily.  (Solved by self-driving cars in ~10 years.)
2) Smoking odor in cars is gross, and a showstopper for me.  (No idea how to solve.)
3) For professional reasons, I don't want to smell of smoke while at work.  (Solved by smoking on the return commute only.)
4) I'm somewhat concerned what would happen in the event of an accident.  (No idea how to solve.)

The car smell really seems to be less of a problem for me now that I have leather.  It lingered much longer in my cloth seats.  In my experience it's imperceptible after 24-48, but I do make a point of airing out after.  

[rascalmonkey]

me and you are smoking the same things = that collection looks like a mini-version of my coolerador! 

[PigFish]

I used to smoke in my F150 all the time. Somedays I might have a 3 hour commute. That is intolerable, but a Churchill made it lesser so.

Currently I don't smoke in the car because I have no real reason to. When I am once more commuting and if it becomes less than pleasant, I will again smoke in the car!

I hate driving... Smoking makes the chore somewhat less bothersome.

-Piggy

[SloppyJ]

I think it's a great idea but I know I couldn't pull it off in my climate. Days that hit 100°F ambient and I can only assume it's much hotter in a closed car. The cigars would be all sorts of messed up. 

[dicko]

I smoke occasionally in the car. One thing I have found difficult is how to lay down the cigar between puffs.
Do you guys just keep it in your hand or do you have a car specific ash tray set up?

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[dicko]

Also, because it's only an occasional thing I don't have a need to keep a carmidor. We have pretty big temp ranges locally too so not the best conditions for storage.

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[Danimalia]

Nice set-up! Yeah, I've always been a car smoker, and for most of my cigar smoking life, I also smoked cigarettes. I noticed an odor, but it was hard to know how much blame to place on the cigars. Unfortunately, I was rear-ended in a hit and run about a month ago, so I need to get a new car. Which I am sure I will also smoke in. I've never had a car specific humidor, but I usually keep a cheap cutter in the center console. I always hold my cigar while driving, and as my last car was a stick shift, that meant getting acrobatic alternating the cigar between my left and right hands and mouth. I also tend to clench more while driving, which makes lonsdales a great choice for the road for me.

I've always loved smoking cigars on longer road trips. Fire up a decent sized cigar, smoke it, and by the time I'm ready for another, it's usually a good time to pull over and get something to eat/drink anyway. For me, it's relaxing, and it really helps to make the drive feel like a fun part of the trip.

[JohnInCleveland]

37 minutes ago, dicko said:

I smoke occasionally in the car. One thing I have found difficult is how to lay down the cigar between puffs.
Do you guys just keep it in your hand or do you have a car specific ash tray set up?

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I keep it in my hand.  It's awkward.  I only do it occasionally, if I were to make it a regular event I'd need some sort of device to caddy my stogie.  Don't think I'll ever do it enough to come to that, but there are devices out there.

 

John

[irratebass]

I.smoke in the car, driving or on my lunch break.

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[Warren]

Do I smoke in the car?

Depends on how fast I'm going.

[Warren]

42 minutes ago, JohnInCleveland said:

I keep it in my hand.  It's awkward.  I only do it occasionally,   Don't think I'll ever do it enough to come to that, but there are devices out there.

 

John

There are some things we don't need to know.