Low Temperature Storage

[joeypots]

The old rule of thumb says don't keep your cigar stash warmer than 70 degrees F for a few reasons. I'm most likely going to be away from my home quite a bit this winter and I will set the thermostat at 40 F when we are away. The cigars may well stay at that temp for months. Does anyone have any knowledge or experience with storing cigars at low temperatures? Am I taking any risk with my stash? Thanks in advance. 

[Fugu]

Don't do it Joey, not a good idea at all.

[SenorPerfecto]

If you prefer your cigars to not have oils and flavor, do it!

[Viva Vegas]

I keep my sticks at 65 I have tried around 60 and had problems with cracking and burning . 

[Eric05]

jesus 40 F That's crazy for your pipes

[BoliDan]

40F, that is what my refrigerator is set to. ?. You would need to up your humidity to 100% just to be safe. I actually dont think that even 100% humidity would keep them from drying in that temperature, but I dont know, i cant find any charts that show the temperature getting that low.

[BuzzArd]

A temperature shift like that would seem to me to cause a shift in water as well....  @PigFish ?

[cigaraholic]

Man up....55F should be fine

[FatPete]

I think anything under 55F and you run the risk of mouldy cigars.

[Fugu]

What's about that mystical 55°F here, gents, may I ask?!

To say it plainly - any larger temperature drop, without giving your cigars room and time to slowly adjust and fully equilibrate, will be a safe case for mould.

Just - don't - do it! (active de-humidification or not)

Time scale for such an undertaking would be totally impractical for your planned schedule (we are talking weeks to months here, but never go down as deep as you suggest). Depending on how you store your stash, Joey, either keep your house at temp, perhaps with a slow and steady drop of a few degrees only, if deemed necessary to save heating costs. Or - and that is the way better option - go and see whether you can get a friend housing your stash for that time.

 

[nikhz]

I’m only posting this because I disagree and am sure you have nothing to worry about if your cigars are stored in a similar way to mine   

My cigars, hundreds of them, sit inside an unplugged wine fridge and a 40 litre cool box with humidity beads, have done for years.  The temperature at this time is year, all day, for months, ranges from 8 degrees, up to about 13 degrees C.  This is the same, roughly as your 40 f.  I have no problems. No mould.  Nothing.  

Davidoff London store at 12 degrees C.  I saw this online, surprised me.  

I might not feel so comfortable with active humidification in a small humidor at that temperature, mould more likely I’d suspect.  But passive humidification at that temperature seems to be ok with my arrangement.  

 

Hope this helps you save money on you energy bill.  ?

[shippers]

3 minutes ago, nikhz said:

... Davidoff London store at 12 degrees C.  I saw this online, surprised me. ...

I have been reading this thread worried about my humidor hitting the winter months in the UK. I found this surprising so went googling. Here is a video with Edward Sahakian owner of Davidoff London where he talks in a bit more depth on the subject.

 

[Meklown]

26 minutes ago, nikhz said:

My cigars, hundreds of them, sit inside an unplugged wine fridge and a 40 litre cool box with humidity beads

I think if you don't open it too often the temperature changes will be rather gradual, as compared to leaving them out in the open. 

However,

3 hours ago, Fugu said:

To say it plainly - any larger temperature drop, without giving your cigars room and time to slowly adjust and fully equilibrate, will be a safe case for mould

Will low temps cause mould?? I was under the impression that 30+°c (100°f) would be the ideal temp for mould to grow, while low temps slow their growth (which is why we refrigerate food)

[Mikeltee]

Chance of mold increases exponentially. 40 is too close to freezing. I'd set it at 50 if you have any plumbing. Make sure your humidifier is dead nuts on. I'd probably run 50rh with 50 degrees. And if any of your sticks have residual moisture they will mold. I'd lower the rh to 55 for a couple weeks then kill the heat.

 

 

[cigaraholic]

Cigars....like wine hate to change temperature. I believe you can age cigars from 55F to 70F, what’s really important is a constant temperature.Going from the mid 60’s which I assume they are now down to 40F and then back up to the 60’s is a recipe for disaster.

You must have cold winters if you’re keeping your house at 40F......I’m a California boy?

Can you take your cigars with you?

 

[Riverstyx]

I think we need @PigFish to chime in here.

[Bagman]

If too cold is bad, my experiment is going to go wrong.  I have cigars that are have spent the past 9 months in the freezer.   Wonder what I will see when I open them up in 2023.

As for house temperature, I agree with others.  The temp is way to low for your pipes.  Low 50's at a minimum.  I personally would never let my house go below the upper 50's.  Nothing to do with cigars.

[joeypots]

Just a bit more info. I use beads to keep my cabinet humidor a consistent RH of about 62%. There is no active humidification. I've found over many years that I can introduce moisture quickly but it can be difficult to remove it. So, normally in winter It's pretty cold where the cabinet is kept. 55 to a high of 60 degrees F. It's no big deal to keep the house, it is small, at 50 F and if that's going to avoid mold I'll do it. I'll follow Edward Sahakian's lead on temp and RH any day.

[wineguy]

In addition to pipes, I think 40 is problematic for your plaster or drywall, hardwood floors and I'm sure some others.  When I am gone for an extended period I go with 60 degrees for the house. It may cost me a couple or few hundred more to do that but it saves a lot of other problems. 

[Vito]

Actually at that low of a temperature, your cigars will absorb all the existing water vapor in the air or most of it and it will settle on and into your cigars. Regardless of whether you have 69% Bovedas or 42% Bovedas and forget about active humidification completely.  To store that low and not have water vapor fall out of the air into liquid onto your cigars, you'd have to have like a 5 or 10% Boveda.  I'll let Pigfish go into why this happens.  I don't have the patience to do all that typing.

[Mikeltee]

3 hours ago, joeypots said:

Just a bit more info. I use beads to keep my cabinet humidor a consistent RH of about 62%. There is no active humidification. I've found over many years that I can introduce moisture quickly but it can be difficult to remove it. So, normally in winter It's pretty cold where the cabinet is kept. 55 to a high of 60 degrees F. It's no big deal to keep the house, it is small, at 50 F and if that's going to avoid mold I'll do it. I'll follow Edward Sahakian's lead on temp and RH any day.

Move the humidor near the thermostat. If it's set at 50 and its colder where it's currently located due to insufficient insulation you will have problems. 

[joeypots]

Thanks to everyone for the information. Mid fifties it is.

[cigarzfan]

There is humidity and there is relative humidity.

60% and below there is no "relative" humidity:

[Vito]

10 minutes ago, cigarzfan said:

There is humidity and there is relative humidity.

60% and below there is no "relative" humidity:

That’s not completely or even partially true but for storing cigars it is apt I guess. 
    For instance, it is 36 degrees F right now with a 91% relative humidity. I took a snapshot of current conditions here in Denver. It is ALWAYS relative until you get to freezing where all water vapor freezes and falls out of atmosphere. 

[cigarzfan]

2 minutes ago, Vito said:

That’s not completely or even partially true but for storing cigars it is apt I guess. 
    For instance, it is 36 degrees F right now with a 91% relative humidity. I took a snapshot of current conditions here in Denver. It is ALWAYS relative until you get to freezing where all water vapor freezes and falls out of atmosphere. 

I was talking about relative humidity as it applies to a 70/70 standard for cigars:

"If your temperature changes from 70°F to 72°F the RH should read 65% in order to keep an AH comparative to the standard of 70/70.

There are exceptions to the rule, though. Once the temperature goes below 60°F, there is no corresponding RH level that will give you an appropriate AH. The air simply can not hold that much moisture."