Design and construction
The design and layered construction of the Humidor guarantees maximum robustness, while also providing the perfect interior isolation. Even if the exterior suffers damage or severe deterioration, the Humidor will continue to carry out the work it was conceived for: to maintain your Cigars in perfect condition
5 layers make up the walls of the Humidor: The interior layer, made from Spanish cedar, which along with our system of adjustable humidification guarantees perfect conditions of constant humidity to protect your cigars. Supporting the inner layer is a second layer made from insulating polymer – non-toxic, odourless, resistant to humidity and antibacterial. This creates a cavity of air between the interior and the frame of the box, absorbing those small movements which can occur in the layer of cedar, while retaining the humidity. Therefore, this layer, in conjunction with thin layer of cedar, allows for the perfect closure of the Humidor.
The third layer is made from an inert and odourless primer which completely separates the inside form the outside, avoiding any leak in humidity, while also preventing any loss of shape of the external wood.
The fourth layer is the “frame” of the Humidor. Built with Finnish birch plywood of the highest quality, this highly stable wood is light yet resistant to the elements. This layer bears all the strains while giving support and shape to the box.
The fifth and last layer, apart from adding strength, gives the Humidor its beautiful exterior finish. For that we have selected and combined the most spectacular woods sourced from all over the world.
The fact that the exterior of the box is solid wood allows us to add curves, shapes, and designs impossible to get with a Humidor made of wood veneer.
The hinges which we use in our Humidor are built from solid brass which is extremely strong. Furthermore, they have an auto-stop system which allows the lid of the humidor to stay open at 95 °.
Getting started – Setting-up your Humidor
The step is fundamental for the correct working of your Humidor, as it is here where we will provide the necessary humidity to the cedar interior.The first thing that you should do when you receive your Humidor is to stick the magnets to the humidifying system and the hygrometer. Although the adhesive stickers supplied work in humid conditions it will always stick better when the cedar is dry.
To this end, make sure the holes of the humidifier are open so that when you stick the humidifier the logo is straight. Remove the paper which covers the adhesive stickers from the magnets and stick them with force for thirty seconds in their place. Make sure that the entry remains as horizontal as possible.
Remove the paper of the adhesive sticker from the metal sheet of the hygrometer and stick it in the same manner as above.
To that end, after having removed the hygrometer and the humidifying system from the box, place a container with distilled water inside the box, close the lid and leave it in a safe place during the night, or for approximately 12 hours (leave all the parts of cedar such as shelves or separators inside the box).
Once the 12 hours have elapsed, place the hygrometer (instructions in the inside of the box) in the interior of the Humidor, and make a reading of the humidity after approximately 1 hour. If the reading is less than 70%, place the container with the water inside the box once again, close the lid and wait 3 to 6 hours before repeating the reading.
Repeat these steps until you reach approximately 70% humidity (see the “Humidity of our Humidor” section).
If, after taking the reading, the humidity is greater than 70% you shouldn’t worry as the Humidor will adjust itself automatically after some time. To speed up the process you can also leave the lid of the Humidor open for a few minutes so that it loses humidity. Once the Humidor stabilises at 70% humidity, place the humidifying system with the sponge soaked in the distilled water inside the box (see the “Humidifying system” section).
Now you are ready to put the cigars into the Humidor.
Don’t be alarmed when introducing the cigars that the humidity inside the Humidor changes. This is completely normal because the tobacco of the cigars, as well as the cedar wood, has hydroscopic properties which can add to or cause the humidity to decrease in the environment and this is applicable to the Humidor also. However, the Humidor will self-adjust as time goes by.
Humidification System
The La Camera humidification system is built using a solid piece of aluminum alloy which is later anodized in black, which affords the system a strong defense against rust and deterioration.The sponge which our system uses is made from a synthetic material PVA (Polyvinyl Alcohol) which contains a tree-dimensional structure of open cells inter-connected to one another, similar to a natural sea sponge which gives the sponge a capacity for absorption and water retention superior to any other sponge.
Our sponges absorb twelve times their dry weight in water. Furthermore, they do not assist the growth of fungi or bacteria.
Only distilled water should be used to saturate the sponge as this is free from impurities which could result in the collapse of the sponge over time and which can promote the growth of mould.
The use of Propylene Glycol:
It’s normal to use a mix of 50% propylene glycol and distilled water to soak the sponge of the humidifier. This has two objectives: to equilibrate the humidity of the Humidor and to impede the appearance of mould in the sponge.
It’s not necessary to use propylene glycol in our Humidors as, thanks to the solid cedar wood and the humidifying system, the Humidor is able to regulate the humidity on its own. However, if you decide to use propylene glycol to assure yourself that mould will not appear we recommend you use a proportion of no more than 10% (mixed with distilled water) as a greater amount may collapse the sponge, reducing its qualities. This amount of propylene glycol is sufficient.
How to soak the sponge:
To soak the sponge, remove it from the humidifier by forcefully turning the two parts and thereby separating them and submerging the sponge in a clean container with the distilled water for approximately 10 minutes. The first time that you do this you will notice that the sponge remains rigid. This is normal. As the sponge soaks the water it becomes softer and its size will increase by approximately 20%.
In the future when you soak the sponge it will be softer and will take only a few minutes to completely soak the water, unless you have let the sponge dry completely.
When to soak the sponge:
In normal circumstances, the Humidor will have a stable level of humidity for a month or a month and a half since the last time you soaked the sponge. This will depend; obviously, on the amount of times the box is opened and the conditions of the environment of where the box is located.
Thanks to the quantity of humidity which the cedar wood can retain or release gradually in the interior of the Humidor, these conditions can remain stable for a long time even though the water in the sponge has been exhausted. Nevertheless, we recommend that when you observe that the humidity en the interior has dropped between 2 – 3% soak the sponge as previously indicated.
Rotating the cigars:
We recommend that you rotate your cigars once every two to three weeks, especially those which are piled on top of one another, as this facilitates better distribution of the humidity as well as letting clean air into the Humidor.
By doing this the humidity in the interior will fall. You don’t need worry about this, the humidor will return to its optimum levels in a short time.
Humidity level in the Humidor
The “ideal” humidity in the interior of the Humidor is 70%. Contrary to popular belief, a variation of ± 3 or 4% in the humidity will not affect your cigars.Although current hygrometers, especially digital ones, are very precise, they have a margin of error of ±2 % in the best of cases. This means that if you obtain a reading of 70%, due to this margin of error you could actually have a humidity of 68 or 72% without actually realising it.
What not to do
There is a belief that when you receive your new Humidor, with the aim of cleaning and preparing it, you must use a cloth soaked in distilled water to clean the walls of the Humidor. Please, DO NOT EVER DO THIS!The cedar wood, just like the majority of woods, can be deformed when it absorbs a certain amount if water. By wiping it with a wet cloth you do not control the amount of water that the cedar absorbs, possibly ruining the inside of the Humidor.
Although our Humidors are designed to support considerable deformation of the cedar layer, we don’t recommend the practise of washing the humidor, as when you are setting up your Humidor, if the interior has absorbed a lot of water it will have a too high level of humidity. The result will be to leave it to dry and starting the process of preparing the Humidor again.
Furthermore the interior of our Humidors has already being cleaned with compressed air. However, if you wish to clean it again, we recommend that you use a clean cloth wet with alcohol but completely drained. Wipe the interior of the cedar softly, and leave it to dry for a few minutes to dry any alcohol which may have been absorbed.
Please, never leave the Humidor in direct sunlight. This will raise the temperature in the interior of the Humidor changing the micro-climate within, ruining your cigars.
Furthermore, different woods react differently to heat and, while our Humidors are extremely robust, a sharp rise in the temperature of the exterior wood may cause cracks or loss of shape which, although may not affect the working of the Humidor, will ruin the its perfect exterior finish.
Avoid storing in your new Humidor cigars which have or have had mould as doing this will cause the disease to spread to your healthy cigars. If there are many cigars affected and you cannot consume them immediately, clean them carefully with a brush or soft cloth until all the stains have been removed before storing them in the Humidor. Even then we cannot guarantee that the mould will not return. Keep an eye on your cigars often and air them frequently. This will avoid or at least delay the reappearance of the mould.
Guarantee
Each and every LA CAMERA product has being painstakingly built with the finest materials. For this reason we guarantee its quality and perfect functioning.However, if your product were to have any manufacturing defect, La Camera offers you an International 10 Year Guarantee from the date of purchase of the product, during which we will fix free of charge any defect in materials or manufacture. If a product cannot be repaired it will be replaced with another product either of the same or of similar characteristics.
Damage caused by accident, inappropriate use or wear and tear of the product are not covered by this guarantee. Likewise, alteration, disassembling the Humidor or repair work carried out by someone unconnected to LA CAMERA are not covered either.
If your product has to be repaired or replaced, please contact us directly, indicating the Serial Number of your product and the defect and we will inform you of the correct way to proceed.