DryMistat Inc. - Cigar Humidification for the 21st Century

Questions and Answers

From time to time we get questions. Here are the most common ones. For a complete listing or to submit your own, email:questions

Where can I use the DryMistat® ?
A DryMistat® will work inside a humidor, a premium wooden cigar box, a plastic container or even a cookie jar. You might even try one in a three finger cigar case for portability. Actually any reasonably well sealed vessel can become a humidor. Your creativity is the only limiting factor. Place a DryMistat® near the middle of your "humidor". If using more than one DryMistat® space them evenly throughout your "humidor". This allows the tube to breathe on all surfaces.

How long until my box is stabilized?
Allow a few days for the relative humidity to become automatically stabilized. Please note, you may have to wait as much as 4 weeks to achieve balanced levels in new cedar lined humidors. Some people actually wipe the interior walls of a new humidor with a wet cloth to speed up the process.

How does the DryMistat® work ?
The DryMistat® is actually made up of three very simple components which, when combined together, form a very simple but unique system for stabilizing humidity in a closed container. It's so unique that patents are currently pending.
The Tube

The tube is the delivery system for the water vapor. It is a special grade of space age clear plastic which has microscopic pores in the walls. Even though you can't see these pores, they allow water vapor through, something like a permeable membrane. In fact, this plastic was developed to keep blister cards from sweating on the inside while in an air conditioned store by allowing the water vapor to pass through. The process of humidification that keep your cigars fresh actually occurs through the walls of the tube, not the holes in the cap. Water vapor will permeate through the walls of the tube, but the liquid will not. This allows you to place the DryMistat® right next to your un-celloed cigars.

The Crystals

Crystals keep the liquid from coming out through the cap. They are like space age super sponges. They soak up liquids up to 100 times their own weight. One pound of Crystals can soak up 25 gallons of water. You may have seen something similar to them used in baby diapers or the plant industry. They get larger when they soak up this liquid. As the water evaporates, the Crystals get smaller. This is the reason we use them. It gives you a visual indication of when it's time to add water. No more guessing when the unit is drying out. When the volume of the crystals significantly decreases in the tube, it’s time to add water. This should normally occur every 4 to 12 weeks. All you need to do is fill the tube with plain tap water approximately 3/4" below the top of the tube to the "Fill" line on the tube. The crystals will again swell to fill the DryMistat®. Please note, overfilling will not cause the cap to pop off.
The Chemicals
We have initially charged your DryMistat® with special chemicals and water to automatically regulate the relative humidity inside your humidor to 70%. You may have seen solutions marketed as balancing liquids to add to the Credo® style of humidistats. These chemicals are relatively safe and nontoxic. They are actually the same as those used in cosmetics and Easter egg dyes.

Why are there holes in the cap ?
The perforated cap does very little to control the humidity. It's there for two reasons. First, to give the humidification process an additional jump-start each time you open your humidor. Second, and more important, the Crystals swell significantly when they reabsorb the water. This causes the air in the top of the tube to become compressed. The holes in the cap relieve this pressure and prevents the cap from popping off.

How many cigars will it keep fresh ?
Each DryMistat® should adequately humidify from 30 to 50 cigars. BUT there are many variables which have to be considered in determining how many to use. How many times a day do you open your box? How well is the lid sealed? How dry were the cigars when you bought them? Do you live in a dry environment such as Arizona or a very humid area like Florida? Etc. Etc..... If your DryMistat® can’t keep up with demands of your environment or the cigar load you place on it, add another one. The DryMistat® should not over-humidify, even if you have as many as 5 or 6 in a humidor.

What if the DryMistat® is too long for my cigar box?
The DryMistat® tube is made of a tough unbreakable plastic. Simply cut the tube down with a scissor. You can make the tube as small as 1½" to fit into a traveling pocket humidor.

Why is this humidistat so different ?
Although we don’t like to knock the competition, we feel it is important that you understand why this is the best cigar humidifying device made. There are 2 basic types of humidification systems being marketed today; plain water systems and systems that have been charged with special humidity balancing solutions, namely water-propylene glycol mixes (PG 50-50). It is obvious that the plain water systems can raise the humidity as high as 95%, so these humistats needed to have little "gizmos" on the end to help you regulate how much vapor could come out through the holes in the tube. Water can also come out of these holes and it does, especially when you try to fill them. Better keep a towel handy.

The PG 50-50 systems are much better at controlling humidity but they have several drawbacks too. They need to be replenished on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. This becomes a chore to the average cigar enthusiast. One has to add distilled water (tap water will clog the unit) a teaspoon or so at a time though a grating to get to the ceramic block or Oasis foam block underneath. Of course water spills out. Big deal, you just work on a towel, shake off any excess and wipe down the outside before you return the unit to your humidor. But alas, what’s left on the towel is not only water. A small amount of the propylene glycol has washed out as well. Over time the mixture is no longer 50-50. There is more water than propylene glycol. After some time you’re dealing with a "quasi" plain water system where the relative humidity can go as high as 95%. What do they tell you to do then? Wash out your unit, allow it to dry and recharge with new humidifying solutions. This doesn’t sound like too stable an environment for an expensive cigar collection. With the changing content of the propylene glycol to water ratio, a great concept in maintaining 70% humidity has been voided. In our unit, the propylene glycol never washes out.

And For you techno-buffs we offer:
Hydra-Crystal™ are actually a space age plastic polymer. The technical name for them is super absorbent potassium polyacrylate. They act like sponges, but that's where the similarity ends. The absorption of water actually occurs at the molecular level. To simplify the explanation, we need to envision a single polymer crystal as containing many billions of very long "springs" which can be both stretched and relaxed. As the water molecules come in contact with this "spring", it stretches to surround it. As the water vaporizes and leaves the bond, the spring comes back to it's original compressed state. This expansion and contraction can occur hundreds of times before the crystals become "used up". This represents many years in the life of this product, even if rehydration were to occurs every 2 weeks.
Please notice we have NOT used the term distilled water in our specs. There are no pores to clog and therefore plain tap water is all that is needed. If there was an extreme amount of mineralization in the tap water, all that would happen is the deposits on the spring may prevent them from fully closing, thereby reducing the maximum effective life from 10 years down to 5.

Contained within the super absorbent polyacrylate crystals is a mixture of 50% propylene glycol and 50% water. The water contained within the crystals will vaporize and release moisture into a closed container like a humidor. Water alone can theoretically bring the relative humidity as high as 95%. The propylene glycol is a hydrostatic liquid which absorbs moisture when the relative humidity goes over 70%, thus helping to stabilize the mini-environment created within our humidor. As long as there is more than 50% propylene glycol present, the humidity should not go over 70%. Please note, the DryMistat® started at 50% water and 50% propylene glycol. The water evaporates but the propylene glycol does not and the ratio is always over 50%.

Q Placing a device, next to a cigar, that emits humidity will result in the a moldy cigar for any cigar that is actually touching the device.Therefore a cigar touching a drymistat would have the same result....mold. So, you cant just place them intermittantly with the cigars. The must be away from them where not contact is possible.

Do you feel differently?

A Eric,
The DryMistat? was designed to be placed in contact with the cigars. We have sold over 100,000 units in the last year and I have not heard of a single instance of moldy cigars. I have 5 drymistats in my humidor and have never had a moldy cigar. I suggest you purchase one and see for yourself.

Q Do you remove the clear plastic film at the top that surrounds the perforated cap and dispose of the solid cap and then replace the perforated cap? Norman

A Yes you should remove the cellophane and place the perforated cap in place.

Q Good Morning, When I bought my DryMistat, it had the perforated cover placed "back-to-back" with a solid cover, attached to the tube with a clear plastic band. I removed the band, and the caps obviously separated. I gather from your instructions that I'm supposed to use the perforated cap...is there any further use for the solid cap, or is it only a shipping/storage device? Thanks for your help, this looks like a great product!

A Thank You for Purchasing the DryMistat. The Perforated cap is all that is needed. You can discard the solid cap, or save it in case the perforated cap gets lost. The DryMistat will work with either cap.

Q Hello, I have recently purchased one of your products, the drymistat and am looking at it very closely. I have had no luck with other humidifiers in my cigar humidifier and yours looked promising. Although I believe your claims, I wonder why when I feel the tube or try to detect any moisture coming from it, it seems altogether dry as though there is no moisture emanating from it. I wonder if I have done something to inhibit its properties for humidification.
Sincerely,
Mickey

A Mickey,
You have done nothing wrong. The pores in the wall are microscopic so you won't feel any moisture on the outside of the tube. If you did then you wouldn't be able to lay the DryMistat next to a cigar.

Q Thanks Jeff for the response. Us cigar nuts are always looking for something better for our humidors, which sometimes are large Rubbermaid devices. Ihave been making my own for years using plastic containers with floral foam and a 50/50 mix of PG and distilled water but always looking for something better. In one of my real humidors (200 plus) I am using 4 of your drymistat and it is doing well. My question is have you ever given any thought to making one that would be in a say rectangular shape and would hold enough crystals to support lots of cigars. Todays cigar buyers are always buying "deals" and sometimes end up with lots of cigars on hand, so we would like something bigger and better. Mine have worked well and the idea was given to me by Jim Pendergast of humidor fame. As I am always trying to learn about cigars and accessories any information you could pass along would be appreciated. I am not trying to get into the business, I just like to be knowledgable. THANKS

Jeff Oster wrote:

A Ed,

Unfortunately there are those who create and those who copy. We created the DryMistat in early 1997. We were granted a patent by the US patent office in November. We have a patent on the device not on the hydra crystals. The hydra crystals have been around in the gardening industry for years to help the roots retain water. We use them along with our special tube with micro-pores and a mixture of PG and water. As for the knock offs, I have seen some of them and they turn moldy in the time it takes the factory to ship them to the stores.
Thank you for using the DryMistat.