My wooden puerh humidor builing adventure

One of the intentionally aged teas, Pu-Erh has a loyal following.


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Jul 17th, '08, 11:43
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by shogun89 » Jul 17th, '08, 11:43

Wesli!!!!, havent seen you for awhile, how have you been. Pictures coming soon. be PATIENT!!!

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Jul 17th, '08, 12:24
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by hop_goblin » Jul 17th, '08, 12:24

shogun89 wrote:I'm glad to see more people are becoming interested in this topic. I think alot more people would be willing to "raise" a pu erh family if they knew how to properly store it. Hop, Your gun safe idea sounds neat, go get one and try it, lol. The good news is that I held 60% humidity last night, which is good considering I am in the seasoning process, which means the wood is sucking up all the moisture, so once the wood is saturated I hope to get up to 70%. I am going to try for pictures today for you guys, So please dont hesitate to tell me what you think of it whether they're good or bad, I'd like to hear what you guys think. The best part is I can finally start collecting and aging!!!!

Oh, and that propylene glycol, I knew the name but am so used to using the term ethylene form chemistry clase this year.
Shogun, I don't need to to make of buy a pu-erh humidor, luckily my closet stays a constant 72-85%RH. :lol:

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Jul 17th, '08, 13:52
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by heavydoom » Jul 17th, '08, 13:52

if this works, patent it, and sell it. i will get the limited edition pu erh humidor kit!!!

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Jul 17th, '08, 14:05
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by shogun89 » Jul 17th, '08, 14:05

Hop, I know you have a closet that stays nice and humid, I've been reading that topic between you and Wesli. Lucky for you you have an entire closet.
Heavy, It wouldn't be a bad idea to make them and sell them to people. The only problem is I used like $100 worth of furniture grad mahogany, Cherry and popler, so the kits would be expensive.

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Jul 17th, '08, 14:06
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by heavydoom » Jul 17th, '08, 14:06

shogun89 wrote:Hop, I know you have a closet that stays nice and humid, I've been reading that topic between you and Wesli. Lucky for you you have an entire closet.
Heavy, It wouldn't be a bad idea to make them and sell them to people. The only problem is I used like $100 worth of furniture grad mahogany, Cherry and popler, so the kits would be expensive.
don't you worry about money, :wink: !!!

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Jul 17th, '08, 14:20
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by shogun89 » Jul 17th, '08, 14:20

Sorry about this everyone but no pictures until after 5 p.m. today. My dad has the camera right now. I'll get on it ASAP. I will tell you that, my humidity is holding at 74%. once again though, this is still the seasoning process so these are not final measures.

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Jul 17th, '08, 17:45
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by hop_goblin » Jul 17th, '08, 17:45

shogun89 wrote:Hop, I know you have a closet that stays nice and humid, I've been reading that topic between you and Wesli. Lucky for you you have an entire closet.
Heavy, It wouldn't be a bad idea to make them and sell them to people. The only problem is I used like $100 worth of furniture grad mahogany, Cherry and popler, so the kits would be expensive.

OOHH nice wood! It's going to look nice! YES, please post pics!

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Jul 17th, '08, 17:51
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by shogun89 » Jul 17th, '08, 17:51

The pictures are here!!!!!
I think you guys will have to click the link in order to view (sorry about that). I figure I can get at least 25 cakes in the top shelf and more in the bottom. The top shelf is designed for tea and the humidity gauge as you can sea in the picture, the bottom is meant for the humidity trays using oasis foam and distilled water. there is an air gap between the front and back and the shelf to allow fresh humidity and air circulation. as shown the shelf is also removable for cleaning or whatever. I decided not to treat the wood with oil or stains because of the potential hazard to the tea. Enjoy and please tell me what you think!

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411 ... G_2617.jpg

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411 ... G_2622.jpg

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411 ... G_2621.jpg

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411 ... G_2620.jpg

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411 ... G_2619.jpg

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411 ... G_2618.jpg

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411 ... G_2624.jpg

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411 ... G_2623.jpg

Jul 17th, '08, 18:57
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by Ti » Jul 17th, '08, 18:57

Very cool shogun89. I like it. That wood is nice. I'm stuck with pine but that's the way it goes. :roll:

Good idea not to finish it due to possible tea contamination. I have been leaning in that direction myself but now that I see yours I'm definitely not going to put any finishes on mine either.

You said your shelf is short to allow air flow front and back. I'm wondering if it might be worth it to drill holes or cut a few slots in the shelf for air flow also? Might just be overkill but it's something I'm thinking of doing in mine.

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Jul 17th, '08, 18:59
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by tenuki » Jul 17th, '08, 18:59

shogun89 wrote:The pictures are here!!!!!

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image
Nice!

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Jul 17th, '08, 19:03
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by hop_goblin » Jul 17th, '08, 19:03

Very Cool! :idea:

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Jul 17th, '08, 19:12
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by shogun89 » Jul 17th, '08, 19:12

Yes Ti, I am still considering putting holes or slits or something in the shelf. I keep all my cakes in their original wrapper and then put them in a paper lunch bag and fold the top over so it gives them a nice air buffer between each other. Hopefully I can move the family in tomorrow. Thanks for all the comments everyone. :D
Oh and Tenuki thanks for doing what ever you did with the pictures so everyone can see them without clicking on the link, It makes viewing that much more pleasurable.

Jul 17th, '08, 20:47
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by Ti » Jul 17th, '08, 20:47

I'm thinking about swapping the plastic water container with a glass one. I have issues with plastic...out-gassing ect. Miniscule problem, I know, but you mentioned that your initial plastic version smelled like plastic. Just a thought. Like, who needs it, y'know?

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Jul 17th, '08, 23:22
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by shogun89 » Jul 17th, '08, 23:22

I guarantee you that any plstic smell from a small Tupperware sandwich box will be overcome by the wood smell. Mine smell like a nice woody like Oaky smell to it which, If it does effect the tea I'm sure it will do it in a nice way. I just dont think you need to use glass. OK, tonight's the big test, I have stopped wetting the inside with a sponge and have left only the humidifier in the box to see if I can reach a stable humidity level. If the whole build doesn't work I'll know tomorrow. :roll:
Oh and by the way if your looking for a new cake consider the one pictured, its very nice for $20.

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Jul 18th, '08, 10:28
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by shogun89 » Jul 18th, '08, 10:28

I am very happy to report that the humidity in the "puidor" stayed at a constant 75% all night, that means that the pu can move in!!!!!!!!!! and the build was a success!!
:D :D :D :D

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