Take a look at this unit. I think it may work inside a closet. The acrylic is inert and as humidors go it won't break my piggy bank. I am just concerned that in Colorado, with the humidity level just above the sun's, I'll be dead before my little brood of Pu enters adolescence.
http://shop.humidors4u.com/products/hum ... co-humidor
So what do you guys think?
Jun 13th, '09, 10:37
Posts: 1936
Joined: May 22nd, '06, 11:28
Location: Trapped inside a bamboo tong!
Contact:
hop_goblin
Jun 13th, '09, 11:15
Posts: 342
Joined: Jul 30th, '08, 02:24
Location: Cambridge, MA
Contact:
xuancheng
Hmmm....nice pick-up. 5" would be pushing it. I do not want it as a display cabinet. Would actually keep it inside my closet. Just like the idea of a controlled environmentxuancheng wrote:It looks like it is divided up into 9 compartments that are about 5" x 10" x 8" each. Can you fit a tea cake into something like this? It would be a pretty nice display cabinet.
Jun 13th, '09, 14:14
Posts: 529
Joined: Jul 23rd, '08, 17:07
Location: The Isle of Malta
Jun 13th, '09, 14:15
Posts: 529
Joined: Jul 23rd, '08, 17:07
Location: The Isle of Malta
What a cool idea!!!
With humidity an average of 40%, it would be great to have something like this so my babies will age!!
Big downside - the compartments will be too small.
At 14" wide, divided into 3 compartments (not knowing how much to allow for the thickness of the acrylic panels x3) that's somewhere less then 4.6" wide per bin.
Oh, but if you stack the bings on end, then it's 24" divided by 3 - somewhere less than 8".
Hmmm - just took out 4 bings randomly and measured diam - 7.5-8".
Would be frustrating to spend the $, only to have it arrive and the bings don't fit.
But still - what a great idea.
Has anyone taken measures to humidify their bing environs - and if so, have you had to deal with mold and/or mildew? I haven't done anything with humidity for fear of this problem. Could potentially ruin a large investment.
???
Gosh this is tempting though!
With humidity an average of 40%, it would be great to have something like this so my babies will age!!
Big downside - the compartments will be too small.
At 14" wide, divided into 3 compartments (not knowing how much to allow for the thickness of the acrylic panels x3) that's somewhere less then 4.6" wide per bin.
Oh, but if you stack the bings on end, then it's 24" divided by 3 - somewhere less than 8".
Hmmm - just took out 4 bings randomly and measured diam - 7.5-8".
Would be frustrating to spend the $, only to have it arrive and the bings don't fit.
But still - what a great idea.
Has anyone taken measures to humidify their bing environs - and if so, have you had to deal with mold and/or mildew? I haven't done anything with humidity for fear of this problem. Could potentially ruin a large investment.
???
Gosh this is tempting though!
Last edited by Seeker on Jun 14th, '09, 16:13, edited 1 time in total.
Another thought - when fine dining, I have often brought Pu-erh for after dinner.
So, I looked for a nice caddy for my tea that would fit nicely into my interior jacket pocket. Found the perfect caddy - a stainless steel/leather-bound cigarette box.
Sadly when it arrived it reaked of tobacco - there weren't ever any cigarettes in it, but being sold by a tobacco related company, it had been stored with lots of tobacco products and acquired the odor.
2 years it took for the odor to face away to nothing (due to the leather, I was concerned about various ways of trying to cleanse the odor away - so I just opened it and left it out on a shelf; only recently did I check it and find it odor free; finally I can use it).
The point being, it would be good to check if this item is stored near tobacco products, or, heaven forbid, has been returned after a purchaser sent it back (after of course keeping cigars in it until discovering he/she didn't like it).
So, I looked for a nice caddy for my tea that would fit nicely into my interior jacket pocket. Found the perfect caddy - a stainless steel/leather-bound cigarette box.
Sadly when it arrived it reaked of tobacco - there weren't ever any cigarettes in it, but being sold by a tobacco related company, it had been stored with lots of tobacco products and acquired the odor.
2 years it took for the odor to face away to nothing (due to the leather, I was concerned about various ways of trying to cleanse the odor away - so I just opened it and left it out on a shelf; only recently did I check it and find it odor free; finally I can use it).
The point being, it would be good to check if this item is stored near tobacco products, or, heaven forbid, has been returned after a purchaser sent it back (after of course keeping cigars in it until discovering he/she didn't like it).
Yet another thought:
I've been really thinking about this humidor idea.
What about heat?
Pu needs humidity AND heat - consistent I think.
Small space heater? Seems potentially dangerous in the closet with that humidor.
Hmmm, then with heat, does humidity become that much more likely to invite
mold &/or mildew?
I've been wondering about this for awhile now - ever since (about a year ago) I
learned that Pu doesn't age without heat and humidity. Although with air circulation, they will lose qualities - very different than aging.
I've been really thinking about this humidor idea.
What about heat?
Pu needs humidity AND heat - consistent I think.
Small space heater? Seems potentially dangerous in the closet with that humidor.
Hmmm, then with heat, does humidity become that much more likely to invite
mold &/or mildew?
I've been wondering about this for awhile now - ever since (about a year ago) I
learned that Pu doesn't age without heat and humidity. Although with air circulation, they will lose qualities - very different than aging.
Well I am going to take the plunge. I spoke to the owner of the store, Kevin, and he thinks that I will be able to remove the partitions without much difficulty.
I will report on my efforts, pictures included. The nice thing is that Kevin has offered us a discount. If we put tea box in the discount code area...he will take 15% off the price. I negotiated that just for you guys
I will report on my efforts, pictures included. The nice thing is that Kevin has offered us a discount. If we put tea box in the discount code area...he will take 15% off the price. I negotiated that just for you guys
Wow Taco - super cool! 
Regarding heat - Yeah - too risky.
However, I am assured by several chinese pu experts that sans a fairly consistent heat & humidity - pu's will not age.
When I found this out, and I pressed the point, I was supremely bummed-- realizing that all the pu I had would not age.
There is a lot of misinformation out there, some of it subtle, sort of suggesting that you can age it. Well unless you have consistent humidity of at least 70, and heat at least 90 - no aging.
Regarding heat - Yeah - too risky.
However, I am assured by several chinese pu experts that sans a fairly consistent heat & humidity - pu's will not age.
When I found this out, and I pressed the point, I was supremely bummed-- realizing that all the pu I had would not age.
There is a lot of misinformation out there, some of it subtle, sort of suggesting that you can age it. Well unless you have consistent humidity of at least 70, and heat at least 90 - no aging.
Jun 15th, '09, 02:02
Posts: 152
Joined: Sep 11th, '08, 17:15
Scrolling: scrolling
Location: PA, USA
That jury will be out for us for some time.Seeker wrote:There is a lot of misinformation out there, some of it subtle, sort of suggesting that you can age it. Well unless you have consistent humidity of at least 70, and heat at least 90 - no aging.
I prefer to think in terms of average relative humidity. Consistent is misleading: I think that even if a minimum average humidity is required, the tea can suffer periods of low humidity and lower temps. Some puerh minds have suggested that the tea will benefit from regular 'rests' with lower humidity. Sorry no references to cite, look around. This has been discussed quite a bit already in this forum.
I'm not suggesting that higher heat/humidity isn't useful and won't accelerate some part of the process: I've had the opportunity to try a variety of puerhs, ages, including different storage conditions. Like many here, I don't mind a little shicang.
According to the weather websites, my average relative humidity is roughly 68%. I also use a hygrometer near my storage area but don't keep records. I don't have A/C in my home, and the indoor humidity drops significantly in the winter because of the furnace. I know that 4-5 months of the year here can seem very humid to me. I haven't considered using a humidor.
Cha Dao ran this series of articles: Perspectives on Storing and Aging Pu'er Teas (this is the last article which links to the previous ones). A handful of tea minds weighed in, and the result is a variety of useful opinions, anecdotal experience, and some empirical knowledge. Some of the contributors are also posters here. This is required reading.
The tea will age regardless, but not necessarily for the better.