HUMIDORS - PART
ONE
This is part 1 of a three part series by woodworker Norman Pirollo about
"Designing and Building a Humidor".
Please visit this site http://www.fineboxes.com
for more information on humidors, jewelry boxes,
and a great woodworking course on CD that was designed and written by the folks
at White Mountain Design.
With all the buzz recently surrounding cigars, it has almost become a necessity
to store them correctly -
especially if you intend to stock a few very good domestic or imported cigars.
Cigars need to be stored at
a humidity level of between 60 – 70 %. Anything above or below slowly deteriorates
the tobacco leaves in
which the cigar is wrapped. Storing cigars in a fridge or freezer is not a good
idea, since the relative humidity
in these spaces is virtually zero. The cigar humidor is both a decorative
and functional box. These boxes
can be designed to be beautiful conversation pieces and center pieces of a room,
drawing attention to the
exotic domestic and imported woods used. The humidor is basically a box within a
box. The outer box,
the main carcass, is typically of hardwood construction . The inner box, which
is designed to be virtually
sealed from the environment, is built of Spanish cedar. It is this compartment
which holds the cigars and
imparts a natural aroma to the box.
Spanish cedar has been traditionally used as the liner, or inner box of a
humidor, because of its properties,
which include maintaining a constant humidity level. Spanish cedar is a natural
absorber and releaser of
moisture which is in the surrounding air, and performs this very well. It is
important to store cigars in a tightly
controlled environment with a fairly constant humidity level of between 60 –
72 percent. The temperature is
not quite as critical and has a wider range, but preferably should be at room
temperature of 68 – 72 degrees.
When designing a humidor for yourself, you need to consider the amount of cigars
which are to be stored at
any given time, and the average length of these cigars. Humidors can be any
size, with a hinged lid or a
combination of hinged lid, trays, and drawers. The most common type of humidor
is the standard box layout
with a hinged lid. There are numerous steps involved in creating a box of this
type. Precision joinery is a must,
since the inner box must be almost sealed from the outside environment. It is
always best to not pack or stuff
a box with cigars, you should only fill the humidor to 75% of its capacity, this
allows the cigars room to climate
correctly. The capacity of the humidor should be taken into consideration when
designing a humidor.
Typical hardwoods which are often used for the carcase of the humidor are
cherry, walnut, mahogany, oak, etc.
The outer box or carcase can be either assembled from solid lumber or
solid lumber with a veneered exterior.
Using the veneer process allows you to use more exotic imported hardwoods, which
are not commonly available
in solid stock. I typically use solid stock in my construction, since domestic
hardwoods are plentiful and are
usually easier to work with. Of course, you can stain any wood you use to assume
the look of a different,
richer wood. Once you have established the size of box you need, the process of
building the humidor is detailed
as follows:
BOX SIZE: Capacity 40 cigars --------- Length 12 inches, Depth 10 inches, Height
5 inches
BOX SIZE: Capacity 70 cigars --------- Length 14 inches, Depth 11 inches, Height
6 inches
The depth is dependant on the length of your cigars, 10 inches translates to
maximum cigar lengths of 8 inches.
This is determined by subtracting 1 inch from both the front and back of the
box. The ring size or size of the actual
cigar, determines how many you can fit
per row. It is best to allow 1 inch per cigar both in width and height.
The lumber requirements for a humidor of the typical sizes listed above very
reasonable.
4 ft. of 6 inch wide by 3/4 inch thick hardwood for the exterior box, which
translates to 2 board-feet,
[ This lumber would comprise the outside 4 walls of the box ]
8 ft. of 6 inch wide by ¼ inch thick Spanish Cedar for the interior box , which
translates to 1 board-feet
[ This lumber would comprise the inside liner box and the top and bottom of the
inside box. The inside box
is basically a 6 sided box of Spanish Cedar.]
The top and bottom of the outside box is typically ¼ inch stock. The bottom of
the outside box is typically
a ¼ inch piece of plywood which is inserted into a horizontal groove or dado in
the sides of the box approximately
¼ inch from the top edge. It is preferable to use a piece which has a hardwood
veneer for the outside of the bottom.
The bottom can also be rabetted and glued into the sides of the box, since the
¼ inch plywood sheet is dimensionally
stable. The top of the box is also ¼ inch stock, either matching plywood to the
sides of the box ,or a contrasting
veneered plywood such as Bird's Eye Maple. I prefer to use solid stock for the
top, which I resaw and plane down
to ¼ inch and then carefully book match and edge-glue. This allows me to use
any hardwood which I have available,
and the book-matching is a nice, added touch. The reason the top is inserted
into a groove, is to allow it to expand
and contract with the relative humidity of its environment. The top is not
actually glued in, but floats in this groove
or dado, which is routed into the four sides of the box. If you are using a
sheet of ¼ inch plywood with a veneered
or finished hardwood surface, then it is less important to take the wood
movement of the top into consideration.
Plane the sides with the long grain down a 1/16 of an inch on either side to
allow for wood movement of a solid
wood sheet.
You can purchase the lumber milled down to size or do it yourself with a
thickness planer.
It is also important
to consider waste when calculating total requirements of lumber.
END OF PART ONE
Purchase quality hardware and parts for your new humidor at: