Smelly Humidor! HELP!

[Tombstone]

Hi, I've been roaming these forums and cigar.com for a while now and I'd like to say that this seems like a good community here.

On to the problem. My roomate lit up a cigar from my humidor (this in itself should be a crime). The problem is that he put it out and put the cigar back into the humidor. Now the humidor smells like smoke! My question is how do I get rid of the smell and will the smell screw up with my cigars?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Guest]

Not much of a friend. Not even a practical joke since the cigars and humidor have been contaminated with the smell.

About the only thing I can think of is to fill the humidor up with spanish cedar shavings or sawdust and/or an open tin of baking soda (The top and bottom of an Altoids tin come to mind) to absorb the smell of the smoke. Not sure how you can get the smell out of the cigars.

 

[jrinam]

you could beat on room mate until smell goes away. never put one back in humidor, guess i know not to.

 

[Macallan]

How nice is the humidor? Honestly, your roomate should buy you a new one. If it was nice and unreplaceable you should try to put in the freezer. That should dry out the cedar. But be careful becuase the wood will most likely warp and cause more problems. I only suggest as a last resort.

 

[Amy]

man, that guy is a douche if i ever saw one. did he just not know any better or was it a joke?

 

[Bloofington]

Ahhhhh, the guy is a ROOMATE!!! And a roomate is not necessarily a FRIEND.

And this guy obviously is not. What a f_____' maroon. Everybody else here is right, including the part about beating the crap out of him. He ruined all your cigars and quite possibly your humidor, and that's a fact.

:cop: :tomcat: :biggun:

 

[Gyrepin]

The more time I spend on this planet, the more amazed I am that we have come as far as we have as a species. I wish I had advice for you concerning the smoke smell. I hurt for you, man. That sucks.

 

[nmcowboy]

Tombstone,
Hopefully you have removed your cigars, if not, drop by your local tobacconist and grab a humibag, take your cigars out and place in the bag, they will stay properly humidified in the humibag. That is if they are worth saving. Air the box out for a few days. You can lightly sand the inside of the humidor with some fine grain sandpaper and allow to air some more if need be. If your using the oasis foam to humidify your box you may need to replace the foam. That can be picked up at a florist shop. Ussually the boxes can be pried open, the new foam cut to fit and replace. Re-season your box and start restocking. If your current cigars still smell bad, obviously don't but them back in. If your roommate pulls that crap again, kick him in the nuts.

 

[Bloofington]

I feel so bad for Tombstone I almost feel like organizing a posse to take a new humidor and some cigars to him. In the process, we could all get drunk together, kick his roomate's ass, clear out of town before it gets around, and since Tombstone won't be anywhere near his place that night, fuhgeddaboudit!!! We don't remember nuthin' cuz we wuz drunk onna udder side o' town, and Tomstone wuz wit' us. :mrgreen: :sm_angel:

 

[Tombstone]

Thanks guys, I need all the support I can get.
The cigars mights be okay, I put them into a cigar box for the time being. They don't smell as bad as they used to. I guess I'll try the baking soda first... hopefully that will get the horrible smell out. If I must I'll sand it down but it sounds like qutie a bit of work.
Thanks for the advice.

 

[Bloofington]

Put in the time. These guys know it all and have made some excellent suggestions. It's worth the time, because it will "help you get in touch with" your hobby side.

After you take care of your precious cigars, then maybe you can "get in touch with" your roomate's face.

 

[Tombstone]

I just happened to smoke my cigars....and I'll tell you...it tasted awful. I didn't know if it was luck of the draw and so I lit up another...it was awful... I don't think these cigars are salvagable....this sucks.

 

[FreedomGuns]

Don't give up on your cigars yet...time can cure many things. I would segregate them from healthy cigars, but a long rest will probably help them, may take weeks or months. I had a similar problem on a much smaller scale (self inflicted). I was enjoying a cigar while looking in my humidor...I dropped my cigar...into the humidor! That was the first and last time I dropped a cigar. It was also the last time I opened my humidor with a lit cigar anywhere in the house. A mild, dry cleaning and a short, two day airing out of the humidor seemed to eliminate the smell from the ashes. Luckily, I was able to remove my cigars immediately, sparing them most of the trauma. Just remember that any change or fix for damaged cigars should be gradual, have patience and good luck.

 

[Amy]

before you throw them out try whatever you can to fix them. i am curious to see what would happen if you got them really humid for a few days then dried them rapidly, and repeated that a couple times. might get the smell out? at least try somthing before you throw them away. the drying may cause some cigars to crack though, id give it a try though.

 

[Tombstone]

Thanks for the advice guys. I'll see if time will help these cigars...I guess it doesn't hurt to wait.
As far as my roommate goes we've agreed that he will pay for some new cigars and possibly a new humidor if I can't get rid of the smell. So that spares me to have to break his face. I guess it's some what of a concession.

 

[RazorKing]

Hey Tombstone, I see your location. Are we talking Havana's???
I read that soaking your entire humidor in distilled water prior to use is a way to condition it. Don't know if it will work for your problem though.

 

[Macallan]

sanding the inside a little... that is brilliant. NMCOWBOY you amaze me. Great suggestion, something I would never have thought of.

 

[Bloofington]

Nmcowboy has been one of the most straightforward, knowledgeable, experienced and articulate cigar experts that I've had the pleasure of knowing in the five years I've been on the internet. I'm grateful we have him aboard.

 

[Blackwater]

Along with the baking soda, try using charcoal briquettes, like those used in grills. This also absorbs the smell very well. Just make sure you dont use the kind with any starter fluid already in it. i am not sure about the "BBQ" flavored kind, but I would guess that it would add a nice wood smell to it. Just to be safe, i'd go with striaght up charcoal.

I personally would use an odd (yet very effective method) by using kitty litter. Yea, that's right, kitty litter. Its main purpose is to absorb foul smells. It worked when I got the "ol' fart spray in the locker prank" years back. Smell was gone later that day. Other victims didnt use anything and theirs smelled for about a week after. So, give it a try you scardy cat!

 

[Tombstone]

Hey Tombstone, I see your location. Are we talking Havana's???

Yes most of them were Cubans (Romeo y Julieta, Montecristo, Trinidad and H. Upmann) and others were Dominican.

Regarding sanding, I'm not exactly a carpenter so I don't really know how much sanding is a "little." Any type of guidelines for sanding the inside of my humidor?