Short answer: a humidor keeps cigars at a steady humidity. Boveda's range for cigars is 65% to 72% relative humidity, with 69% as its default, at around 70°F. A new wooden humidor has to be seasoned before cigars go in; Boveda's method takes 14 days.
What makes a humidor work
- Spanish cedar. Cigar Aficionado calls it the wood used for most cigar boxes and humidors, and says "Cedar absorbs and re-emits moisture." It is not a true cedar: "Spanish cedar is a marketing name for cedrela." Cigar Aficionado warns that red or aromatic cedar should never be used in humidors.
- A good lid. Cigar Aficionado notes that a humidor "is not a sealed environment" and should let a minute amount of air in and out, but a warped lid lets too much moisture escape. Boveda warns that glass-top humidors leak humidity.
- A humidity source. Two-way humidity packs such as Boveda, or a humidifier. Boveda says not to use its packs alongside other humidification.
- A hygrometer. Cigar Aficionado found analog hygrometers "frequently inaccurate" and recommends a digital one; Boveda says both kinds drift and need calibrating.
What humidity should a humidor be?
Boveda says "Store cigars between 65% and 72% RH," and "Boveda 69% is the recommended RH for cigars." It suggests 72% for drafty humidors and dry environments, and 65% for a drier cigar. Its 75% pack is for extremely dry conditions and should not go in airtight containers or be used for long-term storage, and 84% is for seasoning only. Cigar Aficionado's glossary puts a humidor at around 70%.
Above 72%, Boveda lists spongy tobacco, burns that won't stay lit, split wrappers and mold. Below 65%, it lists dry tobacco, muted flavor, quick burns and cracked wrappers. Keep the temperature around 70°F; Cigar Aficionado says tobacco beetle larvae hatch above 72°F.
How to season a humidor
A new wooden humidor is dry, and dry wood draws moisture out of cigars. This is Boveda's method:
- Count the capacity. Use one Size 60 Boveda 84% seasoning pack for every 25 cigars the humidor holds: four for a 100-count box.
- Take the cigars out. 84% is too high for cigars. Boveda suggests a humidor bag, or a sealed container with 69% packs, in the meantime.
- Add the seasoning packs and don't mix in packs of another percentage.
- Close the lid for 14 days. Boveda: "DO NOT open the humidor for 14 days—no matter what the hygrometer readings are." A hygrometer reads the air, and "A hygrometer can't measure the moisture in wood."
- Calibrate the hygrometer on day 12, Boveda says, so it reads true when the cigars go back in.
- Remove the seasoning packs. "Remove the seasoning packs and discard them—they aren't reusable."
- Add storage packs and load the cigars. Boveda's help center recommends 69% packs after seasoning; its how-to page and starter kit use 72%. Both sit inside its storage range.
Why 14 days? Boveda says a 100-count humidor needs about 100 grams of moisture to season fully, and each Size 60 seasoning pack releases about 35 grams. Most of the vapor leaves the packs in the first week, and the wood absorbs it slowly over the rest. A wet cloth, by Boveda's figures, adds two to three grams at most, all at the surface, and can warp the wood. Boveda adds: "Use a lower RH and seasoning will take even longer—up to eight weeks."
The older method. Cigar Aficionado's 1998 guide seasoned a humidor with a clean, unscented sponge and distilled water: wipe the exposed wood, leave the damp sponge inside on a plastic bag, check it the next day and wait another night before loading cigars. Boveda advises against wiping. As Cigar Aficionado put it, "you can't rush the process."
Not every humidor needs seasoning. Cigar Aficionado says humidors with varnished or finished interiors don't, Boveda says acrylic humidors don't, and Boveda seasons a wineador with wooden trays for 7 days instead of 14.
How to set up and use a humidor
- Calibrate the hygrometer. Boveda says to calibrate a new one before use, even one sold as pre-calibrated, then every six months. Its calibration kit is a salt test: seal the hygrometer in the bag for at least 24 hours at room temperature, and "Your hygrometer should read 75%." Boveda says a homemade salt test isn't accurate.
- Size the packs to the box. One Size 60 for every 25 cigars of capacity, or one Size 320 for every 100. Extra packs are fine, Boveda says.
- Place the packs where vapor can circulate: under the tray, on top of the cigars or in a holder on the lid, without blocking tray vents. Take off the clear overwrap but don't open the pack.
- Replace the packs. "Replace the Boveda pack(s) in your humidor every 3 months," Boveda says. Write the start date on each one.
- Find it a good spot, away from direct sun, air conditioning vents, radiators and open windows.
- Load it loosely. Cigar Aficionado says it is better to have air circulating between the cigars than to squeeze them in. Boveda suggests rotating first in, first out.
- Let new cigars settle. Boveda suggests you "acclimate new cigars in a Boveda Humidor Bag for at least 4 weeks" before they join the humidor.
- Watch the cigars, not just the gauge. Cigar Aficionado calls the cigars the true measure of a humidor; if they are "exuding a little oil, the conditions are perfect."
If the humidity is off
Too high: Cigar Aficionado suggests adding a strip or two of cedar to absorb the extra moisture, and warns against leaving the lid open, which causes wild swings. A very large box holding few cigars can over-humidify them.
Too low: Boveda lists the usual causes as an uncalibrated hygrometer, new cigars that haven't acclimated, wood that was never fully seasoned, too few packs and the wrong percentage. Its remedies are more packs, a higher-percentage pack such as 72% in dry seasons, and re-seasoning.
Keeping a humidor in Yuma
Yuma's air is dry: National Weather Service monthly averages from October 2025 to September 2026 ran from 24% to 50% relative humidity, and daily lows reach the teens (14% on 9 October 2026). Boveda suggests re-seasoning a wooden humidor once or twice a year in an extremely dry climate, and another Boveda article says every six months in a desert-dry one. Each re-seasoning takes 14 days. Our own cigars live in a walk-in humidor for this reason.
Choosing a humidor
Buy one "a little bigger than what you think you need," Cigar Aficionado advises; Boveda's version is "Choose a humidor you can grow into." Wood is the classic choice, but Boveda says acrylic humidors and airtight tupperdors paired with the right humidity control "often outperform inexpensive wood humidors," and notes that many cigar lovers use a sturdy travel humidor at home. Several allocated sets we carry arrive in one, such as the OpusX Story and the Opus6.
Beetles and mold
Cigar Aficionado says tobacco beetle eggs can hatch when a humidor rises above 72°F; the sign is a tiny, perfectly round hole. Its remedy is to freeze every cigar from that humidor for three days, move them to the refrigerator for a day, then rehumidify slowly. Cigar Aficionado's glossary says mold has color and leaves a stain when brushed off, while plume is a fine white powder that brushes off without a mark. Boveda says to throw a moldy cigar away. More in how to store cigars and how long do cigars last?
Humidity packs are in the Boveda collection, humidors in cigar humidors, and hygrometers in our accessories. Our Boveda guide covers which percentage to use. Call 928-276-3500 if you want help sizing a humidor.
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Frequently asked questions
How do you season a humidor?
Boveda's method: take the cigars out, place one Size 60 Boveda 84% seasoning pack for every 25 cigars the humidor holds, and keep the lid closed for 14 days whatever the hygrometer says. Then discard the seasoning packs, add storage packs and load your cigars.
How long does it take to season a humidor?
Fourteen days with Boveda's 84% packs. Boveda says a lower humidity makes it take longer, up to eight weeks, and that seasoning faster with a higher humidity risks damaging the wood.
What humidity should a humidor be?
Boveda's range for cigars is 65% to 72% relative humidity, and it recommends 69%. Cigar Aficionado's glossary gives around 70%. Keep the temperature around 70°F.
Should I wipe a new humidor with distilled water?
Boveda advises against it: a wet cloth adds two to three grams of moisture at most, all at the surface, and can warp the wood. Cigar Aficionado's 1998 method used a damp sponge of distilled water, so the advice differs by source.
Should I use 69% or 72% Boveda packs?
Boveda recommends 69% for most humidors and suggests 72% for drafty humidors and dry environments. Don't mix percentages in one humidor.
How often should I re-season a humidor?
Boveda suggests once or twice a year if you live somewhere very dry or your humidor can't hold its humidity, and another Boveda article says every six months in a desert-dry climate. Re-seasoning takes 14 days.
How do I calibrate a hygrometer?
Boveda's calibration kit is a salt test: seal the hygrometer in the bag for at least 24 hours at room temperature, and it should read 75%. If it doesn't, note the difference or adjust it. Boveda says to calibrate before first use and every six months.
Sources: Boveda, "How to Season Your Humidor with Boveda," "Storing Cigars 101," "What's the RH for Cigars?," "Are You Buying a Good Wood Cigar Humidor?," "Humidity, Honesty & the Humidor," "How to Build a Cigar Collection," "How to Use Boveda for Cigars," "How Long do Cigars Last?," "Cigars, Season Changes & RH Levels," "How to Winterize Your Humidor," "What to Look for in a Travel Humidor," "Your Guide to Mold on Cigars" and its help center (seasoning, calibration, pack size and replacement); Cigar Aficionado, "Storing Cigars" (1998), "Fighting Tobacco Beetles" (2000), "Top 10 Most Asked Questions About Cigars" (2010) and glossary entries (humidor, hygrometer, Spanish cedar, tobacco beetle, mold); National Weather Service Phoenix, Yuma climate reports.
