Walk-in cigar humidors require a special type of humidification system in order to work. Indeed, regular Boveda packs won’t be able to provide sufficient humidity control for even the smallest walk-in humidor. Therefore, this guide will provide you with an outline of the Best Walk-In Humidor Cigar Humidifiers:
- Wall-Mounted Mini Mist Humidifier
- XXXL Evaporative Cigar Humidifier
- Ultrasonic Commercial Cigar Humidifier
- Walk-In Humidor XL Cigar Humidifier
- XXL Evaporative Humidor Humidifier
- Cigar Oasis Magna 3.0
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- Volume Capacity:
- Metric: 34 m³
- Imperial: 1,200 ft³
- Dimensions: 14″ x 8″ x 21″
- Level Control: Analogue Dial
- Price:
- $1,299 [Buy On Elegant Bar]
Our favorite walk-in humidor humidifier is this simple wall-mounted contraption. Thanks to its stylish design, it can be sleekly fixed to your wall without being overly cumbersome. It comes with a 43-litre reservoir, but you can choose to link it directly to a water source for maintenance-free running.
While the other humidifiers use digital controllers, this model just has a simple analog dial. Some people may regard this functionality as a limitation since you have to adjust it directly on the machine. However, it also offers simplicity.
Additionally, the humidifier is equipped with silver ion antibacterial technology. Therefore, it disinfects the humidor’s moisture rather than spreading germs around the room, which could cause outbreaks of mold.
Finally, it should easily be powerful enough for most domestic walk-in humidors. Assuming the ceiling is about 2.5 meters high (8.5 feet), it can easily humidify a 12 m² (130 ft²) room.
"Sleek, stylish, and modern, this large-scale humidifier is ideal for most home setups and is very easy to use."
- Volume Capacity:
- Metric: 51 m³
- Imperial: 1,800 ft³
- Dimensions: 25″ x 15.5″ x 23″
- Level Control: Wireless Digital
- Price:
- $1,025 [Buy On Elegant Bar]
The XXXL Humidifier is the second most powerful humidifier on this list. Indeed, it can cover up to 20 m² (215 ft²) of surface area assuming the ceiling is the same height mentioned above. Such a level of performance will usually be enough for most tobacco shops!
Its neat appearance resembles a small sideboard or nightstand and it features a wooden finish to blend into the humidor. Its 5 US gallon reservoir will provide months of moisture before it needs recharging. However, it can also be connected directly to a water line for smoother running.
Thanks to its twin fan system, the XXXL Humidifier easily distributes moisture throughout the room. Nevertheless, we still recommend additional fans as we describe below. Meanwhile, it can be conveniently operated from a wireless digital controller, which has an in-built hygrometer to give you the real-time level.
- Volume Capacity:
- Metric: 23 – 113 m³
- Imperial: 800 – 4,000 ft³
- Dimensions: 18.25″ x 7.25″ x 24″
- Level Control: Wireless Digital
- Price:
- $1,250 [Buy On Elegant Bar]
This humidifier uses a slightly different delivery system, which results in the most powerful performance on this list. Through ultrasonic vibrations, the water molecules are stimulated into vapour and then projected out of the flexible nozzle.
Admittedly, it’s the least aesthetic humidifier and the large hose-like nozzle isn’t very appealing. Nevertheless, it can cover up to 48 m² (516 ft²), which is basically a small apartment! Very few of us are fortunate enough to have such a large storage space!
Given its potential output, we strongly suggest connecting it to a water line. Similarly, it can be monitored from a wireless digital controller so you can mount it out of reach if necessary. You can also purchase a wall-mounting bracket so it can be neatly tucked away.
As we explain in detail below, ultrasonic humidifiers are a little delicate to use in a walk-in humidor. Therefore, it’s only recommended for very large spaces.
- Volume Capacity:
- Metric: 2.8 – 28 m³
- Imperial: 100 – 1,000 ft³
- Dimensions: 13″ x 7.75″ x 22″
- Level Control: Wireless Digital
- Price:
- $645 [Buy On Elegant Bar]
This small and inoffensive humidifier is great for most home walk-in humidors. Its range covers about 11 m² or 118 ft², which should be enough for a small converted room. Nevertheless, it offers similar features as larger models.
For instance, its wireless digital controller means that you can have easy access to it while you can connect it to a direct water line, too.
- Volume Capacity:
- Metric: 11 – 42.5 m³
- Imperial: 400 – 1,500 ft³
- Dimensions: 22″ x 14″ x 23″
- Level Control: Wireless Digital
- Price:
- $845 [Buy On Elegant Bar]
A smaller version of the humidifier in second place, the XXL humidifier is great for medium-sized walk-in humidors of about 16 m² or 172 ft². Meanwhile, it features the same visual finish and digital controller as the Huntington.
If you don’t quite have the same budget as the Huntington and don’t really need the extra capacity, it’s a solid choice. Bear in mind, though, that since it’s made for smaller volumes, it only features a single fan.
- Volume Capacity:
- Metric: 0.3 – 0.7 m³
- Imperial: 10 – 60 ft³
- Dimensions: 13″ x 6.5″ x 6″
- Level Control: Digital & WiFi
- Price:
- $209 [Buy On Elegant Bar]
- $215 [Buy Now On Amazon]
Admittedly, the Magna isn’t going to be nearly powerful enough for a proper walk-in humidor. Nevertheless, it’s a great mid-size option for a cabinet or wardrobe conversion.
In some houses, there simply isn’t space for a walk-in humidor. However, the owner’s collection might be too large for a proper cigar cabinet. If you need something powerful enough for a converted cupboard but isn’t overkill like the options above, this is your best bet.
Furthermore, it even has a feature that the others don’t, which is WiFi control. Therefore, you can control it using an app on your phone!
Types Of Walk-In Humidor Humidifiers
As explained in the opening of this guide, walk-in humidors require very powerful humidifiers. Since you’ll be controlling humidity levels in a large volume with a floor space of at least 4 m² (43 ft²), you need something that can dish out a lot of moisture.
Sadly, this reality means that things like Boveda packs and gels simply won’t cut it. It’s a shame as we love using Boveda’s large 320g packs even in large cigar cabinets.
Instead, you’ll need to rely on heavy-duty humidifiers. These are quite similar to devices used in greenhouses and other sensitive commercial environments. However, they can work using several types of technology.
Ultrasonic Humidifiers
While most electronic humidifiers tend to offer similar levels of performance, ultrasonic humidifiers need mentioning first. While they can be extremely powerful and easily humidify large spaces, they also have a distinctive shortcoming.
As the water is vibrating using ultrasound, the mist it creates isn’t actually a fine vapour. In fact, the particles are quite large and can sometimes form as droplets. Consequently, the precipitation that they produce can actually cause damage if they come into direct contact with the cigars.
Therefore, it’s recommended that they operate in an open space at a safe distance from your collection. If your walk-in humidor is cramped, we recommend that you use something else.
Steam Humidifiers
These are particularly rare these days and are very rarely marketed for cigars. They’re typically used as an alternative to central heating that doesn’t produce dry air. You can also find similar devices in some saunas and large-scale laundry businesses.
The biggest issue with steam humidification is that you’re essentially using a large kettle that heats up water to release steam. Since steam is produced at a high temperature, it can quickly warm up your collection.
As you know, heat and high levels of moisture don’t mix well with cigars. Unless you invest in air conditioning to counteract the heat, you could end up with both mould and tobacco beetles.
Simultaneously using a steam humidifier to produce heat alongside an AC unit to reduce temperatures will cost a fortune in energy bills. The only upside is that the water vapour is sterilised when boiled. Nevertheless, steam humidifiers aren’t recommended for walk-in humidors.
High-Pressure Spray Misting
An expensive yet effective solution, high-pressure spray systems are commonly found in greenhouses as well as some vegetable stalls in supermarkets. These devices use highly compressed into a fine mist.
Since they aren’t freestanding devices, they can be integrated into a walk-in humidor’s ceiling. However, they’re best installed when the room is being built. As they’re quite pricey and very hard to calibrate to the precise humidity level needed for cigars, they’re quite rare.
Like ultrasonic humidifiers, they produce heavy droplets. Although there is a lower risk of water damage, they need a separate fan system to be properly distributed as the droplets are quite heavy.
Evaporation Humidifiers
These days, most cigar humidifiers are made using this technology. Not only are they the cheapest, but the type of vapour produced is the safest for cigar storage.
Water is converted into vapour by being pushed through its system by compressed air. They don’t produce any heat and the vapour is both light and fine enough to distribute itself throughout a relatively large space.
That being said, any large humidifier for walk-in humidors is far from perfect. Therefore, we suggest that you read the below points before you finish setting up your cigar storage space. You can also refer to our main walk-in humidor guide for more information.
Additional Hygrometers
Although the controllers or “hygrostats” supplied with humidifiers are usually quite accurate, it’s important to remember that you’re humidifying a large space. If you rely on a single hygrometer, you’re only getting data from a small area of the whole walk-in humidor.
We strongly recommend that you invest in several hygrometers that are evenly arranged throughout the humidor. You can then use these to check that the walk-in humidor’s humidity is consistent and identify any dry or moist pockets before they become a problem.
Since you may have a large space, a series of smart sensors might be more convenient. Devices like the Boveda Butler can be set up on Bluetooth or Wi-Fi so you can check them all in one go on your phone. They will also send alerts if your humidity or temperature fall or rise outside of a set threshold.
To ensure that you don’t experience any damp or dry areas in your walk-in humidor, we also suggest that you read the following section.
Ventilation
Since these humidifiers don’t use two-way humidification like Boveda packs, they’re only pumping more moisture into the walk-in humidor. Therefore, it’s very easy to over-humidify the space.
Given that a walk-in humidor contains a vast collection, the last thing you want is a mould outbreak or tobacco beetle infestation. Similarly, a walk-in humidor humidifier may produce a lot of moisture but its fan might not be powerful enough to send it evenly throughout the whole space.
Consequently, you need a way to be able to properly distribute the moisture as well as efficiently evacuate it when there’s too much.
Firstly, we highly recommend installing a ventilation system. Anything from a ceiling fan to even freestanding electric fans will help circulate the air inside the walk-in humidor. It’s a simple yet effective way to prevent the build-up of overly dry or moist pockets of air.
Great care must be taken to properly calibrate the humidifier so it’s only delivering the necessary amount of moisture. Yet, if you have a sudden change in temperature, it can quickly become too humid.
Counteract humidity spikes with a way to evacuate excess moisture. A simpler approach is to just open the door, but this might be too much.
You can instead build adjustable air vents into the door for more controlled exchange. Alternatively, you can install an air extractor like those found in bathrooms that you can turn on manually.
Bear in mind that when you evacuate any moisture, the humidifier may detect a sudden drop in humidity and will try to fight it. Make sure that you adjust its settings according to the changes that you experience.
What Next?
Now that you’ve seen the best walk-in humidor humidifiers and have learned about the different types, why don’t you also check out our related guides below:
Cigars Contents
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