How to Make a Cigar Humidifier Hygrometer
A hygrometer measures the relative humidity in the air. This is important for a cigar humidor because the tobacco needs to be kept at a relative humidity of 70 percent for the cigars to stay fresh and ready to smoke. To measure the humidity in the air you need something that changes in response to the presence of moisture. Human hair has the protein keratin that curls up when moisture is present and stretches out when the water evaporates away, so hair can work as the basis for a homemade hygrometer.
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Things You'll Need
- Empty plastic milk jug
- One dime
- Hot glue gun
- Three 8-inch strands of hair
- One 12-by-4-by-4-inch cardboard box
- Thumb tack
- Scissors
- Marker
- Ruler
Instructions
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1
Cut out a 3-by-3-inch square section from the plastic jug. Measure the midpoint on one side of the square (1.5 inches between corners). Cut from the opposite corners to the midpoint to create a triangle with a 3-inch base. This is your pointer.
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2
Glue the dime to the center of the base of the triangle. Glue one end of the hairs to the front, center of the triangle (the pointer side) opposite the dime. Punch a hole through the pointer with the tack in the middle between the dime and the hairs.
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3
Set the box so the 12-inch length is vertical and the opening of the box is facing you. Cut a slit in the top, back middle of the box and pass the hairs through it by about 1 inch. Suspend the pointer by the hair and adjust the hairs so all three are pulled tight by the weight of the pointer and the pointer is hanging with the tip pointing straight out to the right. Glue the hairs in place.
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4
Push the tack into the cardboard and twist the tack until it spins freely. Take the hygrometer into a bathroom just after a shower and note where the arrow points after five minutes. Mark a line on the cardboard and label it "Humid." Take the hygrometer out of the bathroom and wait another five minutes. Mark the point where the arrow is pointing and label it "Good." Then make another mark the same distance from "Good" as "Humid" is, but on the opposite side, and label that "Dry."
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5
Put your hygrometer in your humidor. Let it sit for 24 hours to adjust to the conditions before checking the reading.
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References
- Photo Credit hair texture image by Xavier MARCHANT from Fotolia.com
