Tupperdors, Plastic Smells, and My Solution

benjamin831 said:

I've been using a large water tight plastic tote for quite a number of years now and together with Boveda packs, they've done an incredible job creating a stable environment for my cigars.

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But recently, it has come to my attention that my tupperdor actually smells strongly of plastic. I was completely nose blind to it until a friend of mine brought up how strong it smelled upon opening. I tried airing it out for about 5 days but the smell remained. I did a little research and it seems that plastic will always have a smell, especially in an enclosed environment. In response, found these aluminum camping containers have seem to be an interesting alternative to my plastic totes.

View attachment 322752
View attachment 322753

I've have it for about a week now and can report of no smells whatsoever, just the smell of the wood boxes. I haven't noticed any issues with maintaining humidity either. It seems to hold it as well as the plastic totes. The one major downside is the price. Totes usually go for $20, but the aluminum trunk cost me $129 from Target.com.

Nonetheless, I think they work well and look good, so I don't mind paying more for it.

Click to expand...

benjamin831 said:

I've been using a large water tight plastic tote for quite a number of years now and together with Boveda packs, they've done an incredible job creating a stable environment for my cigars.

View attachment 322751

But recently, it has come to my attention that my tupperdor actually smells strongly of plastic. I was completely nose blind to it until a friend of mine brought up how strong it smelled upon opening. I tried airing it out for about 5 days but the smell remained. I did a little research and it seems that plastic will always have a smell, especially in an enclosed environment. In response, found these aluminum camping containers have seem to be an interesting alternative to my plastic totes.

View attachment 322752
View attachment 322753

I've have it for about a week now and can report of no smells whatsoever, just the smell of the wood boxes. I haven't noticed any issues with maintaining humidity either. It seems to hold it as well as the plastic totes. The one major downside is the price. Totes usually go for $20, but the aluminum trunk cost me $129 from Target.com.

Nonetheless, I think they work well and look good, so I don't mind paying more for it.

Click to expand...

What year is the Bob Jackson? SL, SLX, TS, TSX? I have a Fuso made by David Moulton who built frames for Eddie Mercks, who went out on his own in California. mine was made in 1990, TSX. all custom angles to match my bodies proportions, and tricked out with a Mavic Groupo which LeMond won the 90 or 91 tour on. it cost $6K in 1990......but i digress

there is nothing wrong with tuppadores, caseadores, humidors.
the first thing to establish is your house's temperature. where do you live. somewhere that is hot, cold, inbetween? look for the coldest place in the house and take some reading over a few days. is the aluminum case air/water tight? that will lead into humidity. you need to have a place in the house that is 70% or cooler. if you don't then you will have issues. if there is a place under 70F then it's all about the humidity. you will have to experiment. get a 4-pack of bovida 69% 60g packs...about $20. just drop them in and close it. you can't season it unless you get a custom built lining by a good wood worker. don't open the top for a week or even 2. it will take a long time for the bovidas to saturate the inside. every time you open the top you are going to loose 40-50% of your humidity, hence do a quick check so to minimize the the loss of RH.
you can also put a bowl/canister of distilled water which is the quickest way to get your humidity up. take some readings. if you your temp is higher than 70 then it won't work. you want to shoot for 65/65 to 70/70. as long as humidity and temp are between 65 and 70 you are okay. if not, it won't work.

i had this problem years back and i had to scrap the coolador idea and just get a wine cooler and have custom drawers made for it. it all come down to how much do you have invested in cigars inside the case compared to how much a new climate controlled humidor would cost. if you have 1k - 2k in cigars, a $200 humidor is worth the investment over time. with temperatures over 70F you are asking for cigar beetles and mold/mildew/fungus.

Post your stats to this thread so others can see what you are dealing with and what your best options are.
Here is my gratuitous racing cycle taken about 1999. looks the same. never had a spill all original. someone said it is worth about $10k now but i'd never sell. rides like a pors che!