In the spirit of holiday gift giving for a divorced man, I decided to buy something for myself; the Audew JC-48A Thermoelectric Humidor. I know you think that sounds like a luxury fax machine of some sort, but I promise you it's not. Before I share my shopping journey with you, I want to give you a small assignment. Go to Audews website (www.audew.com) and have a look around. You will find a host of various vehicle accessories such as portable battery jumpers, floor mats, HID Headlamps...thermoelectric humidors. (what?). Right, that's what I said.
So here's how I came to end my shopping journey with the purchase of my thermoelectric fax machine. In case you didn't already know, I live in the Northeast. Which means we have proper winters and cold temps, but it also means a large portion of this region’s Victorian style homes do not have central A/C. This means you have basically baseboard heating and no central A/C for cold air. The temps in my house fluctuate quite a bit because I have to dance a delicate balance between heating my house, and opening the window a bit to average a stable temp. This situation in the past has made me hesitate to purchase many higher end cigars because I cannot really control the temperature of my humidor. Since I have a Cigar Oasis Ultra 3.0 I can remotely keep an eye on my humidor’s temperature, as well as maintain and adjust the humidity levels inside the unit. My previous passive humidor the temperatures were fluctuating between 66-75 degrees, depending on the day.
Cigars like two things; consistent humidity and consistent temperature. When the temps in your humidor fluctuate too much too fast, it can affect the performance of your cigars of how they burn and even the flavor. This meant I had to make a decision. I could play around with balancing baseboard heating and cracking open the window..or...I could get a thermoelectric humidor. Now don't confuse a thermoelectric humidor with your typical college dorm style fridge. Thermoelectric humidors are specifically designed to cool your humidor without an A/C compressor which pulls humidity out of the air. This means you can cool the humidor without dropping the humidity.
All that aside, let's talk about the fancy fax machine. I went on Amazon’s website (like everyone else) and began the journey for my next humidor. I went on the internets and searched for a thermoelectric humidor, and discovered roughly 3 brands to choose from. There's NewAir, Whynter, and Audew. Perhaps another brand or two not mentioned, but nevertheless that is the breadth of selection. I tried to find a particular humidor by NewAir, the CC-100H, which unlike the other humidors has a heating function built in. So if your cigars are usually stored in cooler conditions such as a basement, garage, or you just live in a colder climate (such as myself) the NewAir Humidor could regulate the temperature more efficiently and accurately. However, that particular humidor was difficult to find and I literally became exhausted looking for one, so I accepted this situation and moved on. I was now left with basically two other brands; Whynter, and Audew.
I prefer to buy from a company that tends to specialize in cigar related accessories so I know where that company's R&D focus is. Since I was down to basically two brands I didn't really have this luxury, so I just have to make a choice. The Audew was less expensive than the Whynter humidor, easier to find, and held more cigars. This is the first thermoelectric humidor and Audew product I've owned and I have to say, I do not regret my purchase one bit. This particular Audew humidor, the JC-48A, is plenty spacious to hold several boxes of cigars, comes with removable slotted cedar shelves, and an adjustable medium sized shelf on top to hold loose sticks and accessories. I've owned this unit but for only a couple months, and already I can tell you that my Cigar Oasis App is showing me a steady line of consistent Temperature and Rh. No longer are the days of trying to balance the heating and cooling temps in my house to maintain my cigars. This new thermoelectric accoutrement in my arsenal means I can confidently expand my portfolio of cigars and enjoy each one to their fullest potential without let or hindrance. Try one for yourself and let us know your experience with this or any other thermoelectric humidor.
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