My humidor has been at around 80 and I have a 150ct humidor that is properly season.
I'd like to know how many cigars I should put in my humidor to help lower the humidity and how many cedar chips? Also, how do I know how often to add more distilled water to my humidifier? each time I add a little distilled water to it, the humidity goes up... should I put a few drops in it? or just use beads a get rid of the humidifier?
(1) The best indication of RH is the cigars themselves. Feel them regularly. Spongy? Dry? Just right?
(2) If they feel OK to you, then it could be that your hygrometer needs calibrating. Most hygrometers that come with humidors are garbage. You can buy some Humi-Paks or Boveda bags and place the hygrometer inside. If the bag is supposed to run 72%, then that's what your hygrometer should read.
(3) You'll need to put a lot of cigars in your humidor. My guess would be 20 or so cigars to find out where you stand.
(4) Fill your humidifier with a distilled water-propylene glycol solution. PG helps regulate humidity. You can mix it yourself or buy it under a bunch of different brand names: http://www.knoxcigar.com/prglsoforhu.html
(5) You shouldn't need to add cedar strips to get the humidity down. They won't do much anyway if you're really around 80%.
I keep my cigars around 66% RH. Anything between 65% and 72% is fine. Lower humidity is better for long-term aging.
Similarly, I had perennial RH problems when I first purchased my humidor. Today, I own two desktops, both of which are equipped with analogue hygrometers and Madelaine's 100 Crystal puck. I have never had a problem since, and both humidors read IDENTICAL temperature and humidity. Moreover, neither humidor fluctuates above 71% or below 68%.
Also, I mix my own 50/50 PG solution with distilled water and medical, NOT food, grade propylene glycol ($5.00 will get you about 1L at your local pharmacy).
