Author Topic: New cave way too humid  (Read 3261 times)

Offline scasnerkay

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Sunnyvale, California
  • Posts: 853
  • Cheeses: 197
  • Default personal text
New cave way too humid
« on: August 08, 2014, 05:24:02 PM »
I am getting used to my new thermostatically modified small freezer --> cave. My old set up always ran way to dry. But this one must have a much tighter seal. I have constant condensation dripping off the top coils of the freezer, which I have diverted with a tray to not drip on the cheeses. But it is a pain to have water all over! The humidity gauge is registering 92% in the cave. I think it is accurate, judging by the lovely growth of all kinds of molds and yeasty smelling things on the cheeses.
What do I do now??
Susan

Spoons

  • Guest
Re: New cave way too humid
« Reply #1 on: August 08, 2014, 05:53:07 PM »
John CH sells a RH control that can augment or reduce RH. You need to buy a desiccant pillow which is moisture absorbant.

http://www.perfect-cheese.com/humidity-control-system

Offline ArnaudForestier

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Madison, Wisconsin
  • Posts: 1,546
  • Cheeses: 45
  • Default personal text
    • Paul's FB
Re: New cave way too humid
« Reply #2 on: August 09, 2014, 01:05:45 AM »
I used to have the same issue.  I just made a plastic roof of sorts, that channeled the water to run down the back wall, back into a pan of water.  Cheeses were protected.  92% is nice, imo.
- Paul

Offline scasnerkay

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Sunnyvale, California
  • Posts: 853
  • Cheeses: 197
  • Default personal text
Re: New cave way too humid
« Reply #3 on: August 09, 2014, 04:17:24 AM »
Paul, don't those cheeses look a little scarey? They do to me... I have been vacuum sealing my cheeses up til now due to the former cave being too dry. But these are wild! I am not sure what to do with them!
Susan

Offline ArnaudForestier

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Madison, Wisconsin
  • Posts: 1,546
  • Cheeses: 45
  • Default personal text
    • Paul's FB
Re: New cave way too humid
« Reply #4 on: August 09, 2014, 09:48:02 AM »
Susan, please take my advice with a grain of salt; I'm still very much learning.  I also may have the benefit of concentrating on a very limited selection of cheeses in my cave - washed rind, French style alpine cheeses, so the regular inoculation of these cultures (yeasts, geos, coryneforms, micrococci, etc.; or, as now, morge made with the rinds themselves of cheeses I make) have tended to help stave off the blues.  They just can't compete.  I'd still get minor blue spotting on some cheeses, but these were faults in the knit, not anything endemic to the cave (as blues are everywhere, I'm sure you know). 

So, given this proviso, in my experience my new caves (like yours, in smaller, converted refrigerators, etc.) have always acted bizarrely, until they'd settled in and were stocked with cheeses.  Given that, to "jump start" my cave, I got this idea from Pav, back when I first started:  to literally wash the walls of your cave in a brine containing whatever cultures you will be using as your dominant cultures.  Not sure what style you're into, but there are certainly yeasts, geos and likely others that would be common to your cheeses - yes? 

Eventually, I'd think your cheeses would settle in, regardless.  Take care of your blue formations with rind treatments (I use vinegar and salt), and eventually, it will settle in.  If you're concerned about blues forming now, I'd wash your cave thoroughly, sanitize it thoroughly, and re-stock your (treated, if they're a concern) cheeses. 

Again, I hope I'm giving good information.  There are others far more knowledgeable than myself.  (Sailor, for instance, is a microbiologist, and Pav is, well, Pav).  Regardless, my feeling is, basically, don't sweat it.  It will settle out nicely.  Getting 92% is not easy, and many have the opposite problem to yours.  I'd say, congratulations on getting a great environment going.  Best of luck.


- Paul

Offline scasnerkay

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Sunnyvale, California
  • Posts: 853
  • Cheeses: 197
  • Default personal text
Re: New cave way too humid
« Reply #5 on: October 31, 2014, 07:54:05 PM »
Just to update this post...  I purchased 2 desiccant canisters from Amazon. They are metal and the contents can be emptied into a pie dish to "recharge" them in the microwave. Since I have been making cheese almost every week, the cave has quite a few cheeses giving off moisture. I find that I have to recharge the 2 canisters every week in order to keep the humidity down to around 90%. Otherwise the humidity goes above 95% and water is collecting in the bottom of the "cave". I recharge by microwaving on full power for 5 mins, stirring the beads around a bit, then another 5 minutes. I can tell they are dried out by the color change and by the decrease in weight in the canister when I pour the beads back in.
I did zip tie a semi-rigid plastic panel to funnel the water from the top coils to the back wall of the freezer, and that is working well to resolve the dripping on cheeses problem.
As long as I am consistent with tending the cheeses, the wild blues and black spots can be held in control.
I think it would also help to remove all the cheese and give the freezer and good cleaning, but that is a job for another day!
Susan

Curdtastrophe

  • Guest
Re: New cave way too humid
« Reply #6 on: October 31, 2014, 11:47:18 PM »
I hope you're using a food safe dessicate.
Silica gel contains a class 2b carcinogen (cobalt chloride) which shouldn't be used near food.

Offline scasnerkay

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Sunnyvale, California
  • Posts: 853
  • Cheeses: 197
  • Default personal text
Re: New cave way too humid
« Reply #7 on: November 01, 2014, 02:45:33 AM »
It says it does not have cobalt in it!
Susan

Offline Al Lewis

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Port Orchard Washington
  • Posts: 3,285
  • Cheeses: 179
    • Lou's Food & Drink
Re: New cave way too humid
« Reply #8 on: February 19, 2015, 02:43:12 AM »
Looks like you bought the same cave I have.  I just wipe the coils with a clean bar towel when I tend my cheese.  I also keep those vacuum packed on the top shelf so they catch any drops.
Making the World a Safer Place, One Cheese at a Time! My Food Blog and Videos