Question on regulating humidity in a cheese cave

[Zinger]

I've read the various posts about cheese caves, but I have a question specific to controlling humidity.

I am using a dorm fridge for aging my cheese. Most of them are cheddar which have been waxed, so for them I'm not too concerned about the humidity level in the fridge. But, I have one Parmesan that I put in there as well. The fridge is out in my garage and I don't even have it turned on because I can't get it warmer than 49 or 50 degrees even with it off. That will change as the weather warms up. I see that there is a way around the temperature problem with an external thermostat and I intend to research that further.

What I am finding is that the humidity level gets so high that the hygrometer goes off the digital humidity reading and simply says "very high". So I remove the Parm from the fridge and the humidity settles back down at which point I put the Parm back in. As the Parm continues to dry (which by the way has a nice rind to my way of thinking) will it cease to throw off so much moisture thus requiring me to start adding humidity to the fridge? Is this normal with a cheese like Parmesan?

Your thoughts and advice are always appreciated.

[DeejayDebi]

Here are to cntrolers that will help with the temperature issues. Just plug your power cord into it and then stick the probe inside the fridge and your golden!

http://www.northernbrewer.com/temp-control.html

[Cartierusm]

The contoller listed can be had on ebay for $50 if you have a little electrical experience.

As for the humidity it's hard becasue the cheese is giving off more than the frig can dissipate. Try putting a thin sheet of cardboard in the door and see how it goes.

[LazerLoriel]

           Thanks for the information in controlling humidity in cheese.



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Programmable Thermostats

[Cartierusm]

No problem. If you have specific requirements post pics of your setup and we'll see if we can help.

[siegfriedw]

THis is what I just ordered: http://www.habitatmonitor.com/

It  can control Temp and humidity.  I had been using one of those external temp controllers but had problems with maintaining humidity so now I am going to automatically regulate both.

[Cartierusm]

What did it cost you if you don't mind me asking?

[Tom Turophile]

I'm looking to see if any of these products will work:

https://www.greenair.com/browse/control-stat-series.html

I'm referring to the excellent thread at EGullet on Charcuterie for guidance and suggestions.

[DeejayDebi]

I didn't look to much (time for bed) but that egullet is a great site! Thanks for posting it.

[siegfriedw]

Habitat Monitor was just under $500 including humidifier, relay to control fridge and shipping.

[siegfriedw]

https://www.greenair.com/browse/control-stat-series.html

This looks like they have similar functionality to the Habitat monitor so should work. What is the price on the humidity and temp controller?