I just wanted to add a few more preliminary pics.
I'm not pleased with what I'm seeing for the humidity or temp. I have the fridge set at the lowest setting (warmest) before it turns off, but it's not good enough. I have a bowl of water in there, but it seems to make little difference. As shown in the two pics, one is inside the fridge...just opened. The other is just after I placed it outside the fridge: it's already showing higher humidity after less than a minute. Need to work on it.
Question: If I'm nore "curing" cheese prior to sealing it and all of the cheeses are sealed, how concerned do I need to be about humidity levels? I realize the temp should be higher, regardless.
-Boofer-
Boofer, great looking cheeses.
Most fridge's thermostats don't allow the fridge to go warm enough for cheese aging, so many members here including me buy an external thermostat, here's picture of mine (https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,197.msg769.html#msg769).
Humidity, is tough to add at lower temp, but easier than removing excess humidity like I had with that chest freezer. This thread has several ideas (https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,1863.0.html).
On your gauge, I think mine also reads higher humidity when I take it out the cave, I believe this is because as it rapidly increases in temperature, moisture initially condenses on the sensor, before evaporating and humidity reading going to normal lower number. Similar to taking a cold glass out of fridge.
Great looking cheeses!
It looks like all of your cheeses are sealed in wax or vac bags. I wouldn't worry to much about humidity.
Thanks for the kudos.
I may have hit upon a solution for my low humidity condition. The inspiration once again springs from reading this forum. I am snapping pics, soldering, and installing the fix. I should have some results to show tomorrow. I'm excited about this fix...it may just catch on. Whoo whoo! :o
I did have a Hunter external thermostat that I used to control my freezer lagering back in the day, but it gave up the ghost...or should I say, it "lost control". :-\
-Boofer-
Did you ever find a solution for the humifity
Wow, this thread has some age on it.
Not too long after the thread I purchased a Johnson temp controller and then a LaCrosse wireless thermometer/hygrometer. Using those pieces of equipment plus some Rubbermaid boxes, my humidity came under control.
I currently have one wireless sensor in a Rubbermaid box upstairs monitoring a Goutaler cheese wheel and it reads 68.9F/81%RH. Another sensor in the cave monitors another newer Goutaler in a plastic box and it reads 54.1F/95%RH. Those humidity levels are about right for where they are in their cycle. The first is 3 weeks in to eye-development. The second is two weeks in to developing its rind. After perhaps another week in the cave it will join its compadre upstairs at room temperature for rind development.
Early on in trying to maintain humidity I installed a laptop cooler at the back of the cave. That did work, but I found that I didn't need additional moisture after a while. The laptop cooler is still there circulating the air inside the cave, but the wet cloth is not.
-Boofer-
You've come a long way since you started this thread Boofer!
Off topic, or at least tangential to your topic Boofer - sorry - but I'm thinking on a cave as well, and wondered how feasible this would be....from another thread, a nano-US mist humidifier (https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,3137.msg25557.html#msg25557), controlled by a PID humidity controller? The Johnson is what I always used in my brewing as well, and at the price point, it seems a fine solution over the medium term (by the time the probe is shot, I, anyway, put down years of yeoman's service...pretty hard to justify a digital temp controller when the Johnson was reasonable at $60ish). I know humidity controllers are not cheap, but if the nano humidifier would humidify a decent cubic space adequately, I may be able to think on this more seriously.
So, basically, envisioning a forced air cooling system (tapping the fan for air circulation) with a Johnson, a nano-humidifier with controller. Any thoughts/pitfalls?
And was it yourself who said you spent time in Ventura? (native Venturan, here).
Quote from: ArnaudForestier on December 20, 2010, 02:48:27 PM
Off topic, or at least tangential to your topic Boofer - sorry - but I'm thinking on a cave as well, and wondered how feasible this would be....from another thread, a nano-US mist humidifier (https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,3137.msg25557.html#msg25557), controlled by a PID humidity controller? The Johnson is what I always used in my brewing as well, and at the price point, it seems a fine solution over the medium term (by the time the probe is shot, I, anyway, put down years of yeoman's service...pretty hard to justify a digital temp controller when the Johnson was reasonable at $60ish). I know humidity controllers are not cheap, but if the nano humidifier would humidify a decent cubic space adequately, I may be able to think on this more seriously.
Any thoughts?
And was it yourself who said you spent time in Ventura? (native Venturan, here).
I can't comment on that humidifier. It looks like a decent, cheap solution if you need it.
Yes, I moved down from San Jose in 2002 and lived in Port Hueneme for several years. Beautiful part of California. Not a lot of traffic down there. Nestled between expensive Santa Barbara and crazy Los Angeles. Yeah, there's a lot of suburbia between and along the way: Ventura, Oxnard, Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley. With the ocean being within 2 miles of my home it was easy to hit the beach. I used to love kayaking out to do a little lobstering. I understand they've imposed a bunch of regulations and restrictions on all that now. Too bad. It was getting crowded out there though, especially for a lone kayaker at night. Had some really adventurous nights out at the Port Hueneme breakwater with the waves crashing over and creating white water. Oh, fun times!
-Boofer-
Seabee? (Former corpsman - Balboa, NRMC Oakland).
No, not SeaBee.
Vietnam Vet, U.S. Army, Airborne, Special Forces, 101st Airborne Div., 1st Cavalry Div., yadda yadda....
We just thought it was a really nice place to move to.
-Boofer-
Just got back from an extended holiday stay in the U.P., Boofer. Followed the 101st for many years...wanted to say thanks for your service, and though I haven't been home (to Ca) in years, lotta fond memories of the area, as well. Looking forward to seeing more posts.
Paul
in my book - the UP always meant the Upper Peninsula of Michigan - you know that funny shape of land where you wonder why it isn't part of Wisconsin
Quote from: Chris_Abrahamson on December 30, 2010, 03:58:34 PM
in my book - the UP always meant the Upper Peninsula of Michigan - you know that funny shape of land where you wonder why it isn't part of Wisconsin
Bingo. Wife's family all over Da U.P., and we formerly lived there as well. (warning - don't open the first serious French place in a region where pastys are king :o). We do love it up there, and go several times per year.
Not sure the U.P. would claim it belongs to the
Union, much less any particular state. ;D
Not wanting to hijack the hijacked thread but... ;D
I've been doing a bunch of searching / reading about humidity. I've got my newly aquired wine cooler which I was going to make my cave...but I can't get the humidity higher than 66%. I just have a dish of water at the bottom. I did see the humidifier that someone posted about that takes a bottle of water and thought about grabbing one of those.
However, then I started to realize that all the cheeses I'm looking at doing (in the basic cheese kit from cheesemaking.com) are waxed. So does that mean I have less to worry about for humidity?
Right now my "cave" is empty. I just have one cheese right now and plan on making another this weekend. If I start to put cheese in my cave will that change the humidity? I didn't want to put my new baby Gouda (my current pride and joy) in an unstable cave environment...you never know how a young creature will turn out if it's in an unstable environment at an early age :) Right now it's drying at 55% humdity and 55 degrees...and I have no cracks yet. But I am concerned about cracks...
Eventually I'd like to branch out into more exotic cheeses with a natural rind or a mold cheese so eventually I'd like to get the humidity up where it should be.
Hi Jessica.
Quote from: Jessica_H on December 30, 2010, 11:48:15 PM
Right now my "cave" is empty. I just have one cheese right now and plan on making another this weekend. If I start to put cheese in my cave will that change the humidity?
It will not lower it, if this is what you are concerned about.
Quote from: Jessica_H on December 30, 2010, 11:48:15 PM
Eventually I'd like to branch out into more exotic cheeses with a natural rind or a mold cheese so eventually I'd like to get the humidity up where it should be.
Hmmmm. I thought Keith and Gianaclis answered this question rather well for you in your other thread. Using a towel/cloth dipped in vessel of water, as described by Gianaclis, is a very popular method among forum members to raise the cave humidity. Also, using plastic boxes with water vessels in them is a very popular method to achieve the desired humidity among forum members. Especially considering that for molded cheeses, blue (PR), white (PC) and orange (bL) you pretty much have to keep in its own container to prevent cross contamination.
Sorry, I did read about the wet cloth. But I was under the impression you need a fan to make this work? My wine cooler doesn't have a fan.
The fan makes it even more effective, but not everyone uses the fan. I would try it without the fan and see if the humidity gets to where you need it.
If not then other options may need to be pursued. I also seem to remember a discussion in this very forum about using a salt water solution to control humidity. If you do a search on salt in this forum you'll see the threads.
Quote from: Jessica_H on December 31, 2010, 03:30:24 PM
Sorry, I did read about the wet cloth.
Ooooops. Rereading my post I see that it my have come off as critical. Sorry about that. What I meant to say was that there aren't better answers than those that were already given. :) Anyway Happy Cheese Making.
Just to give you some more datapoints....
I have one cheese in my cave that is open...not sealed. Three and a half weeks in and it's showing 97% RH (pic). Nothing else in the cave is producing humidity/moisture. The cheeses in the door are all sealed. There are some additional cheeses in the bottom bin and just below the minicave, but they're all sealed as well. I keep the freezer compartment at the top dry as much as I can. It typically doesn't condense moisture very much. The sides of the cave are kept dry. So where's this moisture/humidity coming from that the sensor is showing? I haven't a clue. I try to regulate the environment within the minicave by keeping it dry and opening or closing the lid. That has worked fairly well for me.
I guess, bottom line, don't worry about it so much. Make some cheese...put it in your cave, and adjust as you encounter changes. ;)
Hey, who hijacked my thread? ::)
-Boofer-
If your cave is like mine the drip tray under the freezer section is full of water. These units work by cooling the refrigerator section to the mid 30's. As they do so a layer of ice forms on the freon coils that make up the freezer section.
If you look at it those ridges in the freezer are the freon coils. Since we are keeping the cave at 55 degrees or warmer, we have infact made a dehumidifier and instead of freezing on the coils, mine rains in the tray. My tray is wet at all times and is working great for my Stilton and Asiago.
It was much too humid for some salamis and the cheddars etc before waxing.
Quote from: steampwr8 on January 01, 2011, 02:37:39 PM
If your cave is like mine the drip tray under the freezer section is full of water. These units work by cooling the refrigerator section to the mid 30's. As they do so a layer of ice forms on the freon coils that make up the freezer section.
If you look at it those ridges in the freezer are the freon coils. Since we are keeping the cave at 55 degrees or warmer, we have infact made a dehumidifier and instead of freezing on the coils, mine rains in the tray. My tray is wet at all times and is working great for my Stilton and Asiago.
I believe I may have mentioned that the freezer compartment is kept dry. That includes the drip tray...dry. My cave is set at its lowest point. My Johnson controller cycles the fridge on but only so that it gets cool not cold...definitely not frozen. There is no layer of ice forming in my cave. No ice, no thaw, no condensation, no drip, especially now during the cooler winter months when the ambient air holds less moisture. I did have an accumulation of water in the tray in the summer. As it got wet, I sopped it up or removed the tray and dumped it. That's not a problem now though.
My cave doesn't get cooled down to the 30's. The controller maintains it between 48F and 58F.
-Boofer-
As this is on humidity I hope someone can help me as well, I have just put my first cheese into my cave, I have a frig with all wood shelves, a plastic bucket of water on the bottom, and I cannot get the humidity up! Should I put a piece of cheese cloth in and wick up the water? If needed, what type of fan to push things around? I'm also confused with the Johnson Control, my unheated and uninsulated stone and cement basement is too cold so the frig never runs at all! I've just moved the frig to see if that helps...