I recently received and setup my Edgestar 28 bottle unit, and after a few days, things have settled down nicely. I do have one question however. I have 1.5lbs of heartfelt 65% beads in my fridge, and the RH is ~66% with the fridge off and just sitting there. When I turn the fridge on (~60F), the RH drops to about 60%. Is this something that is normal? It is the thermoelectric unit, not compressor based, so I know it is not that.

Is it just the lower temp lowers the RH? Which is more desirable, 60% @ 60F or 65% at 70F?
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Normal, I aint smart enough to tell you why although there are some folks that will prolly chime in that can explain it to you.:-)
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1.5 lbs should be enough beads. What is happening is when you plug in the unit, the fan kicks on, it cools, and the RH drops. Once the temperature is stabilized, the RH should come up. Have you turned it on and left it on for a few days?
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I've noticed the same relationship between Rh and temp over the years in my desktop humi. Seem to remember reading something about how temp affects the ability of the air to hold moisture ... or that whole "relative" humidity thing. Good question. Hope someone here can explain it to us.
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i keep my edgestar at the highest temperature setting, so the cooling unit kicks in as little as possible. so far the temp sits rock solid at 66 degrees, and the humidity stays at 66percent. a quick drop in humidity (like when you open the doors) shouldn't harm your cigars, *especially* if you keep them in boxes or covered drawers.

a couple threads worth perusing for this kind of info are:

Vino Temp 102
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...estar+humidity

VinoTemp Humidity Test Results
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...estar+humidity
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You want to maintain the same RH, regardless of temperature. Perhaps one of the bead suppliers can comment on how the beads react to temperature. If there were no beads present, you would expect the RH to go up as the temperature declined.
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Stolen from the first google link I found, which was USA today


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Mine did that for a while then settled in and now is very steady. But from my experience with the Edgestar 28, 4 ChasDen All Cedar Drawers and 2 Cedar Shelves 1.5 # of beads is not enough. I started with that and ended up at 2.5# before it behaved like I wanted. I have mine set at the highest temp and it holds right at 66 degrees, I do not turn it off and on. :-)

Another lesson learned was do not make changes too quickly - it takes several weeks for things to settle down after any kind of adjustments to the setup.
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Somewhat off topic but I just picked up an edgestar as well and while running on warmest setting it doesn't seem to get up beyond 60f, seems to sit right around 58-60 while plugged in.

Is this OK? Or is 58 too cold?

I haven't added beads or cigars yet so I cannot comment on RH.
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Yes, I think 58 is too cold to maintain constant RH (temperature is not bad for the cigars, but will be hard to keep your humidity level). But, that's just my :-)

However, if you keep having troubles, I would recommend doing a search on existing threads. After that, you can start your own thread.
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I have the same issue with my edgestar, the hightest temp is 60F, not 65F like everyone is saying. For now I have mine unplugged, as it is in a cool air conditioned room. If it becomes an issue, I will have to go to an external temp control unit.
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generally i leave the wine cooler unplugged (or off) until the weather gets warmer, then you can turn it on.. you will see your inside temps rise into the 60's.. and yes, 58 is a bit cold...
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Once again I can't explain why (Scott Shilala can) but when the power goes out at my place and the vino resets to the lowest temp the colder it is in the vino the lower the RH is. Conversly the higher the temp the higher the RH. Relative Humidity is relative to the temp I think.
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That's my understanding too. I'm also under the impression that RH is harder to maintain at lower temps.

You have more than enough beads. If possible, I'd suggest raising your temp by 2 or 3 degrees and see how that works. If you can't, try a Johnson controller like this. Not sure about the site, but I've read that people have used this successfully to increase their fridge temps, which will help get a handle on RH.
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It may be that the cooling surface is condensing some moisture out of the air, which would reduce the humidity. Does the cooling surface get damp?
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RH is relative to the surrounding air. The colder the air is, the more tightly packed the molocules (leaving less room for water vapor) Warmer air by contrast, has its molocules further apart and is therefore capeable of sustaining (holding) more water vapor. In a sealed environment at a steady RH, if you could cool the air inside of that cabinet without introducing outside air, the RH would increase. Think of it as the cooling air squeezing the moisture out... It is important to mention that some refrigeration units dehumidify by design, like a no frost freezer for example. Hope that helps.
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DItto
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