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Since we are re-building some of the knowledge base, I thought it would be a good idea for someone to put together a quick set of instructions on using the beads. You know, how to set them up, when and how to re-charge them, things like that. I know that it would a great help for noobs like myself. maybe even make it a sticky, somewhere next to Don's humidor prep directions.
Ok so here is the low down on them. There seems to be two methods passive or spraying. So passive is just keeping some DW and letting the beads absorb some moisture on it's own until 75 to 80 pct of the beads are clear. The second way is to spritz the beads with a water bottle filled with DW. Let sit and then your done. Monitor humidity and your all done.
Key things to remember never soak beads in DW and never use PG SOLUTION. other than that you are good to go
I use HF beads and HCM beads. I use the passive approach for both. Beads are made to adsorb water vapor and not liquid water (or any other liquid for that matter). In the case of HCM beads the instructions on using them clearly says not to wet the beads. I suspect the passive method takes longer but i think it also preserves the beads from the damage caused by wetting them.
Directly wetting the beads, either by spray or soaking (really bad), washes the salts off the beads and it's the salts that allow the silica beads to regulate the humidity.
Best method is passive, but there are a lot of guys that spray the beads and haven't had any problems (for now).
I purchased my beads already in the tubes from HF. To recharge them, I sit them on a side towel, spray them with DW, while rolling them for even distribution, and then wipe off the outside of the tubes before placing them in the humidor. I then sit a "gel jar" beside each tube to allow them to continue passively charging because what I sprayed on them will generally be pulled towards the center of the tube and the jars will then charge the outer layer of beads. After a week, the crystals in the jar are dried up and I take them out until the next time the beads need a hit (~6 months).