My new Cigar Oasis Magna

[Tonto]

So I decided on getting a Cigar Oasis Magna for my tower humidor.  It's going to replace the 2 old Cigar Oasis units that died after about 10 years.

I figured I'd take some pics & give some thoughts on it as I go through opening it up & then installing it.

So here are the 1st set of pics from opening the box & looking at the parts inside.

#1


Everything was packed nicely in the box, nothing was loose
#2


After taking out the parts
#3


Close up of the small parts
#4


The beads.  Yes, the package of them is that small.
#5



My 1st thought was:  The unit itself, (the water container & the control top), seem very light in weight.  The plastic seems thin, & I'm wondering if it's strong enough.

After a quick look at the small parts, I had some questions as well:
Where are the best locations for the fans?  What way is recommended to use to mount them?
I also had a question about a part.  I didn't see it mentioned on the instruction sheet, so I called Cigar Oasis.  The part in question is shown in pic #4, near the center, just above the control unit wire.   It's a plastic "L" shaped piece, about 4"-5" long.  I have no idea what it is for, or where it goes.

Calling CO was easy & a live person answered the phone...no pushing 5 different numbers to try to find a real person.  She sent me a link to their Youtube videos about the Magna units & told me to give her a call, after I viewed them, if I still had any questions.

Here are their videos:






I watched them both.
The questions on the fans were answered...I need to go to the hardware store & pickup some stick on velcro strips.  Maybe they should include those in the future?  I would have liked it if they did.  It would take much length & I think there is room in the box for them.

The "L" shaped piece...I have no clue.  I didn't see it, nor was it mentioned in the videos.  I'll take it out of the wrapper it's in & take some measurements of it & a few pics.  I think I'm going to have to call CO again.


More to follow....

[Tonto]

I was also concerned about the amount of beads they provided...it didn't look like much, but after viewing the videos, you can see that they really expand!

[Jimmie the Mum]

Magic beads... Seems simple enough.. 

[Tonto]

A little update:

It took me a while to locate some distilled water.  Had to go to 4 different stores to find some...and it was the last gallon they had.  Is there a shortage of it?   


So I took the control unit off of the water container, put the beads in & then added water.  I had thought the container seemed a little thin previously, but after adding water to it, it seems sturdy.

A couple of pics:



With the beads in it, but no water yet:


I'm letting it sit until tomorrow, so I can see how the beads are doing with the water.  If it all seems ok, I'll then put it in the humidor. 

That will give me a chance to go to the hardware store & pickup some stick on velcro to attach the fans.  I think they should have included some with the unit.



Now here are better pics of the mystery piece.  I have no idea where it goes.  I didn't see it in any picture on the box, nor did I see it pictured or mentioned in the instructions.

It's a thin piece of plastic about 4.5" long, in the shape of an "L", with the CO logo









Do any of you have an idea what this part is for?  It must be for something, as they wrapped it in plastic & put their logo on it.

I'm going to give them a call on Monday (if they are open) or Tuesday.

[nayslayer]

Mount fan,on it, or just a badge to display the fact you are using their system

[Tonto]

I posted a picture of the part on CO's Facebook page. 

They just answered me:

This is a deflector piece that goes at the back of the unit. Slip it between the white base and the black control top. This is the end where you will see 2 plastic flaps that raise up to release the humidity when needed. This will direct the airflow upwards in the humidor. Please let us know if you have any further questions.

It's kind of funny...I was exploring that idea when I put the water in & the top back on.

[Jimmie the Mum]

Damn, that's a big unit... Mine is much smaller. I think the size is: 8 1/2" L x 5" D x 3 1/4" H

[MaytagMan]

Damn, that's a big unit... Mine is much smaller.

Look forward to hearing how that maintains once things get acclimated.

[Tonto]

Damn, that's a big unit... Mine is much smaller. I think the size is: 8 1/2" L x 5" D x 3 1/4" H

Nope...I'm not going to touch that! 

[Tonto]

Here are the beads with the distilled water added less than 20 hours ago:






I wouldn't have believed they would swell that much if I didn't see it with my own eyes.