So I’ve had a dry cabinet for some time now and have been loving it. I keep it at a nice 45% and go on with my life. However, the temp control is really poor in my room which I know is one side of the coin when it comes to moisture. Is the temp fluctuation something to worry about if I have the humidity control?
Thanks! -TJ
One moisture absorber like Thirsty Hippo will do the trick!
The relative humidity (ie. the percentage) is based on temperature. Hotter air can hold more water, therefore humidity is relative to temperature.
For example, based on this plot, 45% humidity at 30C (86F) is the same volume of water in the air as 100% humidity at 15C (59F).
Put another way, if you completely seal a box of air at 30C/60% humidity and drop the temperature to 15C, you will hit the dew point (ie. >100% humidity). The water in the air has to go somewhere just like trying to add more water to a sponge that is completely saturated. That causes condensation ie. the formation of dew/water droplets on your stuff. This is what you want to avoid.
If you’re dry cabinet is displaying relative humidity, I’d assume it’s accounting for temperature already.
As @pfm mentioned, a drying cabinet will show relative humidity, which adjusts for fluctuations in temperature. If you have major fluctuations in your bedroom (e.g., more than 10F per day), I would consider moving the drying cabinet to somewhere that is less variable.
Also, if your bathroom (shower) is in your room, that may contribute to large increases in relative humidity in a short period of time. It could jump 10-15% within ten minutes or less depending on how hot you like your shower, how large the room is, and whether there is air flow and ventilation. This would also be a good reason to move your drying cabinet.
All of this said, I have never had an issue with humidity and my cards that was actually noticeable. I think we overprotect out of fear, but the reality is that damage rarely occurs. It would have to be an awfully musty, moldy room for things to get that severe, and if you’re worried about your cards in that situation, then you need to reconsider your priorities.
I’m paranoid about humidity, but like the others said you can feel sure, as far as i know there isn’t nothing better that a dry cabinet for this purpose at hobbyist level.
It’s always considering for temperature in the room, like even cheap chinese hygrometer are capable, don’t worry!
Thank you for the replies everyone!
So @pfm to clarify, are you saying that since my dry cabinet can keep the relative humidity at a certain percent it doesn’t give the air the opportunity to reach >100% regardless of temp?
@Dyl Can you explain what you mean when you say the RH will adjust with temp?
Thanks again!
The drying cabinet will show the relative humidity, whether the temperature is at 50F or 100F. It’s working harder to lower the humidity to 45% at 100F than at 50F because more liquid is held in the air at higher temperatures.
Keeping your drying cabinet in a room that has huge temperature fluctuations means that the cabinet will be working harder than usual to quickly adjust the relative humidity down when the temperature increases. There is going to be a latency period where the relative humidity is momentarily higher in the cabinet because it can only take so much water out of the air in a given period of time.
Ahh I gotcha thanks. Since its always chugging out to 45% though I doubt its too severe of a latency to really cause a concern as its pretty much never going to go much higher as its fighting to keep it like that. The only time the room temp fluctuates is in the summer though I’m unsure the severity. My worry really is that moisture will get into my slabs, but with all the replies I think I’m a bit too paranoid.
If you have a lot of anxiety about humidity, I would recommend running A/C over the summer months. Pay the extra $100 or $150 it might be to run the A/C more regularly if it will give you peace of mind. A/C lowers both the temperature and relative humidity.
Yes. If you have a dry cabinet you really shouldn’t have any issues at all. Especially since 99%+ of the rest of the hobby doesn’t use one. If humidity was a serious problem we’d see it all the time but humidity issues only seem like extreme outlier cases to me
Thanks again everyone. I’ll try not to worry too hard on the matter. 
Air-conditioning is bad for the planet. Aren’t Pokemon fans going green?
Thirsty Hippo costs only few dollars each and lasts 2 months, absorbing moisture.
More A/C. more plastic, more cardboard
Hello Thanks for your post trainerjack. I was thinking of getting a dry cabinet for my cards and comics. I was trying to find some people who had experience with these cabinets, Are the cabinets safe for graded cards/comics (cgc)? How has your experience been with these cabinets? Right now my cards are in a closet with ac but the humidity fluctuates too much. 30 % in winter almost 60 % in summer. These cabinets seem like a great idea but I don’t know much about them. Kind of a fear of the unkown…Thanks
Hi no problem. Welcome to E4! I have had the cabinet for about a year now and I think it works great. I keep graded cards in it and have not seen any issues. Having a dry cabinet is really one of the deepest precautions you can go for your cards and many post on here detail the benefits if you just search dry cabinet. So you know at least mine does not have temp control only humidity so it’s most effective in a temp controlled room as well.
