Yesterday my wife tells me that a lady in the neighborhood is getting rid of an alcohol display case for free.  So, I do what any red blooded American who loves alcohol does and I jump in the truck and go pick it up.  It's in incredible shape and I am absolutely going to put my Sam Adams unopened beer bottle collection (36 of 63 beers) throughout the case.  There is a center compartment that, I think, would be a pretty awesome humidor.  The problem is, this isn't a car, truck or motorcycle, which means I have no idea how to seal the cabinet, what type of wood glue to use to put in cedar planks that wouldn't effect my sticks, etc, etc.  I don't have a picture of the display case on my computer so I will have to take one on the phone and upload via mobile.  In the mean time, any ideas help.  Worst case scenario, and what I am leaning towards right now while I figure this out is to just place my humidor in the cabinet.  Thanks! 

Reminds me of my humidor build. I built an outer box of Baltic birch plywood, 3/4", for it's qualities at not absorbing moisture, the seams between board edges I sealed with weld-bond glue, it's great as it doesn't have any smell once dried. I'd use a thin seam of that in the corners, then proceed with lining with 1/4" Spanish cedar boards... Check out my photo album for a pic. It's built to slide into and ikea expedit unit that I creatively put together to leave enough space for the humidor. I think something similar could work for you instead of sealing the corners and using the center space as the actual humidor.

attempt #2 at posting photos:

That does look to be in great shape!  Nice find!  

It looks better suited for whisky bottles - just say'n!  

It's in great shape.  It's from England though, so I have to change the plug as well to make the lights work.  And yes, if I can't figure out how to make that center cabinet a humidor, then whiskey bottles and my Sam collection will be living here.

Do the sides have shelves?

Just my .02 here as a journeyman cabinet maker.
If the part you want to use as a humidor is at the bottom of the cabinet it looks like it opens from both sides. I would secure one side, seal the corners with a thin bead of Silicone II or III, then a single thin coat of Zinnser Bullseye Shellac. Both will dry with zero odor after a few days and insure no humidity issues with the cabinet.
The Spanish Cedar, Cedrela Odoraa for the humidor needs no gluing. A couple brad nails here and there to keep it in line are sufficient as it will move around a bit with humidity.
Make sure to find a thin latex or silicone rubber seal for the door. Most repurposed cabinets like this do well with some kind of lock to keep the access door pulled shut for a tight finish.
I'm jealous, this is a great score.
Oh, be careful with the lights, make sure they are switchable to 110 volts, most European appliances use 220. If you replace them I recommend L.E.D.
Hope this helps.

QuoteKevin48438 - 7/7/2014  8:53 PM  Do the sides have shelves?

 

yes, the sides and the top have glass shelves and there are wood shelves in the bottom. 

Quotedddddmorgan - 7/7/2014  9:10 PM  Just my .02 here as a journeyman cabinet maker. If the part you want to use as a humidor is at the bottom of the cabinet it looks like it opens from both sides. I would secure one side, seal the corners with a thin bead of Silicone II or III, then a single thin coat of Zinnser Bullseye Shellac. Both will dry with zero odor after a few days and insure no humidity issues with the cabinet.  The Spanish Cedar, Cedrela Odoraa for the humidor needs no gluing. A couple brad nails here and there to keep it in line are sufficient as it will move around a bit with humidity. Make sure to find a thin latex or silicone rubber seal for the door. Most repurposed cabinets like this do well with some kind of lock to keep the access door pulled shut for a tight finish. I'm jealous, this is a great score. Oh, be careful with the lights, make sure they are switchable to 110 volts, most European appliances use 220. If you replace them I recommend L.E.D. Hope this helps.

 

Awesome, thanks! the cabinet that I want to turn in to a humidor is the close up picture which is tricky to see because there is a mirror on the back wall.  it opens downwards, like an oven, so I'm thinking that it wouldn't be too difficult to seal off and maybe run a bead along the glass so I can keep the mirror in the back, it's kind of a bad ass feature. 

Looks like a very nice cabinet.  I would consider the bottom for boxes of cigars and the middle for singles. A shelf for accesories, the sides for beer and spirits.  Pretty sweet.   Have to let us know how it goes

QuoteKevin48438 - 7/7/2014  9:19 PM  Looks like a very nice cabinet.  I would consider the bottom for boxes of cigars and the middle for singles. A shelf for accesories, the sides for beer and spirits.  Pretty sweet.   Have to let us know how it goes

 

I absolutely will! 

Very nice find. Looking forward to seeing what you do with it.

Nice find and can't beat the free price.  When you are done, post of some pics with the final results.  Good Luck

That is an awesome score, and with a little work, it could be an awesome liquor/beer cabinet and humidor.  Looking forward to the end results!

Very nice!.

Nice find.

I'm a woodworker by trade.  Unless you can see gaps in the corners, I wouldn't worry too much about sealing them with anything, but it won't hurt.  The biggest worry you'll have is sealing the door.  For that, you can use weather stripping from home depot.  The stuff I used for mine is essentially shaped like the letter "D" and is self adhesive on the flat side of the "D".  I would line the, sides, and top with Spanish cedar.(maybe the back of the door too)  Lining the bottom could pose a problem with the hinges I'm seeing in the picture.  The mirror is cool and can stay!  You would also more than likely need to reposition the "down stays" to allow for the thickness of your cedar.  It's certainly a worthwhile project, but it could get a little tricky with some of the details.  Tough to tell from a picture.

Hope this helps! 

QuoteCaveman Steve - 7/8/2014  7:36 PM  

I'm a woodworker by trade.  Unless you can see gaps in the corners, I wouldn't worry too much about sealing them with anything, but it won't hurt.  The biggest worry you'll have is sealing the door.  For that, you can use weather stripping from home depot.  The stuff I used for mine is essentially shaped like the letter "D" and is self adhesive on the flat side of the "D".  I would line the, sides, and top with Spanish cedar.(maybe the back of the door too)  Lining the bottom could pose a problem with the hinges I'm seeing in the picture.  The mirror is cool and can stay!  You would also more than likely need to reposition the "down stays" to allow for the thickness of your cedar.  It's certainly a worthwhile project, but it could get a little tricky with some of the details.  Tough to tell from a picture.

Hope this helps! 

 

Awesome info, thanks for the help! 

Very nice looking cabinet!

That's nice it has potential to be a very awesome piece, good luck brother. You've got some great ideas from some woodworkers here I'm sure you can come up with something very sweet!