how long will cigars keep in tubes?
Depends on where you live. Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, or other states that are very humid most of the time will keep them for a good long while. (Assuming you don't have them in an air conditioned place all the time that dries the air). If you were in Arizona or California or somewhere like that with very dry conditions most of the time; they will be noticeable drier in only a week or so. The tubes are really more just for presentation (like wax on a whiskey bottle) than they are for preservation. Ideal for cigars is around 75 deg F and 70% humidity. Compare where you have them to that to guage their longevity without proper storage. A ziplock bag with some pieces of dried fruit (apricot, peach, etc) is one home remedy for cigar storage, but I can't speak for it's actual effectiveness. The bag itself probably does most of the actual preservation. If they will fit, you can just get a large mason jar and buy these disposable humidty packs from a cigar company or online. Tear the top off of the envelope and place inside the jar with the smokes. Only about $8 invested and you will have pretty good preservation for at least 6 weeks (or until you put in a fresh pack).
Cigars are hydroscopic, that means they tend to match the relative humidity of the enviornment in which they are kept. A tubed cigar in a tube that is hermetically sealed outside of a humidor will keep for 3 - 6 months. After that, even the best seal will begin to fail. In a humidor, a tubed cigar hermetically sealed will keep nearly indefinately. In a plastic tube, you may as well not even have the tube.
