Ruggard EDC-125LC-RM Electronic Dry Cabinet (Red Mahogany, 125L)

I was looking for a way to easily store and access my cameras and lenses in a dust-free place. Also I need humidity control in the summer. This cabinet is well made and convenient to use. I decided to keep a battery powered humidity monitor inside to check the humidity. The cabinet maintains a steady humidity level while the temperature and humidity in the room vary.

Ideal size and the space to store the Canon 600F4 with body attached, it comes with combination lock which is great. Zero noise and works perfect.

The humidity comes right down. I'd rather not worry about changing small salt pouches. It doesn't drip. It's kinda annoying to adjust the shelves, and something beside cheap foam (as padding on the shelf) would be nice. If it works for years it'll be worth the price--or more. But it's too soon to say.

I bought two Ruggard 18L to replace two other-brand 18L cabinets which died after 2 years. The were on a shelf inside a large closet. Only got the Ruggards today, so I cannot give a review about the their life expectancy yet (but I have a 40L Ruggard which have been going strong for several years). My reason for this review is that the measurements are wrong in the specs. Sadly the 18L Ruggards will not fit on the same shelf as the old brand due to wrong specs. Spec says exterior height is 26.9cm. It is actually 29.3cm. That is about an inch out. Even without the rubber feet it is about 27.8cm. Ext WD are okay. A bit annoying, as I had to rearrange my studio to fit them in a different place. Also DHL delivered the items at the wrong address in the wrong suburb. I ordered this from the USA to Australia while on sale. Fortunately the people in the other suburb dropped the parcel at my house.

I came upon a few reviews of Ruggard dry cabinets while watching youtube videos on photography online. I've been into photography a long time and never gave this a second thought. Our climate is not particularly humid most of the time but I still think it's worth the small investment just to keep the (very expensive and fragile) gear as dry as possible. I bought this particular model because I didn't want something heavy or cumbersome yet I wanted to be sure I'd be able to fit all my gear. I was surprised at how big it is compared to the photos I see online. I can easily fit 2 big telephoto lenses with bodies attached and aftermarket feet plus 5 lenses ranging from 20mm to 105mm. I can also put my two teleconverters and binoculars. I still have a little room left in there. See Moose Peterson's review to see what he fits in there. The cabinet looks great and is a great place to have everything at hand in one single location instead of being sprawled in cases and backpacks all over the place. The oak faux veneer looks really good and I much prefer it to black myself. I bought the keyed version because IMHO I don't trust combination locks when it comes to reliability. There's a lot of things to like about this cabinet apart from looks: The feet are adjustable and it's really easy to get the cabinet to be rock solid without any wobble. The light inside is a nice added touch. They could have added a few lights on the other side or top but it's OK. The display can be dimmed and that's a very nice touch as I don't want it too bright at night. I'm not sure how the dehumidifying technology works but it does. In about 3 hours, the relative humidity went from 51% to 40%. I set it to 38% but it never goes lower than 39% and it indicates 40% most of the time. Strangely, the Thermopro hygrometer that I bought and put inside the cabinet always indicates at least a 10% difference in relative humidity. It will indicate 29% inside the cabinet most of the time and will sometimes dip as low as 27%. I'm not sure which indicator is accurate. I have two Thermopro's and both register exactly the same values. Either the Ruggard indicator is very pessimistic or the Thermopro's are very optimistic. The temperature always indicates about 1 degree (Celsius) higher on the cabinet than on the Thermopro as well. Either way the results are within a very acceptable range. I put this cabinet up on a very solid wood desk that's about 32 inches above the ground. I find the height to be ideal to reach inside without squatting or lying down. If I wanted a cabinet on the floor, I would have chosen one that's taller (This one is rather square). The manual mentions that the cabinet should not be placed near a rear wall. I placed mine so that the stack in the back is at about 4 inches from the rear wall (I can't do better). It works fine that way. The shelf inside the cabinet is adjustable and made of solid metal. I wish Ruggard would provide better foam quality or density. The foam is thin and low density. I'm nit picking here and overall, I think it's a great product. I hope it will be reliable.