Thirsty Hippos any cheaper alternative?

[quiverpool]

Its raining so much nowadays and the humidity is very high... as always.

Thirsty hippos are so thirsty for water and also for money.

Cost $5++ a box that has 2 packs. You can consume 1-2 pack/s a month. Thats $60
a year and thats it only for 1 guitar case. What if you have many?

I heard that there is a product that you can just microwave to dry and reuse again

Is there any cheaper alternative that can fit a guitarcase and acoustic guitar hole? Which shop can we buy it from?

 

[Jiterator]

what you're referring to would be Silica Gel... those blue or purple little balls.. the stuff you find in those "Wang Wang" biscuits and most other products that need to be kept dry.. Silica Gel's usually available at camera stores, and sold in bottles or jars. they start off with a very saturated blue colour, then as they absorb moisture and wear out, they slowly turn transparent. when it hits that stage, pop them in the microwave oven and watch them return back to their original state! heh what i usually do is to take a whole bunch, pack them in a small ziploc and poke holes in it then throw in my guitar bags or cases.. works well

 

[quiverpool]

These are the same thing you can find in new electronics or even new shoes right? I was thinking to do zap them in the microwave before but quite hesitant since I might some fizzles. I have a bunch here and would you recommend zapping those?

 

[Jiterator]

yeah same stuff u find in new shoes and most electronics.. zapping them in the microwave is safe don't worry.. or at least i've yet to come across any explosions.. but at least place them in some unwanted plate and cover it up or something just in case.. don't cover it airtight of course..

 

[niteblade]

thirsty hippo has BAD qc man

i've experienced two leaks so far. the gooey shit inside the bag is really disgusting to clean up

 

[leonardchng]

The shop owner from Sinamex advised us S'porean guitarists to leave our guitars in the open on guitar stands at room temperature. It is a well-backed advice taken from many articles, some from Taylor too. They address the handling of guitars (esp acoustic) in regions of high humidity like Singapore.

Putting the guitar in a guitar bag worsens the humidity problem. Just imagine running without a shirt, and running with a sweater on. Your body's gonna contain much more moisture with the sweater on. Guitar bags also may store pockets of excess humidity at the corners. Putting silica gel helps, but you'll have to really put them in considerable amounts and distribute them all over the guitar in the guitar bag.

Don't ever use thirsty hippo. They're known to leak. Sucks. Haha.

The final piece of advice is, if you own a guitar in Singapore (esp acoustic), and unless you have a de-humidified room or a high quality de-humidifying guitar case, store the axe on a guitar stand at room temperature.

 

[lifele55]

Buy that rice cracker thing (Wan Wan??)... enjoy it. Take the silica gel, put in guitar case. Happy all around!

 

[live33]

Daiso at IMM sells desiccants for removing moisture from wardrobes and storage places. Comes in plastic packages hung on the shelves. The good thing about these is that you can place them outside and sun them dry for reuse (I usually just use a hair dryer). Still on my first packet since last year. Ha.haha.. S$2 per pack.

For silica gels, you can heat them up in an unused frying pan over very LOW heat. Must constantly shake them and move them around while heating. They'll slowly turn whitish, then back to blue. Once blue in colour, immediately store them in an air tight, heat resistant container (since they're hot by now).

 

[kerplunk182]

hey how long do you put it in the microwave for?

 

[daryl]

leonardchng: What if you turn on the air con every night but not in the day? That's not room temperature. Does it matter?

 

[live33]

I heat them over the stove for around 10 - 15 mins, i think. Just hover the pan above the flames and not sitting the pan on the stove. The key is for them to turn blue in colour. Most importantly, the temperature should not exceed 130 degrees celsius, else they'll be damaged by the heat.

Didn't try with microwave ovens, tho. No idea how silica gels react with microwaves.

Some useful info : http://www.cwaller.de/english.htm?esili.htm~information

 

[leonardchng]

Hey daryl, it's not advisable. I actually asked this same question to the guy at Sinamex, and he told me to leave it in my living room, where temperature changes are not so drastic. Switching on the air con MAY dry up the guitar a little, since air con air is dry...haha...but we do learn from primary school Science that things expand and contract under temperature changes, and so do guitars...wow...lol...all that expansion and contraction cycles as you on and off your air con everyday wouldn't really be very good for your axe. Even if this sounds unconvincing, i advise you not to risk it. ESPECIALLY with acoustic guitars. LoL...they're such a pain in the ass to maintain with our climate.

 

[van_halen]

i think the aircon part still ok, guitar stores also have aircons and they also have to switch them off at night... it's controlling the humidity that's hard.

 

[blaz3r]

How long do you have to put the silica gel into the microwave oven for?

 

[niteblade]

buy a dehumidifier if you have an expensive collection of guitars in a room hahaha

the dehumidifier can collect up to one bucket full of water over one night. thats how bad singapore is

 

[blaz3r]

haha, but i usually bring my guitar around so i usually use thirsty hippo, but i heard about its bad QC, so i'm deciding if i should get silica gel instead since it can be re-used.

 

[Liquidribs]

My room gets super hot in the morning as my room is facing the direct light. To make matters worse i can see the sea very clearly from my house. guess i may have to get a small room dehumidifier as moving my guitars to a cooler place is not an option

 

[jskadiang]

i keep all my guitars in hardcases and just chuck packs of silica gel into empty bits, seems to do its job well enough.

 

[subversion]

ditto above practice.

is a Thirsty Hippo necessary at all?

 

[tubescreamer]

ditto above practice.

is a Thirsty Hippo necessary at all?

Having experienced bellying at the bridge area of an acoustic guitar, along with muddy tone because of water being absorbed, I would say definitely. Perhaps the only effect on electrics will be rusty metal parts, but it can severely impact the tone of all-solid acoustic guitars.