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Hydra sm/cigar oasis

donzz

donzz

Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2008
Messages
949
At the B&M where I work we have large water pillows about the size of 3 1/2 regular ones.
Today I get the bright idea to remove the foam from my hydra and replace with the contents of these pillows,
I guessed thst it would take about 3-4 lg.pillows to fill the hydras tank WRONG
Two pillows worth had it overflowing and all over the kitchen table :blush: the wife wasnt happy Ive been kicked out of "her" kitchen.
So any thoughts how well this will work? Should I order a new water tank?
 
I've heard of people putting beads in there to replace the foam.

But for the sake of "ease", I think you hit the nail on the head to just buy new ones.

Maybe a search for "bead hydra" will turn something up?
 
I'm assuming the guts of the water pillows are similar to crystal gel? When I had an Oasis, I removed all the foam and replaced with conditioned crystal gel (kitty litter). It worked like a charm. You could easily do the same with beads. Good luck!

Derek

*so does your ban from the kitchen mean no more washing dishes?! :thumbs:
 
Go with beads...it's the best solution. Cigar Oasis is a product I have never had much success with. Always creates mold situations in my humidor.
 
bimmer635csi said:
I've heard of people putting beads in there to replace the foam.

But for the sake of "ease", I think you hit the nail on the head to just buy new ones.

Maybe a search for "bead hydra" will turn something up?
Click to expand...


When I had my 150-count desk top running that is what I did. I believe you maybe able to purchase them out-right, if not all it takes is some beads and pantyhose.

Put your beads in the pantyhose tie it shut, pry the thing open and replace the foam.
 
I think some of the problem may be that the hydra is a humidity control device, as so are the beads (set to a predetermined % humidity). There have been posts (see SAPs from Mr. Twain in my signature) about replacing the green foam, due to maintenance, mold, etc. I think that direction would be best if you really want to replace the foam. I've used the SAPs and had no issues whatsoever.
 
I have the Hydra LG in my cabinet. The green foam molded, so I replaced with gel. Works like a charm.

DSCF3106.jpg

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That was 5 months ago. I just added water the other day...
 
I cringe at the thought of something "foreign" inside of my humidor with all my cigars besides distilled water. (Beads, crystals, solutions) Early on I had a cigar oasis and it worked ok. It didnt have a vry accurate hygrometer and I became frustrated with it, plus buying the refills got old.

As my company grew, I was buying my humidificaion systems from another supplier. One November when I ordered 12 systems and they told me 3 weeks later that they were on backorder for 6 more weeks, I decided to build my own systems. I had no choice, I had 10 orders for humidors and had to get them out by Christmas. I took apart a few systems that I had from other manufacturers and reviewed what I liked and didn't like about each one. My biggest complaint was the lack quality in the humidity sensors and their placement within the system. Most systems on the market place the sensor inside the humidifier. How is this supose to work? Of course it will be more humid inside the unit.

I designed and built a few test humidifiers and off I went to building my own. My systems are all digital with an external sensor which reads the humidity inside your humidor, not inside of yor humidification unit. My sensors are +/- 3% humidity. I offer better sensors +/- 1% but they are not cost effective. I am now working on a small desk top unit that will be about the size of the oasis, hopefully it will be out in the near future.

My link
 
I replaced my green foam in the hydra with SAPs via Mark Twains direction.

This has worked flawlessly for me for over a year now. No mold, no humidification issues, and I rarely have to recharge them.
 
Sorry to Necro an old post but I have been reading up on doing this exact thing so rather than create a new post I would pull this from the past. I have an oasis XL running in the base of my wine fridge and beads in each drawer which I know is an over kill but it works good for me. Recently my foam hasn't been in the best of conditions. There are posts on other forums where people say they took the foam out and just filled it with water which I wasn't sure if that sounded like a good idea or not. My other idea was to fill it with beads since I like the circulation the fan provides. Has anyone done this???
 
I filled my hydra tank with beads.. I just posted yesterday . Hydra highly recommends to drain in excessive water out when you fill up the tank (foam) .. I highly doubt it's a good idea to only just have water in there. Beads worked great for me.
 
CMontoya79 said:
Xikar now makes a stand alone fan unit for circulation, if your looking for more circulation.
https://www.xikar.com/products/humidification/humifan/
Click to expand...

You can add up to 3 fans with Hydra humidifier .. They are about $8 a piece. I just ordered one... I was actually considering this Xikar Humifan but Batteries inside my humidor? Or just powering from my current humidifier and not worrying about batteries period .. Also, price point for the Humifan is a bit too much.
 
The cords all over the place are a pain in the butt. Something to consider. I may change over to the Xicar in due time. It would be good in my chest humidor though.
 
Toasted Coastie said:
I have the Hydra LG in my cabinet. The green foam molded, so I replaced with gel. Works like a charm.

DSCF3106.jpg

DSCF3107.jpg

DSCF3111.jpg


That was 5 months ago. I just added water the other day...
Click to expand...

I know this is ancient, but this was exactly what I've been looking for. Have any of you had any issues since using these crystals?
 
I think it's pretty accepted at this point with the Hydra's that you pull the foam out and use a different form of water absorption. When I ran a hydra for about 3 years, I used SAPs (Super Absorbent Polymers) and it worked great.
 
Brickhouse said:
I think it's pretty accepted at this point with the Hydra's that you pull the foam out and use a different form of water absorption. When I ran a hydra for about 3 years, I used SAPs (Super Absorbent Polymers) and it worked great.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I actually found the crystals shown in the pic and ordered them just now. This hydra has been interesting. First year it was flawless. Now I've had to adjust the hygrometer to the extreme to be accurate, and seem to have to fill it a few times a month (I'm hoping it was due to winter).

I've got 4 different digital hygrometers and a big bag of HF beads to try and keep things going proper. Hoping these water crystal things do the trick. It's a pain to refill this green foam thing regularly.
 
Shampoohorn said:
Thanks. I actually found the crystals shown in the pic and ordered them just now. This hydra has been interesting. First year it was flawless. Now I've had to adjust the hygrometer to the extreme to be accurate, and seem to have to fill it a few times a month (I'm hoping it was due to winter).

I've got 4 different digital hygrometers and a big bag of HF beads to try and keep things going proper. Hoping these water crystal things do the trick. It's a pain to refill this green foam thing regularly.
Click to expand...

Obviously there's a lot that goes into how often you have to refill your reservoir. Your location, location of your humidor in the house, seal of the humidor, seasoning if it's new, time of year, and so on. But just make sure that your hygrometer's are calibrated and tested. Hydra's are fine, but they aren't the best....which is why they are quite affordable. Better than nothing for sure. But I always had to have bead tubes/bags spread throughout as well, to help regulate the humidity throughout.
 
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