I was at Petco the other day picking up some filter bags for my humi when I saw water pillows in the reptile section. They look like the same kind used for cigar storage. Can anyone chime in on this?
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I should be more clear about what I am asking: Does anyone know if these pillows contain the same SAP's as the cigar branded ones do? Do you think these water pillows would be ok for use with cigars?
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:-)

You can get the real thing on fleabay for about 50-cents each with free shipping, I don't see a point in messing with the pet store brands.
http://collectibles.shop.ebay.com/To...=p3286.c0.m282
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I can't tell you if those particular things are same as, but I can tell you that we used SAP for shipping chickens lots of years ago. It wasn't long after that I saw it used for cricket feed.
You can put most anything in SAP, but the more salts involved, the less it will swell, so you get a lesser volume per unit of SAP.
When SAP was getting real popular, there was a push by a guy named Gary Something (I talked to him a few times, can't remember his last name) to standardize the grades for SAP. IIRC, it just landed at one grade because it's basically benign, meaning you can even eat the lousy stuff and it won't hurt you.
Instead of grading toward food quality, they set a group of standard grades for product quality that went toward the regularity of grain and how much dust was in it.

All that to say, yeah, it's probably the same stuff. :-)
And...
I have a 50lb drum in the garage. It takes an ounce of my SAP to make a gallon of gel when you hydrate it with distilled water. If you'd like to try it, I'd be happy to send you some. :-)
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BTW, just what is SAP?
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Super absorbent polymer
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TG: Thanks for turning me onto to ebay. I dont know why I didnt think of that. I just wanted a water pillow or two but the s&h from a online retailer makes it so that I basically have to buy other stuff just to get value out of it.

Shilala: Thanks for the history of SAP, its very interesting. Thanks for the offer for some of the stuff but I will take a pass because I know if I get ahold of it, I will turn it into some big project that will ultimately end in a mess.

BTW, is there anything you can't do! Are you the lost love child of MacGyver and Q!
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http://cgi.ebay.com/12-Water-Pillows...item3a65865d84

Those are the ones we sell at the shop for $1.00 each. To me they seem cheap...not sure how well they work.

I always buy the Boveda packs. I'll pay a few dollars more for something I know works.
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I use those bill on trips in my traveldor for the fact that they are cheap and I don't care if i lose them.

Only thing to remember is that those unlike the boveda packs don't regulate humidity iirc. Good for trips or mailing sticks.
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@ BTcigars, PMS
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They most certainly are cheap, on the pocketbook not how they are made, and are most effective. I have used water pillows, the same ones, for years. One, just one, of those small water pillows is perfect for large coolers. I check the pillow in my coolers every 3-4 months add a little dist. water. They say it lasts only so long but I have pillows that are years old and work just fine.

IMO, they work too well to ship cigars with one unless it will be in transit a month or more. Everytime I have gotten cigars with a pillow inside, the cigars are way too wet and need to dry out for a few weeks before they can be smoked.

:-)
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I use the pet store water pillows for shipping and they seem to work well short term. Never tried them long term which I have done with ones picked up at Two Guys in NH.
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I use and sell the pillows. Instead of filling them with distilled water, I use 50/50 mix with good results.
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