I have about 1 lb. of beads which are about 3 years old. Whenever I have to add distilled water to them they have an incredibly strong odor of concentrated tobacco and something close to cleaning agent. The aroma has been building over time but now it's nearly overpowering. Is this normal? Do beads go bad after a certain time?
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Oh crap...wrong section. Can a mod move it for me please? Sorry about that!
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Whose beads are they?
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They sure ain't mine. :-)
Luke, it's normal.
It's because the pores in the beads, along with the bead's oily "control agent", causes free hydrocarbons to stick both inside and outside the beads.
The strong "cleaner" smell is ammonia. It's been bound by the beads, just as it should be.
When you pour water on the beads, their high level of deprecation (desire to crack from exertion, i.e. pouring water on them) causes them to crack, releasing ammonia that had earlier been trapped inside pores that no longer exist cause they just exploded.
My beads don't act like that and can't get stinky because the pores in the beads are too small for hydrocarbons to enter them. Hydrocarbons don't stick to them because there are no additives to allow them to stick.
They also won't crack when water is poured on them, although we don't do that.
My beads do retain and hold free ammonia though, and they just simply hang on to it. You can't smell it unless you steam it out.
Hope this helps!!! :-)
Scott
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Scott...thank you for the detailed explanation! They are heartfelt beads. I guess it's time to upgrade :-)
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