My boiled cotton balls > What have I done wrong? (pic)

[Flt Simulation]

I want to try using cotton balls for wick in a kayfun Lite atomizer.

Everyone tells me that I need to boil the cotton balls first (which personally, I think is a waste of time).

Well, I boiled them in a cup of water in the microwave. Then with a paper towel, I squeezed them out to remove the water (they are now air-drying)

By the looks of the photo that I just took ... I can't see how these cotton balls are ever going to work as wick. They are now just a hard smashed up ball of cotton that is not going to be easy to make a wick from.

In the photo is one regular cotton ball as it came from the package just as a comparison.

From the looks of these smashed-up cotton balls, I think this was nothing but a big waste of time!

 

[Hypatia]

Yep, that's what they'll look like before they are completely dry. I do the same thing as far as removing as much moisture as possible with a paper towel. When they are completely dry, I assure you they will look pretty much the same as original.

I would suggest putting them in front of a heat register in your home to speed the drying (do you guys HAVE those in S Florida, lol?). Otherwise a good shot with a hair dryer (on a lower heat setting) for several minutes speeds up the drying process.

 

[HughDaHand]

You know we are not making spit wads right?

I don't bother to boil my cotton balls so I guess I really can't be much help. Maybe just let them dry and not wring them out?

 

[Paul.K]

Same here. Never boiled cotton. I just use cvs sterile cotton and it's all good.

Sent from my cotton stuffed microcoiled Android unit.

 

[Hypatia]

You know we are not making spit wads right?

I don't bother to boil my cotton balls so I guess I really can't be much help. Maybe just let them dry and not wring them out?

Yes, I have been known to be impatient, waiting for cotton balls to dry and just have at it with a (GASP!) dirty, filthy, no good UN-boiled cotton ball. They work, too . YMMV

 

[ckquatt]

Yep. Normal. Mine are usually flat cause I put them between two pieces of paper towel and press the excess water out. When they completely dry, they'll puff back up. Don't worry.

 

[edyle]

I don't attempt squeeze them out;

just leave in a cup to dry; one cotton ball might last me a month or few.

 

[doots]

I never boil mine. just use them like they are.. call me crazy.. lol

PS> I do blow off vapor from the hits the first few minutes without taking them into my lungs to get rid of that cotton taste that happens from a new wick.

 

[Flt Simulation]

I will just let them dry overnight

I can tell you this for sure ... I won't be boiling any more cotton balls again. Going to use them just as they come out of the package.

There sure a lot cleaner than those cigarettes I used to smoke!

 

[AmandaD]

I did the same thing after squishing them with paper towels to dry. After a day or two they looked perfectly normal. Something didn't seem right to me about boiling my 'sterile' cotton balls in tap water and then putting them on the counter on a nonsterile paper towel to dry . But I did it anyway.....guess I won't bother with that process again!

 

[doots]

I did the same thing after squishing them with paper towels to dry. After a day or two they looked perfectly normal. Something didn't seem right to me about boiling my 'sterile' cotton balls in tap water and then putting them on the counter on a nonsterile paper towel to dry . But I did it anyway.....guess I won't bother with that process again!

LOL. That makes sense..

 

[dripdaze]

Their appearance doesn't effect their ability to function. I don't care what they look like until I am putting them in my atty. and they look nothing like a cotton ball at that point.

 

[Susan W.]

I don't boil. But if I was to, I'd probably do half a pack of cotton balls. No way I'm going through all that to do just three.

 

[Elizabeth Baldwin]

I've never boiled cotton. Sterile or organic is clean to start with. The water you're boiling them in is probably more contaminated until you boiled it. We use sterile cotton on open wounds...so I doubt there's anything too harsh in them. I've never tasted anything in mine.

I've never heard of anything sterile being dirty!

 

[alisa1970]

You ain't seen mine! Flatter than a pancake (mine were ripped off the ends of some Qtips). They fluff right up, enough for a wick anyway, and work fine.

 

[dripdaze]

I don't boil. But if I was to, I'd probably do half a pack of cotton balls. No way I'm going through all that to do just three.

I prefer to only do enough at one time to last for a couple months(3 or 4).

 

[Alter]

My cotton and hemp fiber ended up being a lump of solid mass after they dried. I used a fine wire dog brush on top a glass top table to brush the fluff back into my fiber. My fingertips did get a bit sore but I ended up with a nicer, fluffier product in the end.
I also read to use a stiff toothbrush but that IMO was a waste of time cause the toothbrush just slid over the top layer of the fiber and really did nothing to fluff up the lump.

 

[Susan W.]

I seem to waste half my cotton ball when I drop it or it sticks to my clothes. I guess I use more than 3 or 4 in a couple of months.

I'm thinking that drying the balls quicker would be best since mold could grow if they take forever to dry.

I prefer to only do enough at one time to last for a couple months(3 or 4).

 

[NealBJr]

I use organic cotton balls and don't boil. organic meaning no pesticides were used. I am sure sterile would be fine as well, but for the price Vs. usage, the extra .50 for organic to have a lifetime supply didn't bother me. only problem is, keeping my wife away from the organic cotton balls. Besides the organic part, I think they're rolled better than sterile. Just easier to take apart.

 

[Visus]

fold a paper towel four times put cotton ball on top of it microwave for 2mins it will be dry as when new.. If not dry its cause u have weaker microwave adjust that dry time.. The paper towel absorb all the moisture as it shakes off the cotton ball