# Drying a hydration pack



## Trimen1000 (Mar 28, 2008)

I'm looking for a better way to dry the bladder and tube for a hydration pack.

Currently I just let the tube sit around in a hot dry environment till it dries out. For the bladder I hang it in front of a fan that I have which opens it up a little and moves air through it. These methods are pretty slow.

How do you dry yours?


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## doug4sail (Jan 2, 2006)

I pull the mouth piece off the hose, And empty the bladder. I have been doing this
for two years in Hawaii, No problems. If I dont pull the mouth Piece I get mold quickly.

The only other choice would be to freeze the bladder and tube after each use.

Good luck.

Doug


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## Clutchman83 (Apr 16, 2006)

Cut a metal hangar up and then bend it into a coil, with a kind of foot or stand bent on one end, stick into the bladder, prop it upside down on the stand and let it air dry, thats the fastest way to do it IMO. Mine usually just take overnight if I keep it in a warm dry place. I've never had problems with mold in the hose but my area is really dry and hot in the summer.


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## mtbdan (Mar 23, 2007)

I don't dry mine. After a ride, I rinse the mouthpiece and empty any excess water in the bladder and hose into the sink. Then I throw it in the freezer until the next ride. I've been using the same bladder for three years with zero mold or funky smell. 

In the summer, you can add water, and then freeze it to add a block of ice to your water. When i do this, i blow air thru the hose to inflate it to keep the water away from the opening, or else it will be very hard to open...


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## phoehn9111 (Oct 27, 2006)

I put a spatula on the dishrack (after thoroughly rinsing and disassembling
the bladder) and then put the handle end up through the mouth part while trying
to 'fluff open' the bladder. This works well for me, and is absolutely essential because
I use Cytomax exclusively in my bladder. I am always careful to make sure it is 
completely dry within a day. Sometimes I carefully dab the corner out with a paper towel.
Camelback makes a plastic thingy which expands inside the blader to dry, but I'm
too cheap to buy it.


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## Atomick (Apr 22, 2008)

I do exactly what phoehn9111 does, but with a broad whisk, as do most of my friends. Works great!


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## phred (Aug 25, 2007)

I do the same thing. I also found out the hard way that the ice molds to the cap and makes it dang near impossible to open unless you run it under hot water to melt the ice aournd the openning.


mtbdan said:


> I don't dry mine. After a ride, I rinse the mouthpiece and empty any excess water in the bladder and hose into the sink. Then I throw it in the freezer until the next ride. I've been using the same bladder for three years with zero mold or funky smell.
> 
> In the summer, you can add water, and then freeze it to add a block of ice to your water. When i do this, i blow air thru the hose to inflate it to keep the water away from the opening, or else it will be very hard to open...


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## wg (Dec 20, 2003)

Dry the outside of it with a towel then fold over a few times and pop it in the freezer. Using the same bladder for about 3+ years now.


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## solara (Sep 5, 2007)

I stick a couple paper towels in the bladder (top and bottom) to absorb the water and keep the plastic from sticking to each other and retaining water.


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## Trimen1000 (Mar 28, 2008)

I really like the freezing idea. I think I'll just not dry it(the whole thing carefully) and stick it in the freezer. Do you put the whole thing in? Are there any bladders, tubes, or mouthpieces that can't take freezing?


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## kudude (May 20, 2008)

make sure the tube is empty........and throw it in. You can pull off the mouthpiece if you want


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## bstyle74 (May 8, 2005)

I've had problems with o-rings when i freeze my bladder (camelbak), so i just hang dry now with a stretched out-and-down metal coat hanger. Clean using denture cleaner... mint flavor!


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## Trimen1000 (Mar 28, 2008)

My bladder is a Nalgene one.


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## womble (Sep 8, 2006)

Take a metal clothes hanger. Bend it so the two wings are parallel. Insert into bladder. You can use the hanger hook to hang the bladder out of the way to dry.

If you're using a Camelbak, you can buy a specific adaptor which works quite well,is less bulky than anything else, and still hangs up.


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## Gatorback (Oct 9, 2007)

The freezer route works like a charm for me even though I typically ride with a sports drink as opposed to water in my Camelback. I just rinse it out when I get home, throw it in the freezer, and leave it there until my next ride.


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## CharacterZero (May 19, 2004)

+1 for the freezing...my nalgene has a disconnect on the hose, so that stays on the dakine pack. The bladder gets hastily emptied (or close) and then tossed into the freezer. Easy!


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## Dragoneyes (Aug 12, 2007)

The freezer is the best way I've found to keep my bladder fresh. I usually run warm water on the bite valve and around the O-Ring so it will seal.


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## jackmcmanus21 (May 19, 2008)

I have a CamelBak and I've never tried the freezer...thanks for the tip


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## Strafer (Jun 7, 2004)

Just leave it filled with tap water, then drain and refill with fresh water when you go for a ride.
My bladder never needed cleaning using this method, and the tube remained clear as the first day.


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## cbchess (Dec 20, 2003)

solara said:


> I stick a couple paper towels in the bladder (top and bottom) to absorb the water and keep the plastic from sticking to each other and retaining water.


+1
when I drain the bladder after a ride, I will blow back into the tube, from the mouthpiece, as I uncap and pour out the camel back. This gets all the water out of the tube.
I take two paper towels and ball them up and put each one inside the bladder in the corners. This holds the bladder fully open and soaks up any little bit of water.
I hang the bladder at the hose/bladder intersection.

Work great , cost .02$, dry in no time.


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

Ride, come home, FREEZE IT, sleep, ride, come home, FREEZE IT, sleep, ride, come home, FREEZE IT. Well you get the picture, keeping it in the freezer in between rides works the best. It keeps bacteria from forming and it also provides a nice little ice cube in the bottom for the next ride.


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## cyklops (Mar 28, 2005)

*Water quality?*

Surprisingly, I have not had any issues with mold and I too have just been leaving the bladder full and rinsing when refilling. Maybe the water in Oregon is relatively clean of nasties?

CyKlops


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