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So I'm in the local BJ's warehouse club and I notice something called "Pingi" which is designed to help remove moisture from areas. It's a three pack with three different sizes.
I go up and look at it and I even give the largest one a squeeze. Yup, I can make a very educated guess as to what it is.
Years ago someone thought to package Silica Gel crystals as kitty litter. This was a pretty major deal for the hobbyist trade as there are numerous applications that could benefit from a decent desiccant in large quantities. Flower drying comes to mind, as does the drying of herbs.
It has also found use in the Self-Storage industry where you can buy a tub of the crystals and stick it into your storage unit to keep the moisture down. It is also mentioned several times in the RV and Boat owners forums as a great way to keep the moisture down when you put away a boar or an RV away for the winter.
Nothing worse than opening your toy after a long winter and having to deal with black mold and mildew.
So this product annoyed me a little bit. Yeah, it's capitalism at its finest and you have to give props to the guy that managed to package it with a cute logo and make money, but it's something that people have been doing for years without needing the cute penguin logo.
But that annoyance didn't cause me to do anything more than pick it up, squeeze it to feel what it was made out of, raise an eyebrow and give a Malcom Reynolds-ish "Huh".
The suck of the story is coming in soon. Be patient.
As I say "Huh", another person comes along and looks at the item in my hand and asks "I wonder how they do that?". To which I explain that it's simply the Silica Gel that you can get as cat litter (pointing to the product sitting in the racks one aisle over) and putting it into a cloth bag to let it absorb the moisture out of the air. Rather like the little sachets you find in Electronics packages.
Enter the sucktomer. A third party enters the fray and starts ripping into me for "stealing the patent". He's claiming (loudly) that I stole the patent and am planning to steal money from the hard working people who developed this product.
When he finally runs out of breath I tear into him back.
Me -
SC - The ones whom we all know and loathe
Me - Do you own that company?
SC - No
Me - Then you have no say in the matter.
Me - Secondly there is no patent as of right now. This says that the patent is pending. Meaning that either it is not yet approved, or that it has not even been applied for and they're thinking about it...maybe. Patent Pending is one of those buzz words that anyone can put on a package to give it an air of legitimacy.
Me - Thirdly, I can show internet forums going back to the late 90's that discuss how to use the kitty litter by shoving a bag of that crap into an old pillowcase and chucking it into the RV before closing it up for the winter. Long before this company started selling it to the random people on the street that have no need to look at RV forums.
Me - And finally if you want to get into a legal cock-fight over this I'm Mongo Skruddgemire and if you can get a lawyer to take your case over something that you do not have any vested interest in...bring it on.
At that point I pointed my cart toward the self-checkout and rang up my soda and left.
I go up and look at it and I even give the largest one a squeeze. Yup, I can make a very educated guess as to what it is.
Years ago someone thought to package Silica Gel crystals as kitty litter. This was a pretty major deal for the hobbyist trade as there are numerous applications that could benefit from a decent desiccant in large quantities. Flower drying comes to mind, as does the drying of herbs.
It has also found use in the Self-Storage industry where you can buy a tub of the crystals and stick it into your storage unit to keep the moisture down. It is also mentioned several times in the RV and Boat owners forums as a great way to keep the moisture down when you put away a boar or an RV away for the winter.
Nothing worse than opening your toy after a long winter and having to deal with black mold and mildew.
So this product annoyed me a little bit. Yeah, it's capitalism at its finest and you have to give props to the guy that managed to package it with a cute logo and make money, but it's something that people have been doing for years without needing the cute penguin logo.
But that annoyance didn't cause me to do anything more than pick it up, squeeze it to feel what it was made out of, raise an eyebrow and give a Malcom Reynolds-ish "Huh".
The suck of the story is coming in soon. Be patient.
As I say "Huh", another person comes along and looks at the item in my hand and asks "I wonder how they do that?". To which I explain that it's simply the Silica Gel that you can get as cat litter (pointing to the product sitting in the racks one aisle over) and putting it into a cloth bag to let it absorb the moisture out of the air. Rather like the little sachets you find in Electronics packages.
Enter the sucktomer. A third party enters the fray and starts ripping into me for "stealing the patent". He's claiming (loudly) that I stole the patent and am planning to steal money from the hard working people who developed this product.
When he finally runs out of breath I tear into him back.
Me -
SC - The ones whom we all know and loathe
Me - Do you own that company?
SC - No
Me - Then you have no say in the matter.
Me - Secondly there is no patent as of right now. This says that the patent is pending. Meaning that either it is not yet approved, or that it has not even been applied for and they're thinking about it...maybe. Patent Pending is one of those buzz words that anyone can put on a package to give it an air of legitimacy.
Me - Thirdly, I can show internet forums going back to the late 90's that discuss how to use the kitty litter by shoving a bag of that crap into an old pillowcase and chucking it into the RV before closing it up for the winter. Long before this company started selling it to the random people on the street that have no need to look at RV forums.
Me - And finally if you want to get into a legal cock-fight over this I'm Mongo Skruddgemire and if you can get a lawyer to take your case over something that you do not have any vested interest in...bring it on.
At that point I pointed my cart toward the self-checkout and rang up my soda and left.
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