Way to revive dried out Tombow markers?

[blueheron]

Does anyone know of a way to revive dried-out Tombow markers? I don't think they are empty--but I have taken a LONG break from stamping and now some of my markers seem dried out. I stored them horizontally in a closed plastic container. Any suggestions?

[buggainok]

I googled "how to revive dried out markers" and found this tip:

1. Go through all of your markers. Look for the ones that don't work properly and put them into a pile. Make sure that you don't put any markers that still work into this pile, or else you will be wasting your time later on.

2. Find the appropriate caps to your markers. If you don't know where the cap is, you might as well throw the marker away because it will never work well again. However, if the cap is a different color than the marker itself, you may still put that cap onto it to keep the marker working properly.

3. Put about 1 cup of hot water into a bowl. You may also do this inside of a sink if you don't have a bowl. Put each marker into the bowl of hot water one at a time so that they become wet.

4. Find a towel when all of your markers are wet and place the markers on the towel and leave them to dry for a day. The next day, reattach the marker caps to the markers. Then, let them dry again for another day with the caps still on. When you try to use your markers again, they should continue working properly.

[blueheron]

Thanks, Bugga--I saw that one, too, but it left several questions: is that method for water-based or solvent-based markers? When it says put all the markers in a bowl of water, does it mean tip UP or tip DOWN (getting the tips wet?) Step 4 indicates "reattach the marker caps to the markers" after letting the markers dry for a day. So does that mean you put the markers into the water without the caps? Wouldn't that dry them out even more?

I did quite a bit of Googling, and came up with a few suggestions about reviving alcohol or solvent based markers, but nothing on water-based.

Thanks for your time and attempt at providing an answer, though. I DO appreciate it. Has anyone else come across an answer for the water-based Tombows?

[cat_woman]

There is a product called Perfect Ink Refresher by Ranger. It says that it "Rehydrates and conditions ink pads and water base markers". I've used it on dried up ink pads and it worked really well. You could dip the tip into some refresher and let the tip soak up the liquid. It may bring the marker back to life. I bought mine at a LSS and it was about $8 for a 4oz spray bottle.

[cat_woman]

I just pulled out the bottle and here is what is says to do to get your marker going again: "for water base markers, remove the end plug from the marker or gently pull the nib out. Use an eyedropper to apply Ink Refresher to pen reservoir. Return the plug or nib. Allow a few minutes for the moisture to saturate the ink core before using." So, if I'm right, Tombows are dual tip markers, so you'd have to get the tip out of one end to apply the refresher.

[blueheron]

Thank you, cat_woman. I live in a small town, but will check our hobby store (which also carries stamping stuff). It would definitely be worth it to revive all my Tombows. I appreciate your help.