My $3 pool noodle boot rack beat the $40 wire one I returned in March

Last month I drove to the Dollar Tree on Vine in Fresno and grabbed 6 pool noodles for $3 total. Everyone in the DIY groups keeps pushing those wire shoe racks for wet boots, but I cut the noodles into 4 inch rings, stuffed them in a plastic bin by the door, and the boots stand up dry with no rust streaks. The wire rack I bought at a big box store in February held 8 pairs but water dripped straight through onto my tile and left a ring I still scrub at. Three weeks in, the noodles haven't sagged or smelled, and I spent under $5 counting the bin. My neighbor says foam will soak up water and go moldy by summer, so has anyone run this setup through a wet season and lived to tell it?