Handle empty strings with ActiveRecord

nilify_blanks.rb

module NilifyBlanks
  def nilify_blanks(*columns)
    columns.each do |column|
      value = read_attribute(column)
      write_attribute(column, nil) if value.blank?
    end
  end
end

user.rb

#example AR class where you are accepting data from a form and don't want to allow empty strings for NOT NULL columns
class User < ActiveRecord::Base
  include NilifyBlanks

  before_save do |record|
    record.nilify_blanks(
      :login,
      :email,
      :first_name,
      :last_name,
      :phone
    )
  end
end