You need this and don't know it

[Brokenbear]

I read post after post about how to store powder, caps,filled horns,loaded weapons
I read about how quick our BP shooters will decay if not cleaned properly and done so in a timely fashion...
Get a dehumidifier ..it is so simple..
A good one ..one that will do 2000sqft ..has a big tank or if a drain is available ..one you can run a short garden hose from dehumidifier to drain ..
Set it on 50% and protect all metals, munitions, leathers, clothing,woods( gunstocks) etc etc
IT is a no Brainer ..an insurance policy ..spend $250 on a good humidifier to protect literally thousands upon thousands of dollars of assets

Just saying
Bear

 

[kje54]

In the high desert if I want to dehumidify the house I just turn off the swamp cooler then open the doors and windows.........

 

[Osseon]

Air conditioning already acts as a dehumidifier enough for most of the things you are talking about. This coming from a Floridian where humidity a constant year round. Keep your guns in a climate controlled room, and powder closed and there shouldn't be an issue. The price running a Dehu unit will outweigh any maintenance prices I would think.

 

[Michiganmuzzy]

Ive been running a dehumidifier in my gun room/basement shop, since i bought the house in 2006. I keep it at 60% and 65°f year round.

 

[Jim Wag]

The
Tularosa Basin is
Dryer than a
Popcorn
Fart

Jim in La Luz

 

[tom_in_vt]

Yup, good idea

 

[Phil Coffins]

I ran a dehumidifier all the years I lived in Nebraska with good results. Sound advice for the unfortunate folks that live and the damp states.

 

[Brokenbear]

Air conditioning already acts as a dehumidifier enough for most of the things you are talking about. This coming from a Floridian where humidity a constant year round. Keep your guns in a climate controlled room, and powder closed and there shouldn't be an issue. The price running a Dehu unit will outweigh any maintenance prices I would think.

Sorry to disagree with you but I do so respectfully ..I am a professional grip carver ..I store in my shop 10's of thousands of dollars worth of wood species from across the planet
50% humidity is the actual water % the exotic wood industry says that will stop the wood from airborne water intake ..that 50% will also make a great difference in things as simple as the smell of your clothes and furniture ..not to mention keeping the insulation in gun safes' from sponging up water
It is the reason that if you store guns in safes ..you would be wise in most of the USA to have some sort of drying/water absorption process with in your safe ...I know I have large rechargeable pods in each safe and depending on time of year they have to be rejuvenated every 30 to 45 days

Just don't kid yourself.. if you live in a high humidity area of the US that air conditioning alone is enough to protect iron guns with wood stocks , powder, primers etc. ..you will be very disappointed ....some day

Bear

 

[mooman76]

I just use GoldenRods.

 

[TrapperDude]

Air conditioning already acts as a dehumidifier enough for most of the things you are talking about. This coming from a Floridian where humidity a constant year round. Keep your guns in a climate controlled room, and powder closed and there shouldn't be an issue. The price running a Dehu unit will outweigh any maintenance prices I would think.

Sorry to disagree with you but I do so respectfully ..I am a professional grip carver ..I store in my shop 10's of thousands of dollars worth of wood species from across the planet
50% humidity is the actual water % the exotic wood industry says that will stop the wood from airborne water intake ..that 50% will also make a great difference in things as simple as the smell of your clothes and furniture ..not to mention keeping the insulation in gun safes' from sponging up water
It is the reason that if you store guns in safes ..you would be wise in most of the USA to have some sort of drying/water absorption process with in your safe ...I know I have large rechargeable pods in each safe and depending on time of year they have to be rejuvenated every 30 to 45 days

Just don't kid yourself.. if you live in a high humidity area of the US that air conditioning alone is enough to protect iron guns with wood stocks , powder, primers etc. ..you will be very disappointed ....some day

Bear

From the amount of moisture cycling out of the reservoir in our air handler here in Florida, I know how much moisture is being pulled from the air by the AC. With that being said, enclosed spaces, such as closets, don't necessarily enjoy the full dehumidifying effects of the AC. I put little buckets of Damp Rid in my gun/ammo walk-in closet, as well as in the clothing walk-in closet, and those do have to be dumped every few weeks. It's amazing how much moisture collects in those places when they don't get direct air circulation from the HVAC.

 

[Osseon]

Sorry to disagree with you but I do so respectfully ..I am a professional grip carver ..I store in my shop 10's of thousands of dollars worth of wood species from across the planet
50% humidity is the actual water % the exotic wood industry says that will stop the wood from airborne water intake ..that 50% will also make a great difference in things as simple as the smell of your clothes and furniture ..not to mention keeping the insulation in gun safes' from sponging up water
It is the reason that if you store guns in safes ..you would be wise in most of the USA to have some sort of drying/water absorption process with in your safe ...I know I have large rechargeable pods in each safe and depending on time of year they have to be rejuvenated every 30 to 45 days

Just don't kid yourself.. if you live in a high humidity area of the US that air conditioning alone is enough to protect iron guns with wood stocks , powder, primers etc. ..you will be very disappointed ....some day

Bear

I also work for a restoration, and mold remediation company so I know a little about moisture. I'm impressed that we need a gun safe with dehumidifiers and all these special things that didn't exist in the 1700-1800s, yet we still have decent firearms from that period that haven't rotten or rusted away. If we have presentable firearms from that period, I don't think in our own lifetimes we should worry about our firearms wasting away in an average home with an HVAC. I'll run through my powder before it is effected by humidity, and the wood will be fine.

Just my two cents, I think its not worth paying the extra electric bill to have a 24/7 Dehu. I've had run ins with rust, but those were from my mistakes and the not the air.

 

[EC121]

I leave my powder in the shed and the rifles in the closet here in central Alabama. Haven't had a problem since I started shooting BP in 1977. Why start now.

 

[bubba.50]

So humuggity here I’d wear myself out emptyin’ the thing.

 

[Brokenbear]

Fellas ...I'm not selling humidifiers ..what I am saying is a lot of folks are building up as many supplies of powder, primers, ammo etc. that they can ...that if you own more "goods" than you shoot in the near foreseeable future ..and you want them to be viable 5,10, 15 years down the road ..you will have to store them in a way that may not be how you used to do it
The fact that your guns would sit in an even better environment than just AC where the "perishables" sit is just a bonus


Bear

 

[Sidney Smith]

I've got central air conditioning. That eliminates most of the airborne moisture during the summer months. I use Damp Rid containers all over the house as well as in my trailer. These remove a lot of moisture in tight areas. In winter it's not an issue as the air is very dry anyway.

You only need dehumidifiers in gun safes if they are the kind with carpeted walls etc. In the bare metal lockable cabinets or wooden gun cabinets,, they are not airtight so a damp rid cannister or air conditioner is enough, at least in my area it is. If I lived near the shore, then I'd have a different attitude on this.

 

[Osseon]

Fellas ...I'm not selling humidifiers ..what I am saying is a lot of folks are building up as many supplies of powder, primers, ammo etc. that they can ...that if you own more "goods" than you shoot in the near foreseeable future ..and you want them to be viable 5,10, 15 years down the road ..you will have to store them in a way that may not be how you used to do it
The fact that your guns would sit in an even better environment than just AC where the "perishables" sit is just a bonus

Bear

I wasn't realizing we were talking about years of BP stockpiling, I can understand for that reason perhaps. Personally I'm not comfortable carrying more than 5-10lb of powder, If an accident were to happen I would rather lose a garage then half the house haha.

 

[smoothshooter]

I wasn't realizing we were talking about years of BP stockpiling, I can understand for that reason perhaps. Personally I'm not comfortable carrying more than 5-10lb of powder, If an accident were to happen I would rather lose a garage then half the house haha.

Black powder does not explode in a fire unless it is tightly and firmly confined. The gasoline in the tank of your car is more dangerous. Am always puzzled that so few people know this, especially shooters.
As relating to humidity, it cannot penetrate the factory containers.

 

[Woody Morgan]

The humidity here averages about 25%. We leave chips open for a couple of weeks without an issue.
Oh. Guns? I don't worry about them either.

wm

 

[Steve Martin]

I have lived here in Northeast Florida for the past 30 years, always kept my guns in (breathable) nylon cases stored in my bedroom closet. Same with all my parts and powder containers. I run A/C year round due to having asthma and have never had any rust issues. Bear in mind though I keep all my guns very clean and oiled when not shooting them and I have no experience with metal gun safes but in general a good A/C system should take care of most any issues. I don't live in Miami however so you might have a bit more of a problem someplace like that.

 

[Osseon]

Black powder does not explode in a fire unless it is tightly and firmly confined. The gasoline in the tank of your car is more dangerous. Am always puzzled that so few people know this, especially shooters.
As relating to humidity, it cannot penetrate the factory containers.

I'm brand new to black powder hobby.

Wouldn't a fire melt a small hole in a plastic container most BP are contained in, causing a pressure vessel of sorts? If one cooks off I would imagine the blast would cook off other ones. Its not so much as fear of explosion as much as fear of a exacerbating a fire. Imagine telling a fire fighter that I have 30-40lb of black powder in my house. They'll watch that house from a safe distance burn I'm sure haha.