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Thread: Desiccant bags

  1. #1
    Boolit Grand Master
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    Desiccant bags

    Is there a reason for NOT putting a tiny bag of desiccant into a container of powder?????
    Mainly for long term storage.

  2. #2
    Boolit Buddy
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    Greetings,

    I believe smokeless powder relies on a certain amount of moisture.

    Your best bet would be to make sure the cap is on tight.

    Long term storage in a GI Ammo Can would not hurt.

    Cheers,

    Dave

  3. #3
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    Winger Ed.'s Avatar
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    Out there in the jungle where you are, I'd be putting long term stored powder (in its original container)
    inside a airtight plastic tub or ammo can and call it good.
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  4. #4
    Boolit Master
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    Hmm, rifle and pistol powder in a metal ammo can? How different is that from a pressure cooker? Plastic tub with desiccant packs sounds a whole lot less restrictive if you have a residential fire.

  5. #5
    Boolit Master Handloader109's Avatar
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    plastic powder containers? screw lid on and you are good to go. best to keep cool

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  6. #6
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    [QUOTE=Dusty Bannister;5232239]Hmm, rifle and pistol powder in a metal ammo can? How different is that from a pressure cooker? Plastic tub with desiccant packs sounds a whole lot less restrictive if you have a residential fire.[/QUOTE

    Probably bad if you put powder in any other metal container other than the original. But those metal powder containers were made to rupture at very low pressure! Now I don’t recommend anyone trying this, but I proved this to someone who believe me! I had a empty powder can (if I remember correctly it was 4895) I put what amounts to a rather hot 30.06 rounds worth of powder in the can. I then put the sealed can in a fire and backed up a few hundred yards. No explosion! No fire ball! The can simply ruptured, rather quickly. Before I get all the hate mail, this was done in a wide open sand pit, and there were members of the fire department present. As a mater of fact the person who was of the belief that there would be some massive explosion was in fact a member of the local volunteer fire department. I would not repeat the test with anything other than the original powder can!
    Long, Wide, Deep, and Without Hesitation!

  7. #7
    Boolit Master
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    Just screw the lid on. I'm almost out of it but I still have a paper bag of powder sealed in one of those old cheese puff plastic jars that is from the early '90's or earlier. Been I while since I've seen bulk powder around here. My shop only has heat and it gets very hot and humid here.

  8. #8
    Boolit Grand Master
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    It rains almost everyday where I live.
    Not big long rain, just enough to make things wet.
    Then the sun comes out and it's really muggy.
    That and the wind brings ocean salt air.
    Sometimes it's so bad, the car is covered in salt.
    I've had un-opened cans rust from the inside out.
    Had a couple that when I opened it, was stink and wet inside.
    Not all powders have a problem.

  9. #9
    Boolit Buddy
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    I have used desiccant bags in my powder containers for years and also keep one hanging in each powder hopper continuously. I also run a dehumidifier in the basement 24-7 365. I would do the same in Hawaii.
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  10. #10
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    I keep my powders in a small refrigerator, just give them an hour or so to come up to room temp before opening.
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  11. #11
    Boolit Grand Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by JSnover View Post
    I keep my powders in a small refrigerator, just give them an hour or so to come up to room temp before opening.
    A little funny that just happened to me.
    Went to a friends house to help repair something.
    Needed to weld it.
    He keeps the Arc welding rods in a small, old, broken, office icebox, with a bulb on all the time, to keep it dry.
    I do the samething.
    When I opened it, I noticed he had a LED bulb in it.
    Informed him that LED bulbs don't give off the same heat as the old bulbs, so it's probably not doing anything.
    Rods were OK. Not great, but OK.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dusty Bannister View Post
    Hmm, rifle and pistol powder in a metal ammo can? How different is that from a pressure cooker?
    The latch on ammo cans are designed to burst open and vent the can in a fire, without shattering or fragmenting.

    A pressure cooker is made to contain fairly high pressure and doesn't have the ability to vent more than at a small rate.
    It can shatter into fragments sort of like a pipe bomb.
    Last edited by Winger Ed.; 07-28-2021 at 01:36 AM.
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  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by abunaitoo View Post
    Is there a reason for NOT putting a tiny bag of desiccant into a container of powder?????
    Mainly for long term storage.
    I do it all the time. I think it helps the most, not only for long term storage, but when you are frequently opening and closing containers. If you live in a dry part of the world, maybe you don’t need to bother, but in humid places, I think they helps.

  14. #14
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    I wouldn't put the packets in the bottle with the powder ...simply because the powder maker doesn't put them in when packaging their powder (correct me if I'm wrong , I don't remember seeing them in any bottles of powder) if you put the powder cotainers in a plastic storage bin with a good lid ... I would put the packets in the big plastic container .
    My thought is if the powder maker thought them necessary to be in the bottle of powder ... they would be in there when you open it .
    Might be a good question for powder maker to answer .
    I know just about every bottle of pills have them ... but that ain't gunpowder !
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  15. #15
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    Winchester ball powder is manufactured under water. Let that soak in.
    Looking for USGI M1 and carbine rifle parts, please PM me.

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