Powders, Primers and Humidity

[810wmb]

my reloading bench, supplies etc, are out in my garage. there is no air conditioning. it is very humid right now and will be until sept.

i have about 8lbs of powder in it's jug and about 8000 primers in their boxes.

should i bring in my powders and primers?

also, is there any thing i should do for my equipment?

 

[Chief_10Beers]

my reloading bench, supplies etc, are out in my garage. there is no air conditioning. it is very humid right now and will be until sept.

i have about 8lbs of powder in it's jug and about 8000 primers in their boxes.

should i bring in my powders and primers?

also, is there any thing i should do for my equipment?

I use a Dehumidifier.......................

 

[J Miller]

I would bring them in, along with my equipment as well.

Humidity can affect primers and powder and rust equipment.

My primers are up stairs, the powder in the basement with the dehumidifier.

Joe

 

[Rick Courtright]

Hi,

"Cool and dry" have been the watchwords for storage of ammo AND components as long as I can remember.

So, I'd bring the components inside if possible.

I'd also bring whatever equipment you can inside if you can't dehumidify the storage area. If you can't, some kind of rust preventative (oil or ??? Pick your favorite) on all the unprotected surfaces of your presses, dies, etc. will help a lot. A lot of my equipment has that "patina" on it that comes of a previous owner NOT protecting it from the environment. Out here, it's dry enough that's usually as far as it gets, but I imagine pitting would follow quickly in some more humid climes. Not good.

Rick C

 

[Jimbo357mag]

I load ammo in my garage in South Florida. You can't get much more hot and humid than that. I keep all my powder, primers and ammo in the house and only take out what I need. My tools and equipment stay in the garage and they get wiped down with an oily rag pretty often. Bullets are in Tupperware containers or plastic air-tight bags. If I get a large container of powder I put the powder into 1 lb bottles so I don't have to keep opening the big jug. I do most of my loading in the winter or in the early morning so I don't sweat on my bench. A couple of fans help a lot but you have to watch that any breeze doesn't affect your scales.

Other than taking those precautions I have had no problems loading in the garage. They all go bang.

...Jimbo

 

[Elmer]

I keep primers and powder in the basement where it's cool and dry. The rest of the stuff stays in the garage. Equipment is oiled regulary. Haven't had any problems yet.

 

[810wmb]

thanks for the replies!

i insulated the garage door this winter and ran a small oil heater. it stayed right at 60 degrees even when it was below freezing.

after i posted this morning, i took a humidity gauge out there and left it all day. i was very surprised that it wasn't much more humid than my house. i guess the insulation is helping out!

i am still going to put the supplies in the house. there is no sense in leaving them out there when i have room inside to store them.

i will leave the rock chucker out there. i will keep it oiled up.

i do have a dehumidifier at my dads i had forgotten all about. i might get go get it.

i also used to use some stuff where you would pour granules into a pan and it would dehumidify the room it was in. i can't remember the name ...you can get the stuff a walmart.

 

[GP100man]

I live on the coast of NC & humid does`nt describe it !!!

I pack mine in an ammo can & in an old fridge for humidity & temp stabilization .

It works , just opened a # of H-110 that was dated `88, smells & shoots good !

Long term primers get desicant bags & vacum packed in saran wrap, in climate controlled gun safe .

Tranny fluid wipe down keeps the rust away !

 

[resident]

The worst thing you can do is take powder/primers, as components, from an airconditioned house, outside to an un-airconditioned environment for reloading. The cool containers will condense slightly regardless of your best efforts, and you will be adding moisture to the components every time you do it. (On a winter hunt, ever bring a cold, scoped rifle in from the cold, and try to look thru the scope?)

It's better to keep powder and primers in an un-airconditioned garage, even tho' it's hot, .... as long as they are in original containers and sealed.....than it is to take them back and forth repeatedly from cold to warm to cold etc etc. (The ammo found in The Lady Be Good B-24 bomber was found to be perfectly useable even after almost 20 years in the Libyan desert at 120F days and 40F nights, chiefly because it as already assembled ammo...not components. Heat did not deteriorate it.)

I have personally fired 12 ga shotgun ammo that lived in a Texas car trunk for 12 years and it chronographed exactly as it was originally advertised.

Doesn't prove anything, just anecdotal interest.

 

[Jimbo357mag]

The worst thing you can do is take powder/primers, as components, from an airconditioned house, outside to an un-airconditioned environment for reloading. The cool containers will condense slightly regardless of your best efforts, and you will be adding moisture to the components every time you do it. (On a winter hunt, ever bring a cold, scoped rifle in from the cold, and try to look thru the scope?).

Maybe yes, maybe no. When I walk outside on a very hot humid day my glasses will fog up. This is atmospheric moisture condensing on cool glass. Within a couple of minutes the fog will disappear when the glass temp equalizes with the outside. There will be no chance of condensation on the inside of a powder container unless it is open and most likely not on the inside of a box of primers when it is taken into a garage. In most cases leaving the powder and primers in the garage for about 15 minutes will allow the temp to equalize.

...Jimbo

 

[M'BOGO]

Bee's wax and a heat gun is a good sealer/ anti rust agent. Rub some bee's wax on the metal (I do this on tools, not firearms), and run the heat gun over the metal until the wax melts in, and wipe off the extra. I wouldn't do it on moving parts, but it works well.