CCW Ammo: replace periodically?

Not really. Many law enforcement agencies replace carry ammunition every year; some twice a year. Most of us here replace it more often, simply because we shoot it.
Rimfire ammunition is not as tightly sealed as is centerfire, so it should probably be replaced at least each year in normal conditions, and twice a year in adverse conditions.
The levels of heat typically encountered in a vehicle glovebox will not adversely affect quality ammunition.
So, if you want a "rule", go with each year.

I carry a DA revolver and regularly practice with it, but I don't always shoot the ammo I carry; rather, I use a close performance match that I hand load. (My carry ammo of choice is now difficult to find, so I shoot a cylinder full just a couple of times per year.)

However, I also practice with speedloaders, and for that I do use the ammo that I carry. I really can't be sure whether the rounds I started with are the ones that wind up in the cylinder.

Yes, I do it safely.

Since I handload and carry the same ammo as my defensive ammo, it's constantly rotated.

Ammo is good to go for 100 years....or more. I wouldn't worry about it.

There are a few variables to consider. If you repeatedly load and unload the gun for any of a variety of reasons, you could see bullet setback in automatics. Meaning, the bullet wasn't really designed to be pushed into the chamber over and over again. It can knock the bullet further back into the case than was intended. When it fires, it will have higher pressure and could be dangerous.

The humidity could be a concern depending on where you live. The central coast/Monterey Bay area of California? Big concern. I had a kid's bike start to rust after a few months outside. Utah desert? Not so much.

To me, the biggest concern is things like lint and grime accumulating from every day carry. There is no hard set rule, but I can't see myself keeping the same carry ammo for more than a year.

I replace my carry ammo every year or so. Just to make sure it is fine and still runs well in the gun. The bass gets dirty on the outside. Especially the top rounds. Not had an issue yet. Just my personal preference.

Personally, I like to "shoot off" my carry ammo at regular intervals (my goal is every 6 months, but at least once a year). I just use my carry ammo at the range during practice and then replace it with "fresh" ammo.

A state trooper I met at the range fired up 3 mags of golden sabers that had gone through the wash along with his LCP. They all went bang, but if that happened to my ammo I would replace it too.

You should shoot as often as you can afford and have time for.

At least once per month I draw my carry weapon and fire the all rounds in the mag. Once I finish shooting I clean the weapon and insert my backup mag. Then I reload the empty mag and it it goes into the backup position.
With this rotation all the ammo I carry gets fired during a two month period and replaced. It may be overkill but it has worked for me for 35+ years.

I replace mine periodically (twice a year) out of paranoia. I have no doubts that it will last several years.

Ammo does not go bad. Primers can be contaminated by oil though. The guys who believe that their gun needs to be dripping in oil to run reliably should probably change their carry rounds every 24 hours or so because that oil will creep into the primers. I have seen this with my own eyes on quite a few police qual. ranges. Officers carrying ammo that has been in the gun for a year or more while they soak the gun down with WD 40 every 3 months or so. The look on their faces - priceless.

I've got some clear nail polish I stole from my sister.
Dab the primer and around the bullet/casing meet.

Yes I do. I usually shoot and replaced my carry ammo about once a year.

Drail said:

Officers carrying ammo that has been in the gun for a year or more while they soak the gun down with WD 40 every 3 months or so. The look on their faces - priceless.

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They do this WHILE THE GUN IS LOADED? ! ? ! ?

Or would it be more like they drop the mag and clear it and then hose down the loaded mag?

Either way makes me shake my head in wonderment. But at least the second option smacks of some concern.

Yes, they do it while the gun is loaded. This actually dates back to the era when they all carried S&W revolvers. No one ever told them that it could be a bad idea. The lucky ones would find out on their yearly qualification. I have to wonder how many found out the hard way on duty.

A friend from Houston, TX recently gave me five boxes of WCC '64, .45 ACP ammo that was stored in his backyard shed for the past 30+ years. I took it to the range last weekend and all 250 rounds fired without one failure. That 48 year old ammo was stored in some of the worst conditions imaginable.

I carried a stainless steel 44 in the trunk of my car for a year. The car sat outside the whole time which ranged from sub-freezing to 100+ degree summers. After a year I took the gun out and test fired it. The gun had a few rust spots on it and three of the rounds did not fire.

The conditions you are talking about are a whole lot less severe than the trunk of a car.

I seldom replace my carry or car gun ammo because of age.

I can't think of a single case of ammo going bad in a carry gun because of age.

^ I do what spats said, but I rotate the round after 2 marks. I try to rotate my carry ammo at least once a year, although I usually do it twice a year. Now that I think about it, I don't think I've ever waited a whole year, it's always been twice a year.

Yearly... or so. Depends on how many times it's cycled.

I shoot mine up a few times a year,some times more often depending on how often I rechamber the rounds as thats my real concern,to much set back can be a problem.

I shoot the five rounds in my LCR once a month. Stick in five fresh ones. Is it excessive? Maybe, but I shoot at least a box or two of practice ammo a month through it too and after that I like to shoot five of my carry loads too.

I have several guns that I carry some more frequent than others, to ease confusion I have adopted a simple solution. I have a reload for every carry gun either an extra mag a speed loader or speed strip. when the extra ammo gets tarnished I shoot it, I take whats in the gun and put it in the loader/mag and put fresh ammo in the gun.
some of my ammo goes a year or so some gets replaced every couple of months.