Baking Soda in the Safe?

[MPFreeman]

I am wondering if putting baking soda in my safe will help absorb moisture?

I had a flood in my basement a while back and my safe got wet inside. My guns and such didn't get wet, but my interior safe did. I had it professionally dried and mildew proofed but I am seeing spot rust on an old scratched magazine. I have a golden rod plugged in, but it's just really a heater. Are there any ways to help with moisture control. And is baking soda a method to control moisture? Any thoughts would be nice.

 

[Jeeper]

you can buy bags of desicant that trap moisture and then you can cook them to dry them out. Most gun mags sell them

 

[mete]

Baking soda has many uses but drying is not one of them ! Silica packets are the thing to use but the must be refreshed by baking out the moisture occasionally. The golden rod is a heater and drying is accomplished by raising the temperature 10 F above ambient. I don't know what you mean by professionally dried but if you have carpet inside that might hold moisture. All the guns should be carefully cleaned and a light coating of a rust preventitve applied, I use RIG. Guns should be inspected on a regular basis.

 

[TimH]

Go to a crafts store. You can buy dessicant powder in large containers (
5lb I think) put it in a stocking or something then hang it in gun safe. Its pretty cheap to buy it this way.

 

[GigaBuist]

If you can't find a craft store, or feel goofy going into one , you could try a paint store. I've read before that they sell something that you can set in a room (some powder) that'll absorb moisture.

 

[Logan5]

I've got two cannisters of dessicant in my gun safe, I believe it's from Brownell's, normal silica gel. Anyway, it definitely didn't come from Linens & Things, but you do have to pop it in the oven now and then to dry it out. So far, it's done it's job. I'll try to dig into the back this weekend and note down where it came from for you.

 

[Andrew Rothman]

Dessicant "bricks" designed for gun safes can be found at Gander Mountain, or I'm guessing anywhere that sells the safes.

 

[El Tejon]

Matt, no, but it will keep your guns smelling fresh and clean.

Are you leaving garlic in the safe again? Worried about vampire zombie bears are we?

 

[JohnBT]

I vote for one or two Golden Rods based on my experience with a large safe in a dark, dank, damp basement.

When the humidity gets up into the 90%+ range during the summer(or when there's running water on the floor after a downpour) I run large dehumidifier overnight to take 3 or 4 gallons out of the air.

I bought one of the dessicant boxes from a safe dealer and a couple of pounds of the stuff from a craft store and found out that even with 2 Golden Rods(18" & 24") running it would saturate in a few days. Now the stuff just sits on a workbench waiting on someone to carry it away.

I do coat my guns with good rust preventative (CLP, RIG, etc.), but I've tested bare metal for extended periods and none of it has ever rusted.

I use a few thermometers and the interior stays a constant 2 or 3 degrees higher than the basement temperature. Interior humidity ranges from 30-ish to upper 60s depending on the season.

YMMV based on conditions.

John

 

[Bravo11]

I was wondering about baking soda in my gun case for another reason.
Even after cleaning my SKS it has made my gun cabinet smell like russian factory crud or whatever that smell is. Will baking soda remove that smell?