Dehumidifying my safe. Options?

[Reloadron]

Can report back, I stuffed my safe with desiccants, and the humidity inside dropped to 40%. I had one rechargeable that, according to the large print, was supposed to take care of this cubic footage. It was a lie. Five times more absorber did the job. The baseline humidity was such that the top layer of fresh silica (in a cup) turned into cement in two days. I had to break it up.

Also got a little digital hygrometer that remembers the extreme readings over a period of time since the last check. Press the "max/min" button once for high, then again for low. Not as advanced as Ron's gizmo but should work for me.

Cool, the min / max feature is nice in hygrometers.

The gizmo I got was more a matter of curiosity and something to play around with. Certainly not a must have by any stretch.

Overall it is nice to know what you have for humidity so you can get an idea of how to get rid of it. Also, as mentioned, if nothing is going wrong and rust isn't growing there is little to nothing to worry or be concerned about.

Ron

 

[oneounceload]

Safe doors are not airtight. The constant flow of moist air coming in around the door has to pass by the guns to get to the desiccant.

Depends on your safe; mine with its fire seal IS airtight; however, going in and out every day allows enough moisture in that way

 

[JohnBT]

Okay, a question. Was the seal advertised as expanding when heated? Most of them are. Why would they need to expand if they're already airtight?

Do the refrigerator door seal test - close the safe door on a clean dollar bill and see if you can pull it out easily. Every gun safe I've ever checked was a loose fit all the way around the door.

www.libertysafe.com/the-worlds-best-fire-seal-lm-5-p-81.html

"•Palusol™ expands to 7 times its size when temperatures reach 212 degrees, sealing off both heat and smoke."

John

 

[JohnBT]

The loose doors are an advantage when using a GoldenRod. It requires ventilation.

www.goldenroddehumidifiers.com/faqs.htm

"Expansion of the heated air forces the moist air outside through the vents or loose fitting doors leaving the dry air inside. In order to work correctly, it is important to ensure that there is adequate ventilation."

 

[Reloadron]

Well I can assume my RSC is somewhat air tight. Doing the dollar bill test I get restriction trying to remove the bill. More to the point if I measure the RH in the gun room and it is around 55% to 60% then place the data logger in the safe it will drop to around 45% eventually becoming stable with the door closed. Then open the door for awhile (10 min or so). The logged RH will shoot up. Close the door and the RH in the safe starts to drop as the desiccant starts doing its thing. Pretty much what I would expect.

Ron