Rust preventer for long storage

Status
Not open for further replies.

chaddy

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2010
Messages
203
Need to know what to use to keep my guns from rusting in storage in my safe? Cause my s&w bodyguard revolver in junk and I never shot it. I put clp and rem oil wipes to clean it but it didn't work. 500$ gun now ain't worth 20$...
 
If the gun rusted while it was in your safe then your safe is in a really bad place. You need to monitor the humidity of the air in the room the safe is in and get contol of it with a de humidifier. If the safe is filling up with moist air every time the door is opened and then being closed you have a much bigger problem than can be solved with oil on the guns as you now know. Was the gun in a cardboard box or a fabric gun rug in the safe? What else is in the safe besides guns? I have been using Breakfree CLP for 25 years and I have never had a gun rust in or out of the safe. Remoil is not a rust preventative.
 
I'd like to use the heated rod, but I don't want to drill a hole big enough for a plug to fit through.
I've been using the rechargeable moisture absorbing cartridges. Which reminds me, I need to check them and plug them in to dry them out.,
 
I would rather drill a 1/4" hole than deal with rusty guns.


I use a Dri-Rod, monitor humidity with a digital gauge, and wipe down with Rem oil. I have guns that might not get touched for a year at times. Never had a speck of rust.
 
I'd like to use the heated rod, but I don't want to drill a hole big enough for a plug to fit through.
I've been using the rechargeable moisture absorbing cartridges. Which reminds me, I need to check them and plug them in to dry them out.,
Drill a small hole just big enough for the/a wire, cut the wire and splice/put on a new plug. Lots of safes already have holes, especially at the bottom.
If you have a firesafe, a hole might screw up that action though.
 
Gun safe dehumidifier rods generally come with a EZ fit plug that you put on once the cord is thru....my safes are fire rated and came predrilled.
 
Drill a small hole just big enough for the/a wire, cut the wire and splice/put on a new plug If you have a firesafe, a hole might screw up that action though.
Gun safe dehumidifier rods generally come with a EZ fit plug that you put on once the cord is thru.

I thought about cutting the wire. I was concerned about messing up the fire resistance, not that a 1/4" hole should matter much.. but...

I'll have to look closer at the heater rods.. I didn't realize they had them ready to assemble.
 
I thought about cutting the wire. I was concerned about messing up the fire resistance, not that a 1/4" hole should matter much.. but...

I'll have to look closer at the heater rods.. I didn't realize they had them ready to assemble.
I was just thinking about my prior post. If you have a firesafe you could probably spooge some high temp RTV (Room Temperature Vulcanizing) goo into the hole around the wire. That'd probably work good.
 
My storage routine is as follows: Clean well, lube as normal, two thin coats of wax, place in "Bore Store" bag, and don't worry about it.
 
Wow. Thats sad. I actually forgot about the old model Bodyguard until you posted that.

Next, when I hear the words "Military and Police" I won't think about this:

IMG_0039.jpg

:(
 
After cleaning, I wipe them down and place them in silicone socks in the safe with the Goldenrod and three of the boxes of silica dessicant. Here in humid FL, all is well
 
Question

A question for some of you guys who mentioned using a heating rod.

I have a small safe that is bolted to an outer wall, so in the wintertime the inside of my safe gets cold, sometimes very cold, especially overnight.

I debated using a rod but thought that a) cold air always holds less moisture than warm air and b) if there is moisture in the safe a very cold gun will rust at a much slower rate than a warm gun.

Is this line of thinking correct? I have never had a problem with rust from storage, although I do use good rust preventatives. Even now I am still debating whether to use a rod or not years later (like I said it is a small safe).

Thanks
 
You bring up a good point. If you go with a rod, bring the empty safe up to temp and then put the same temp guns in there. Putting cold guns into an immediately warm environment causes condensation to form on them.
If they aren't rusting I wouldn't worry about it.
 
85Win said:
A question for some of you guys who mentioned using a heating rod.

I have a small safe that is bolted to an outer wall, so in the wintertime the inside of my safe gets cold, sometimes very cold, especially overnight.

I debated using a rod but thought that a) cold air always holds less moisture than warm air and b) if there is moisture in the safe a very cold gun will rust at a much slower rate than a warm gun.

Is this line of thinking correct? I have never had a problem with rust from storage, although I do use good rust preventatives. Even now I am still debating whether to use a rod or not years later (like I said it is a small safe).

Thanks

I'm afraid that your thinking is dead right in the wrong direction.....:D

a) All air has some moisture in it. The higher the temperature the more it can hold. As your warm house air leaks in and out of the safe or is exchanged when you open the door you end up with moist air inside. When it cools the air reaches the dew point and the moisture condenses out of the air and onto any cool surfaces such as your guns. Rust begins shortly after that.

b)Rust occurs just as easily at cool temperatures as it does at warm ones. So a cool gun with moisture condensed onto the surface is at just as much risk as one which which is warm and wet.

Two things you need to do pronto. First off insulate the safe or cabinet from the outside wall by sticking a layer of 1 to 1.5 inch blue or pink styrofoam between the safe and the outer wall. And if this is a basement floor then put a layer between the safe and the floor. Then re-attach using longer lag screws or whatever you're using. The insulation will greatly aid in preventing the insides getting too cool. Actually the ideal solution is to find a new spot where it's attached to an INSIDE wall. But if that's not practical then use the hard rigid foam insulation. And don't use the softer white stuff. The rigid insulation is also a vapour barrier where the white stuff is not.

Secondly, you want to warm the inside of the safe so that the relative humidity in the safe is reduced. Read up on "relative humidity" and how it changes with air temperature to understand why warming the air in the safe is an effective anti rust option. If you don't want to buy a rod style heater then installing a light bulb down in a lower corner is just as good but it runs the risk of being damaged where a small heating rod is more durable. You want the heat source to sit down near the bottom of the interior so it sets up a convection flow inside the safe. This also avoids having a layer of cold moist air down on the base. Use the natural convection flow to aid in circulating the air so there's no cold pockets.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top