Guns and Hot Warehouses?

[TheProf]

Will storing guns in a hot (no airconditioning) warehouse damage them?

The guns will be in a ziplock bag, the bag will then be placed in a large air tight military ammo box, filled with kitty litter (for moisture control).

Guns will be in said warehouse for a couple of months.
The guns will be wiped down every weekend with an oiled rag.

Will this set up work?
Will prolonged heat (100 plus degrees...Hot Louisiana weather) damage the guns?

(Out of curiosity, does the military store their small arms in air-conditioned armory?)

 

[19-3Ben]

Will prolonged heat (100 plus degrees...Hot Louisiana weather) damage the guns?

Plenty of people keep guns in the car. It can get much much hotter than that inside a car sitting in an open parking lot in the summer time. For what it's worth, I haven't heard any cases of the heat inside a car damaging a gun.
I wouldn't be too concerned.

 

[cologuy]

I don't think the heat will bother them too much, but any moisture that's in the bags, or gets into the bags when they're opened could be a problem, especially someplace like Louisiana. Having your dessicant (sp?) outside the waterproof barrier won't do much to protect the firearms. I'd suggest you Google "long term firearms storage" - lots of good information out there. Some of it is on a few "survivalist" sites, but the info is pretty good for the most part. Good luck.

 

[Texas Gun Person]

Wouldn't think it would be a problem.

I live in Texas, and it gets plenty hot here in the summer... much more so if you are sitting in a parked car. Plenty of people here store firearms in the vehicles. Including myself. Nothing bad so far.

 

[Owen]

I wouldn't keep it in a ziploc. Find VCI paper or a VCI plastic bag. Condensation is the enemy here, not heat.

 

[Old Shooter]

+1 to what cologuy said. Moisture trapped in the zip-loc bag will be the problem. If you go this route I would put a couple of bags of dessicant in the zip-loc bag with the guns.

 

[TheProf]

Thanks for the replies.

Would wrapping them up in a pillow case and then placing said pillow case in the seal box full of kitty litter. Would that work? (I have a cat and therefore lots of kitty litter...don't always have dessicant.) (I'm also thinking that a being buried in a box full of kitty litter would act as temperature control.)

Would the heat cause the oils in the deep recesses of the gun to prematurely evaporate?

VCI paper??? = ????

 

[rcmodel]

You are over-thinking this.

Get the moisture barrier paper.
Get some good anti-rust lube like R.I.G. or something else that works.

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/lid=...nic__Knowing_the_Limits_of_Rust_Preventatives

Oil & wrap them in the moisture barrier paper, and leave them be until you need to get them out and use them again.

The more times you unwrap them, the more times you expose them to humidity & varying temperature again.

Do Not use an old pillow case.
Do Not fill the container with kitty litter, either new or used.

BTW: Brand new guns are stored in factory packing in non-climate controlled warehouses for months & years with nothing more then a light coat of packing oil. Then shipped all over the country in all kinds of weather in semitrailers without A/C or heat. No problem!

Factory packing does not contain desiccant, or kitty litter.

rc

 

[Texas Gun Person]

When in doubt...

 

[wishin]

Since the guns will be in the warehouse only a couple of months, I would just put a light coat of oil on them and put them in a breathable medium - no plastic, visquine, metal, etc. A cardboard box would work.

 

[Smeg]

I was working at a pawn shop in south Louisiana when a hurricane blew through and knocked out power for several weeks. When we got back and opened up the gun vault, every single gun had surface rust on it in varying degrees of severity. Needless to say, the owner's insurance paid a mint to the owners for what amounted to neglect on his part.

If I were you, I would definitely do further research to find the best way to store them in an environment that doesn't have climate control. If not stored properly, they will rust.

 

[Average Joe]

Didn't hurt mine in the jungle...

 

[wishin]

I was working at a pawn shop in south Louisiana when a hurricane blew through and knocked out power for several weeks. When we got back and opened up the gun vault, every single gun had surface rust on it in varying degrees of severity. Needless to say, the owner's insurance paid a mint to the owners for what amounted to neglect on his part.

If I were you, I would definitely do further research to find the best way to store them in an environment that doesn't have climate control. If not stored properly, they will rust.

Hurricanes mean a lot of moisture. OP is talking high heat. Unless you somehow promote condensation, as in sealed bags, etc., or fluctuations in temps, you won't be dealing with any significant oxidation in the short term.

 

[Shadow 7D]

Use a vacuum sealer, just like they sell on TV for saving food, you can pick up a used foodsaver for less than 40 bucks, and a roll of bag plastic, put the gun in the bag and add VCI paper or chips, along with silicon kitty litter (or pay for silicon desiccant, same thing) you should have a gun that can last the ages,unless the bag gets puncture, hell this is similar to how the major makers are shipping new guns

 

[brassdog]

Order the VCI paper and oil the guns. If you want, check with the local printers, they receive the printing plates wrapped in the foil wrapped paper that most VCI papers are made with.

 

[Smeg]

Hurricanes mean a lot of moisture. OP is talking high heat. Unless you somehow promote condensation, as in sealed bags, etc., or fluctuations in temps, you won't be dealing with any significant oxidation in the short term.

OP is in Louisiana (stated in first post). Hot weather in Louisiana is always accompanied by high humidity, hurricanes or not.

The moisture wasn't brought on by the hurricane. It was from the power being turned off for 4 weeks in the south Louisiana summer, which means no climate control, which means there's nothing to dehumidify indoor air. This allowed the ever-present humidity to work over the finish on several dozen nice guns.

Significant or not, the humidity will cause rust in some measure if the metal is not protected in some capacity.

If you don't want rust, store it properly.

 

[wishin]

OP is in Louisiana (stated in first post). Hot weather in Louisiana is always accompanied by high humidity, hurricanes or not.

If all parts of LA have high humidity in the hot summer, then yes, it does promote rust.

 

[hso]

You have to use very specific kitty litter with silica gel if you want to save a few bucks. You also need to bake it like refreshing silica gel to drive off any moisture before sealing it up.

 

[Owen Sparks]

Metal is very dense and tends to take a long time to warm back up once it becomes cold. What can happen is that guns stored in a garage or attic cool off over night and then if the day warms too quickly, the metal sweats like an ice tea glass. This is what causes rust in non-climate controled enviroments. It is not so much the humidity or the temprature, but the CHANGE in temprature that is the problem.

 

[TheProf]

Thanks Owen. Again...THR knowledge base never fails impress me. Thank you guys for all the input.

 

[DBR]

I suggest you wipe the guns down with Eezox: http://www.eezox.com/gun-care.html

Put them in a well ventilated, secure container and layer them between Uhaul packing mats (felted rags).

Condensation will not remove the Eezox if it does occur. It is 1.4X heavier than water and does not float off.

Tight (but not hermetically sealed) containers tend to suck in moisture as vapor (gas) when the air contracts as temperature goes down and as the temperature goes down the vapor condenses out as liquid water that cannot escape. In my experience it is better to let the container "breath" and protect the metal items directly.

This method requires no maintenance for long periods. If you don't think this is adequate I suggest you still use the Eezox and seal the guns in the storage bags Brownells sells: http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=1154/Product/TRIPLE_TOUGH_trade__PREMIUM_STORAGE_BAGS

I have successfully used both methods for periods in excess of five years in both heated and unheated storage areas in the Northeast US with no maintenance and no problems.

Note: Eezox is much easier to deal with when coming out of storage. Just wipe off the excess and you are good to go.

Note 2: Common plastic bags are made of cheap plastic that leach off various vapors as they age and deteriorate. These vapors can be corrosive and damaging to metal over time.