Avoid RUINING Ammo! How to Store Ammunition for Every Budget

Video Transcript:

Would you believe me if I told you that this ammo is 44 years newer than this ammo? In this video we're going to talk about proper ammo storage techniques so that yours will stay looking like this and not turn into that. First we're going to go over the optimal way to store your ammunition. This works whether you like to store it loose, in boxes, or loaded magazines. The first thing you want to do when storing your ammunition is find a proper can. So there are two main sizes of cans.

A 50 caliber can, which is what I prefer. They're nice and big, you can reach down into them easily. The second most popular size is the 30 caliber can. These are a little bit narrower, they don't hold quite as much, but some people like those. Make sure that they're US made, because if you go to your big box stores and you see their ammo cans, a lot of them are made in China, and they'll work until all of a sudden they just don't work. The next thing you want to get is nice reusable clay desiccant packs. I like these unit pack by Desiccare Inc. because every couple of years I can pull them out, I put them on a baking sheet in the oven at 200 degrees for 2-3 hours, and it dries them out and you can just keep using them indefinitely. The most important part when you pick out your ammo cans is making sure that it has this rubber seal. One thing to keep in mind with a rubber gasket is it's really good at keeping moisture out, but if there's moisture in the can it's also really good at keeping it in. So when I get some ammo home and I'm ready to store it, first thing I do is I put it in the can, however I want it. Loose boxes, magazines, doesn't really matter.

But I get it all set up and I leave the lid open and I put it in front of my dehumidifier for a couple of days first, because if this came from a moist environment and I put it right in there and I seal it in, all that moisture is going to be trapped in there and it's going to start eating away at the ammunition. Once everything is dry, I always keep my storage area at about 40% relative humidity. I take at least one of these packets and I throw it in. Now these dry out a certain volume of air, so if the ammo can is almost all the way full, I use one packet. If it's halfway full, like this one or less, I throw two in there. Make sure you don't overload the cans because the sides can bulge and it can interfere with the gasket's ability to seal.

Now I like to keep my ammo in a dry room because that way I can open and close my ammo cans without having to worry about trapping a bunch of humid ambient air in there. Now I like to get these 50 caliber can trays from MTM K-SCAR. They also make them in 30 caliber can size because that way I can take my full cans of ammunition, they fit right in there, and then you can stack them and make them as tall as you need to and they're nice and organized and you can put labels on the fronts of the can so you know exactly what you've got in there at all times.

The only sort of maintenance that this method of storage requires is every couple years I need to take out my clay desiccant packs. I throw them on a cookie sheet in the oven at 200 degrees for about three hours to pull any moisture out of them and then I throw them back in the can and they're good for another two to three years. The optimal way to store ammunition also does cost a little bit of money up front. This is the budget method and the only cost involved is going to be your time. If you call around to your big box stores ask to speak to their bakery department and ask if they have any old icing pails that you can get. They're nice, they've got about two and a half gallon capacity, they've got handles, and the best part is that the lids come with a gasket and these little tabs that click on. So this is an icing pail that I got from Costco. You can call up Sam's Club, any local grocery store, and a lot of times they'll be happy to give these to you. All you have to do is once you get them home you just have to wash them out thoroughly because they might have some remnants in them.

And while you're on the phone asking for pails, also ask if anybody in their domestics or shoe department has any desiccant packs laying around. These come in boxes of clothing, shoes, you name it, and most of the time they just get thrown out by the employees. So a lot of times they'll let you take these for free. Now unlike the clay packets these are not reusable, but when you get them for free it's not really a big deal. So once you've got your clean icing pail, put your ammo in it, put it in front of the dehumidifier for a couple days just like you would with your 50 cal cans. Now desiccant packs of course dry based on air volume in the container. There's a lot of air volume in here so I just throw a handful of those shoe desiccant packs in there and I seal the lid on. Now these will click when they're properly sealed, and then I just took a marker and I put what's in there.

There we go. As far as storage with these buckets, they lock together so you can stack them vertically. Just make sure that your heavier ones are on bottom so you don't end up with a top heavy stack that'll tip over. For the travel method, if you don't want to haul a huge 50 cal can with you and you're going to be hunting or camping, all I do is I get any sort of reusable food container. This is snapware. You just need to make sure that it has a rubber gasket. Put your ammo in there, throw your desiccant pack in, lock the lid on, and you've got a nice little portable watertight ammunition storage container. We deal with a lot of rare old and collector's ammunition here and the one thing that causes ammo to degrade the most is not its age, it's the conditions in which it was stored. These tracers were made in 1988 and this AP30-06 was made in 1944.

So if you want your ammunition to stay pristine, store it the way we showed you and you'll be all good. If you liked this video, be sure to check out our video on how to link and delink belted ammunition by hand.