The amount of water removed from the air inside my gun safe over a two-week period while maintaining a 50% relative humidity level.

I can see an electric dry rod purchase in my future.

wow

that is almost unbelievable

What is that particular dehumidifying product? Haven't seen that one before

It's the product shown below. It has crystals that absorb humidity and turn to water over time, which means you replace it once they're gone. A two-pack will set you back about $7 or $8. I decided to give it a try just to see how much water it would collect since the rechargeable dehumidifier I've been using for some time has never taken more than a few days to indicate it needed recharging. Just another day of living in the Houston area.

I also feel this test has established a benchmark of what it takes to keep the humidity level inside my safe at the ideal level of 50%. It will be interesting to see if an electric dry rod can achieve the same result.

Dang, that's a lot of moisture! Where does the water go with the electric rod? Is it collected someplace or does it just keep the inside of the safe warm? I use two of the plugin dehumidifiers with the blue desiccant crystal currently.

i use the DampRid small Quart size tubs. Change em every cpl months. Home Depot has them in the paint dept


https://www.homedepot.com/p/DampRid...lable-Moisture-Absorber-FG01FS/203908838

I live on the coast and found out the hard way about using only a electric rod! I am a DampRid user also and have not had any more rust issues.

I have a dehumidifier in my bedroom.

I hate to tell yu this but, if you get rid of too much humidity in the safe, the wood stocks will dry out and crack to the point a new stock will have to be installed. I don't install dryers, just oil the heck out of the metal. Just my 2 cents. I know I will hear otherwise, but have had it happen. Now plastic/carbon fiber stocks are a different subject.

Absolutely too little humidity can cause a wood stock to dry and crack.

The experts recommend a humidity level of 45-50% as optimum for firearm storage...

"The NRA Firearms Museum recommendation is 65-70 degrees Fahrenheit, and 45% to 50% humidity. This should be a year-round constant, not an average. You could have an average of 50% humidity with 180 days of 0% humidity followed by 180 days of 100% humidity and still destroy your guns."

I've used both the dry can and now I have a electric rod in my safe.

I was having to bake the dry can every other week for about 2 and a half hours to limit the humidity.

If you don't mind me asking, what relative humidity level are you able to maintain in your safe using an electric dry rod?

If the safe is in a climate controlled environment, taking that much moisture out of the air in that period of time, will remove too much moisture and trash anything made of wood inside the safe. It will take a year or so, but it will happen.

Having a hygrometer in your safe removes the guesswork so you know within a few percentage points the humidity level inside it. I'll be adding a second hygrometer of a different design so that I can compare the readings of the two.

Again, everything that I've found on the subject points to a humidity level of 45-50% being ideal for firearm storage. Cracked stocks seem to be more the result of firearms being repeatedly taken from very dry to very humid conditions and vice versa, as might be the case with a rifle taken on repeated flights. Still, there are those who claim a stock that was properly dried and sealed will be far less prone to cracking.

Earlier today just for grins, I left my safe open for about 15-20 minutes just to see what happened and noticed the hygrometer was approaching 60%. After closing it and checking it again about a half-hour later, it had dropped back towards the 50% level.

Be very careful with the liquid from damp rid, etc. whatever salt they use to attract moisture is EXTREMELY corrosive! Very hard on firearm finishes and will cause extreme pitting very very quickly if spilled.

They do remove an amazing amount of moisture from the air.

Very good point. Silica is much safer to use around metals for that reason. My initial experiment was focused on confirming how much humidity needed to be removed since my old silica-based dehumidifier always appeared to be over matched.

After actually seeing for myself the amount of moisture that had been collected in my safe over almost three weeks, I ordered an electric dry rod earlier this week and look forward to seeing if it can maintain the same 50% relative humidity level. I also purchased an electronic hygrometer just last night and it has been reading roughly the same level (plus five percent) as my dial-type hygrometer. I should also add the humidity level in my home runs around 60% or less in the day when the AC is working at its max but will reach as high as 75% at night.

Final results using an electric dry rod to be posted later this week.