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 Replies: 7 / Views: 14,479 |
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Valued Member
United States
155 Posts |
Once a month? Less often? More often?
Thanks for your input.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1801 Posts |
You usually dont have to "change" them, you can put them in the oven and take all the mositure out of them and then put them back. I redo mine every 6 months or so.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
This could well depend on the gel packs. How big, what type, etc. For example I've seen many different types appearing on the market lately. There is one that has a place for the gel packs in a top section and a bottom section for run offs if saturated. Some are so small and cheap might as well just throw out and replace occationally. Also, many different brands out there so it pays to read the lables on those.
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Moderator
 United States
187702 Posts |
Quote:
You usually dont have to "change" them, you can put them in the oven and take all the mositure out of them and then put them back. I redo mine every 6 months or so Correct. You can also keep some spares if you do not want to wait on them to dry out in the oven. When the used ones are done in the oven, they become the spares. |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
17884 Posts |
It is possible to get indicating silica gel that changes color when it needs recharging (drying out). If you use those there is no wondering if you need to dry them out or not.
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Valued Member
United States
320 Posts |
I went to the craft store and bought flower drying kit, had I think 5 lbs of sand for $10... or something like that... I am actually not sure on the price or quantity, it was a while ago but it was very reasonable especially when compared to anything marketed as a dessicant for a safe. And it changes colors to tell you when it needs attention.
I put the silica in a widemouth mason jar, covered the top of the mason jar in fabric instead of a lid, screwed the ring on, and voila, problem solved. And because this is a good quantity of dessicant, you can go a long time between changing it out, and then you just dump it out & pour new stuff in. Also you can save the old stuff, and eventually when you go through all 5 lbs you can bake it all at once and you're ready to go again.
The only negative is going into the craft store and buying a flower drying kit. The lady at the register, making small talk, asked me if I was into flower drying. Faced with "admitting" I'm into flower drying, or admitting I'm a coin collector (which I don't like to do to someone I don't know) I chose the third option... I told her they were for a gun safe. That got a funny look!
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Quote:
Correct. You can also keep some spares if you do not want to wait on them to dry out in the oven. When the used ones are done in the oven, they become the spares.
Might be different by you but in most of the country the price of gas has really gone up. Using a gas oven to dry one could cost way more than simply replacing them. And if an electric oven, the prices of electric has also gone up due to the cost of fuel for power stations that produce the electricity. If you look around those gel packs and/or other similar humidity reducing systems are getting really cheap. There are so many on the market today, it could be much cheaper to just replace the ones that are used up. Contrary to that though is the price of gasoline for a car to get to a store to buy them. |
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Moderator
United States
187702 Posts |
I no longer live in Chicago. I live in the South East where it is very cheap to live.  One could always cook their gel packs with their food. Or they can put them in the oven after cooking their food; the oven remains warm for a long time, you know.  |
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Replies: 7 / Views: 14,479 |
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Posted 03/05/2011 10:22 am
