[1972]

I have a question on primer storage. I keep large and small pistol and large and small rifle primers on hand. Even if I only have a few thousand of each on hand it’s still more than I want to store in the house. I have rural acreage and can easily build a storage magazine at the back of the property that is away from all buildings.

I can make this magazine completely “water tight” so there is no danger of any water (rain, snow, ground water, etc) ever being a problem. I can put a really good roof on it and ensure the contents are high and dry.

What I’m worried about is “atmospheric moisture” and, mostly, “temperature”, or perhaps I should say “temperature changes”. I live in the Northern part of Canada, so while it never gets all that hot here in the summer, it can get pretty cold. It rarely goes up over 80 in the summer, and this magazine would be in a shaded area anyway, but in the winter it could get down to 20 or 25 below.

Would this be a problem for primers? I know it’s not supposed to effect powder at all, as long as it’s dry and sealed. Would primers be the same? As long as they are dry, would it matter if the temperature ranged from a high of 80 in the summer to possibly minus 25 in the winter?

Anybody got any thoughts on this?

 

[ranger335v]

High temps accelerate chemical decomposition, cold retards it. Freezing won't do a thing harmful to either powder or primers.

 

[700sage]

I stocked up on primers awhile back and mistakenly made 2 orders for them because I forgot about the other one. I ended up with twice as many primers as I wanted. While mine stay in a temperature controlled environment I still took several boxes and vacuum packed them. I used a regular old vacuum packer that I use for sealing game that I intend to freeze. I've done this for many years and it seems to work for me.

 

[Cheezywan]

Cool and dry rules the day with primers and powder in my view. Treat like batteries.

Frozen and cold is hard on them as is hot.

Make them comfortable.

Cheezywan

 

[flashhole]

I'm curious as to why you don't want to store them in the house? I have stored mine in the house in a wooden box for as long as I have been reloading without any problems of any kind ... ever ... and that has been the case living in 5 different states. My suggestion is to put them in a rugged container in a seldom-used-space in your house.

 

[Country]

High temps accelerate chemical decomposition, cold retards it. Freezing won't do a thing harmful to either powder or primers.

I am not sure I would like to freeze my primers the shinkaged could crack the priming compound. I have never tried it . However the results may be hard quantify as you are dealing with hundreds of samples and maybe only a few could ( read possibly not positive ) be adversly affected.
Not sure about that one .

 

[Marshal Kane]

During the good times when primers were inexpensive and plentiful, have had as many as ten thousand primers sitting in a storage cabinet in my house. The amount is much less now that primers are more expensive and harder to come by but primers are still stored in the house. Would suggest you store primers in your house in a cool, dry place and forget about building that shed. Not only would the shed have to be watertight but it would have to be climate controlled as well since moisture can enter the shed everytime you open the door. Just my dos centavos, YMMV.

 

[baddad457]

Cool and dry rules the day with primers and powder in my view. Treat like batteries.

Frozen and cold is hard on them as is hot.

Make them comfortable.

Cheezywan

X 2 on this advice

 

[baddad457]

I'm curious as to why you don't want to store them in the house? .

I'd bet due to the explosion hazzard should the house ever catch fire.

 

[Ole1830]

The way they are packaged, the chances of a simultaneous detonation is pretty dang slim, IMO.

I guess a house fire would do it, but then your house is destroyed already anyway, so who really cares if a few primers add to the fire?

 

[baddad457]

The way they are packaged, the chances of a simultaneous detonation is pretty dang slim, IMO.

I guess a house fire would do it, but then your house is destroyed already anyway, so who really cares if a few primers add to the fire?

It could be a hazzard to anyone fighting the fire. Same as powder would if stored improperly (in a tightly sealed box, instead of a vented container)

 

[MikeG]

Having them pop off individually is not a big deal, when stored in their original containers. That is why primers are in cardboard boxes, not steel or glass containers.

Things like cans of spray paint and hairspray and half-empty gas cans in the garage are a much greater hazard to emergency responders...... those guys (and girls) wear protective clothing and face masks for a reason.

 

[ranger335v]

"I am not sure I would like to freeze my primers..."

I'm not sure you would like it either, so don't. ??

Fears of cold cracking a primer pellet (or kernal of powder?) is about as valid as freezing might crack a cookie! Meaning that just isn't the way it works!

Concern about "freezing" harming primers and/or powder is kinda funny. They are dry componds and heat will increase chemical breakdown while cold retards it. The freezing temp of water is +32F but what's the damaging or "freezing" temp of dry componds like primers and powder? Or cookies?

 

[baddad457]

That's a question best answered by the manufacturer, instead of assuming that freezing does no harm.

 

[baddad457]

Having them pop off individually is not a big deal, when stored in their original containers. That is why primers are in cardboard boxes, not steel or glass containers..

When you're talking about a thousand or two, could be there's no real danger. BUT, when many are storing 10,000 to 50,000 in one place in a house that's on fire, I sure as **** wouldn't want to be around to see what happens when they cook off. Protective clothing or not, it won't be a picnic.

 

[TMan]

Anybody got any thoughts on this?

If primer storage is really much of a hazard, about 90% of the guys on this forum, and a couple others I frequent, are in big trouble.

Gun and ammo storage these days is more than a matter of how long they will last. It's also a matter of safety/liability, and anyone that doesn't understand that, probably isn't smart enough to own firearms.

I keep my collection in a basement, but I'm not in a flood zone. The exterior of the storage area is covered with 3/4" plywood, with a layer of 3/8" sheetrock. The interior is another layer of 3/4" plywood, with two layers of sheetrock. My steel security cabinets are bolted to the floor, and studs in the walls, the door is designed for flame resistance.

Primers, powder, and loaded ammo are stored in the military surplus 40mm cannon ammo containers, with silica packs. They are designed to minimize damage should they be exposed to flames in a vehicle.

The house would have to burn to the ground, literally, to destroy my firearms, and household documents, also in a security cabinet.

Total cost? I doubt if I spent more than $250 for the closet, and another couple hundred for the Homak cabinets. At todays prices, less than the 10,000 or so primers alone, I have on hand.

 

[ranger335v]

"That's a question best answered by the manufacturer, instead of assuming that freezing does no harm."

How 'bout we ask the military how "freezing" affects the firing of huge quanities of live ammo? They've been shooting conventional firearms in the Artic and at very high altitudes in sub-zero temps almost since cartridge ammo has been available. Or maybe such facts don't count, and maybe bullets will freeze in the necks?

 

[ilaboo]

get in touch with the manufacture--i suspect that it is crucial to keep the humidity low--but i would certainly check before i came to any wrong conclusions

 

[baddad457]

"That's a question best answered by the manufacturer, instead of assuming that freezing does no harm."

How 'bout we ask the military how "freezing" affects the firing of huge quanities of live ammo? They've been shooting conventional firearms in the Artic and at very high altitudes in sub-zero temps almost since cartridge ammo has been available. Or maybe such facts don't count, and maybe bullets will freeze in the necks?

And we're not all reloading with Mil-Spec ammo either If in doubt, it is ALWAYS best to ask questions instead of making ASSumptions.

 

[Heslop]

In the last two weeks, I have had two primers that did not go off. The 45-70 reloads were all the same, all brass was clean, so no contamination, primers just did not ignite, These were CCI 200. How common is this ?