Ammo Storage

[j.d.allen]

"Be sure to watch your ammo storage conditions. Temperatures above 150 deg F will degrade the powder and cause pressure spikes. Hint: Think locked metal conex containers in the mid-east, car trunks in the southern U.S., and storage areas near heaters in the northern U.S. Also be cautions of leaving a round in a very hot chamber; besides the obvious danger of a cook-off, the powder can also be damaged by the heat, leading to dramatically increased pressures when the round is eventually fired."

I read this today in the 5.56 mm duty ammo thread. Does this apply to pistol ammo as well? I have to leave my carry gun in my trunk because I can't take into work with me and I live in the desert. Summer temps are regularly above 100 degrees...

Should I stop doing that?

[JBP55]

"Be sure to watch your ammo storage conditions. Temperatures above 150 deg F will degrade the powder and cause pressure spikes. Hint: Think locked metal conex containers in the mid-east, car trunks in the southern U.S., and storage areas near heaters in the northern U.S. Also be cautions of leaving a round in a very hot chamber; besides the obvious danger of a cook-off, the powder can also be damaged by the heat, leading to dramatically increased pressures when the round is eventually fired."

I read this today in the 5.56 mm duty ammo thread. Does this apply to pistol ammo as well? I have to leave my carry gun in my trunk because I can't take into work with me and I live in the desert. Summer temps are regularly above 100 degrees...

Should I stop doing that?

Shoot and change your carry ammunition every 6 months. It works in South Louisiana.

[j.d.allen]

Shoot, I think I do that every two months. Does it get to 120 in South Louisiana?

[TR675]

It does inside a car.

[JBP55]

Shoot, I think I do that every two months. Does it get to 120 in South Louisiana?

The heat index here today was 108.

[j.d.allen]

10-4 guys. Thanks. So you've never had a problem with your ammo after leaving it for extended periods daily in your car?

[LSP972]

10-4 guys. Thanks. So you've never had a problem with your ammo after leaving it for extended periods daily in your car?

Depends on your definition of "extended periods". James said he rotates his out every six months. So do I, and have been doing so for well over 30 years (and I used to have a lotta bang in my unit trunks).

In a nutshell, high heat breaks down the graphite coating on gun powder. Since this coating controls the burn rate of the propellant, its kind of important. Once the coating is degraded to a certain point, higher pressures are the result. This can be bad.

Its all relative. AFAIK, no empirical studies have been done on this, and even if they had the "numbers" for one powder type would not be valid for another type… and you rarely can find out exactly WHAT powder was used to load your specific factory ammunition. Just know that it is NOT the same stuff they sell to reloaders.

Bottom line; swapping your carry ammo, and any that stays in a high temperature environment, out for fresh stuff on a regular basis is simply cheap insurance.

That said… I know a fellow who is in a similar situation as you (must dis-arm every day before entering his work place). He is aware of the potential issues regarding ammunition and high heat; he is also an incredible tightwad. I mean, this fellow blinks every time he moves a muscle, he's so tight.

The thought of buying expensive 'duty/carry' ammunition at more than 3-4 year intervals is horrifying to this guy. His solution? He has a small, "personal size" Igloo insulated cooler that he places in his freezer every night. It goes into his trunk, and when he gets to work he places his carry piece and spare magazine inside of it in the trunk. No ice or anything else; he's relying on the properties of the cooler itself to keep the pistol/etc. from getting hot. He claims that, at the end of the work day when he retrieves this pistol before leaving the parking lot, it is just barely warm.

On the face of it, this would seem to be an ingenious solution to a real problem, despite the PITA factor. My concern is condensation forming inside the cartridge cases over the many heat/cool cycles. He says that light condensation forms on the pistol at times (mainly depending on the humidity level, which is high here), but he keeps it cleaned off. I have been standing there when he fired ammunition that he claimed had been treated this way for well over a year; it worked fine.

Me, I'll just bite the bullet and spend the bucks to change the stuff out every six months. I shoot the "old" stuff in practice sessions; and I cannot remember the last factory dud I experienced in the high-end stuff I carry. While I have seen quite a few issues with the cheaper, "bulk pack" or "economy" ammunition, the Big Three pay pretty close attention to their premium lines.

.

[hufnagel]

you know...
the wife's birth control ships in this MASSIVE Styrofoam container for this TINY box inside (and about 4 of those self-contained cooler blocks/bags.) I think it's big enough to hold a pistol. Think next time her shipment comes in I'll snag it (the container!) for some "testing"

[LSP972]

you know...
the wife's birth control ships in this MASSIVE Styrofoam container for this TINY box inside (and about 4 of those self-contained cooler blocks/bags.) I think it's big enough to hold a pistol. Think next time her shipment comes in I'll snag it (the container!) for some "testing"

There you go.

I really feel for you guys who have to go through this BS. We had legislation passed here a while back that forced the plants (the main culprits) to accept employees leaving their iron in their vehicles on the company parking lot. Prior to that, most of them prohibited any weapons on the property, period, and possession of one was an immediate termination offense.

.

[Malamute]

I don't know if its necessary to put the cooler in the freezer to get some advantage from it. Just moderating the change would help. I keep my powder and primers in my temporary reloading room in a small cooler. If the room gets in the 80's all day, the stuff in the cooler always feels cool to the touch.