Silica Gel

[+BikerKats]

We have been putting in our caches sachets of Silica Gel that you often find in packaging. Most of our caches were placed this summer and it's too early to tell how successful this will be. Our oldest cache (January) is still dry inside. Has anyone else tried this?

[+Pieman]

Silica gel is fine for removing moisture from the atmosphere in a sealed system but I don't think it will help much in a cache. The silica will soon need regenerating and won't be able to remove any liquid water that gets into the cache beyond a couple of drops, I'm afraid.

[+Paul & Ros]

I completely agree with Pieman.

 

 

I've used those sachets in my camera bag before to help prevent the camera siezing up in when not in use if I've been out in the rain with it, but thats about all they are good for. Out in the wild they would be saturated within a couple of damp days and even in a well sealed cache they would be no good once it got opened in the rain.

 

 

Worse still I believe that the dye they used to add to silica gel is toxic. We used to use a lot of it at work and had to change suppliers to a colourless type recently for Health and Safety reasons.

[+Johnmelad]

We have been putting in our caches sachets of Silica Gel that you often find in packaging. Most of our caches were placed this summer and it's too early to tell how successful this will be. Our oldest cache (January) is still dry inside. Has anyone else tried this?

 

A worthwhile read Silica Gell or Gel even

Edited August 31, 2006 by Johnmelad

[+Donmoore]

There is another substance which you can use for absorbing moisture. i will have to find out the name of it but i know a friend put it in his garage while he was storing stuff he said it worked a treat. the other suggestion which i went for my house is a dehumidifyer the only problem i can see with that is the price of the extention lead and the size and give away of the cache. lol

[+rutson]

Hint:

 

Sbyybj gur znvaf pnoyr naq yvfgra sbe gur ohmmvat abvfr

[+Kabuthunk]

Another possibility would be to include one of those kinda thin sponges in the bottom of the cache. Any droplets of water should just sleuce down into that, and if the logbook or whatever is damp, the cacher can squeeze out the sponge to wipe it down.

Downside with this is that I could see it getting really dirty and grimy fairly quickly. It'd need a fair amount of maintenance in itself. :{

[+housefamily]

A worthwhile read Silica Gell or Gel even

 

After reading that ... how about a nice layer of cat litter in the bottom of the cache??

[+Birdman-of-liskatraz]

or you could drill a row of holes in the bottom to let the water run out..?

[+AB&MB]

I think the simplest answer is just to buy a good quality box to start with!!

[+Donmoore]

or you could drill a row of holes in the bottom to let the water run out..?

 

Me thinks drilling holes will let in damp not keep it out

[+AB&MB]

How about a solar powered pump!??