Read all previous post about different products to use as desiccant.

One question. What's wrong with just using plain old salt in a cloth
baggie? Would that not absorb moisture? Cost is almost nothing.

Thanks for replies,
Ivan Vegvary

On Sat, 02 Apr 2005 05:32:08 GMT, "Ivan Vegvary"
wrote:

Read all previous post about different products to use as desiccant.

One question. What's wrong with just using plain old salt in a cloth
baggie? Would that not absorb moisture? Cost is almost nothing.

Thanks for replies,
Ivan Vegvary

Doesnt absorb much water compared to desicants. Can get wet, disolve
and when salt water contacts metal....bad **** happens.

Gunner

Rule #35
"That which does not kill you,
has made a huge tactical error"

Gunner wrote:
On Sat, 02 Apr 2005 05:32:08 GMT, "Ivan Vegvary"
wrote:

Read all previous post about different products to use as desiccant.

One question. What's wrong with just using plain old salt in a
cloth
baggie? Would that not absorb moisture? Cost is almost nothing.

Thanks for replies,
Ivan Vegvary

Doesnt absorb much water compared to desicants. Can get wet, disolve
and when salt water contacts metal....bad **** happens.

Gunner

Rule #35
"That which does not kill you,
has made a huge tactical error"

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

In article , Gunner says...

One question. What's wrong with just using plain old salt in a cloth
baggie? Would that not absorb moisture? Cost is almost nothing.

Doesnt absorb much water compared to desicants. Can get wet, disolve
and when salt water contacts metal....bad **** happens.

Aside from the solubility issue, (yikes) your comment about the
amount of water that can be picked up is right on point also.
Some of those are so-called 'silica gell' which is an odd animal
called a "sol-gel" which is basically a really porous glass.
In the same way activated charcoal can adsorb chemicals, this
stuff can pick up a lot of water vapor and bind it for release
later, and then be returned back to its original state with some
heat.

There are also some that are (I think) calcium sulfate, which
hydrates, or binds with water. In some sense the calcium sulfate
is indeed a "salt" in the general sense, even though it's not
table salt.

Jim


--
==================================================
please reply to:
JRR(zero) at pkmfgvm4 (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com
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Yeah, salt doesn' do much. Calcium chloride is the ingredient that
works. Just buy some DampRid from SprawlMart. It collects moisture
until the chrystals are gone.
Bugs

"Bugs" wrote in message
oups.com...
Yeah, salt doesn' do much. Calcium chloride is the ingredient that
works. Just buy some DampRid from SprawlMart. It collects moisture
until the chrystals are gone.
Bugs

Calcium chloride sucks up moisture but is corrosive.

Yup, just about any chloride+moisture combined with metal is bad news.
There's a lot of dessicants that are used in the lab that wouldn't be
suitable for general use. Typically, these are chemicals that have a
lot of water of crystalization, drive this off with heat and you've got
dessicant. Gypsum works, it isn't the best, but it would work.

Silca gel has the property of being nontoxic, so if the yard apes have
a habit of putting stuff in their mouths, it won't hurt them. It's one
of the better dessicants, as well.

Stan

In article .com,
says...

Yup, just about any chloride+moisture combined with metal is bad news.
There's a lot of dessicants that are used in the lab that wouldn't be
suitable for general use. Typically, these are chemicals that have a
lot of water of crystalization, drive this off with heat and you've got
dessicant. Gypsum works, it isn't the best, but it would work.

They don't use the chloride. Dri-Rite is calcium sulfate I think.

Silca gel has the property of being nontoxic, so if the yard apes have
a habit of putting stuff in their mouths, it won't hurt them. It's one
of the better dessicants, as well.

Sol-gels are strange stuff. I watched a man synthesizing them when
I worked for GTE. They were basically trying to create castable
fiber-optic connectors I think.

Jim


--
==================================================
please reply to:
JRR(zero) at pkmfgvm4 (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com
==================================================

THANKS!!! everybody for your thoughtful answers. I sure learn a lot from
this group.

Ivan Vegvary


"Ivan Vegvary" wrote in message
news:s7q3e.2109$Tm5.1962@trnddc07...
Read all previous post about different products to use as desiccant.

One question. What's wrong with just using plain old salt in a cloth
baggie? Would that not absorb moisture? Cost is almost nothing.

Thanks for replies,
Ivan Vegvary