Keeping dry with silica gel

Radio with bag and Silica gel

A few months ago, I sold a set of minilite wheels to a chap for his Marcos. We got chatting and he said, “you know that we only buy so many spares for our cars to give the illusion that we are making progress on getting them back on the road.”

He is absolutely right of course, and my garage is testament to his statement !

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Precious metal

Many of the spares that I have are quite happy to be stored in a crate, on a shelf, or on the floor until they are required (or sold on.)

There are some bits and bobs however, that deteriorate over time due to moisture, dust and the such like.

I have a couple of old radios, various gauges and a variety of shiny chrome things that I am not likely to use in the near future but, if I don’t look after them, they will be of no use when I do get around to doing something with them.

So, here is a quick “how to” covering what I do to protect these items. I hope that you will find it useful.

Silica gel

Whenever you buy anything these days, it invariably comes packaged with a few packets of silica gel. We normally just throw them away with all of the other packaging … stop throwing them away !

Silica gel is a desiccant, which means it absorbs moisture. In fact, it can absorb 40% of its own weight in moisture. It is this property that makes it ubiquitous in packaging.

Here are 3 things that you can use the miracle sachets for:

Dry it out

If your item has gotten wet, dry it as best you can and then put it in an airtight container with as many sachets of silica gel as you can muster, seal the container and place it somewhere warm for a few days. Check it periodically and change the sachets if they are saturated (they can be rejuvenated by placing on a radiator for a few days) Hopefully, after a few days, the sachets will have absorbed the remaining moisture and you can store your item as per the next suggestion.

Keep it dry

Now that your prized possessions are dry, keep them that way. Get a sealable, airtight, plastic bag or biscuit / chocolate box (I use ASDA freezer bags – other freezer bags are available 🙂 ) Boxes are better for heavy / sharp items. Put your item in the bag throw 1 or 2 sachets in; seal the bag. Job done.

Radio, bag, Silica gel

Stop it smelling

And my final silica gel tip, throw some in with your stash of car magazines and books to stop them smelling musty.

So there it is. There are loads of other uses for silica gel (put them in training shoes to dry them out and stop them smelling) but I thought you might like these car related ones.

If you have any silica gel tips about cars or otherwise, why don’t you share it in a message below.

Spread the word

Thank you for reading this post and I hope that you found it enjoyable and useful. If you have, please spread the word and share it!

2 Comments

  1. For larger items.. ie a car in storage 🙂 it is also a good idea to use Silica kitty litter and put it in the foot wells, under seats, in the boot etc. These will not only help keep the humidity down but also reduce smells. If the trays are likely to be disturbed then the litter can be put in socks to stop spills.

    • That’s a brilliant idea Phil. I’m going to be doing a post shortly about storing your car for winter and will definitely include that tip. Cheers

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