Quick Tip: The Do's & Don'ts of Ammo Storage 

For maximum longevity, just store your ammo at my place! You can pick it up anytime!

I bought ammo back in the 70s when I was in the Navy. My ammo sat around until 1981 when I got out. I did some shooting that year and really didn't shoot much until 2013 when I really got into it again with my son. Some of that ammo sat in my Western Wisconsin garage that whole time. It shot great. I saved some .30-30 boxes with the $5.49 stickers. When my dad died this year I found some of his ammo. He actually bought one box from Target! Times have changed.

I got confused. Now all my ammo is in Tupperware in the fridge and all my food is in ammo cans in my workshop.

Always remember, no matter what the temperature is in a room it's always room temperature. LOL

I was flooded out of my house. The metal ammo cans kept the ammo dry. Most of the plastic ones failed, and were filled with flood water (i.e., shit-filled sewage water), which I had to dispose of. Luckily, there was plenty more where that came from. But I highly recommend METAL ammo cans, and probably new ones, not surplus.

I don’t know why people are hating on this. Yes, it’s common sense, but we are getting a lot of new gun owners right now who could use this info.

Fun fact. I had an old box of 12 gauge rounds (duck/geese) that had sat for 40ish years in a metal storage shed and an unheated garage. No climate control whatsoever. Not wanting to throw it in a garbage can I decided to "dispose" of it properly. EVERY round fired with no detection whatsoever of a weak round. Your mileage may vary.

I used a "food saver" sealer and did a few boxes up and then in an ammo can. Been sealed for a few years now and good as new.

I've been storing my ammo for over 10 years in sealed Ziplock freezer bags, stuffed inside plastic shoe boxes. All are packed with those desiccant packets that Steve mentioned. My ammo is always dry!

I vac seal mine, 30 rounds of 5.56. Toss me a mag, whoops that was a tenderloin. Sorry.

It's also a good idea to keep your ammo in the original packaging. Each ammo box should be stamped with a lot number. If the manufacturer issues a recall on their ammo, you'll be able to see if your ammo is part of the recall.

I'm guessing this video is meant for the people out there who's previous round count was somewhere around 0-100. But suddenly have decided to panic buy that up to 10,000+

I had some ammo that got flooded during a hurricane in the mid 80's. It stayed submerged for almost 2 months. I test fired it over 20 years later and it all fired just fine. I had zero duds.

I store them in military type steel ammo cans with the rubber gasket and locking lid. As long as they are kept dry and low humidity, they will last forever. Old military surplus from East bloc countries in those tuna cans with the twist key to open the can still shoot great after 65-70 years. If you live in a humidity locale, use a hair dryer on hot to blow hot air into the ammo can for 30 seconds before you close the lid and lock the latch. The heat will evaporate the trace moisture and create a slight vacuum as it cools.

As somebody that enjoys precision/long range shooting, I can say that without a doubt, improper storage of ammunition will show undesirable affects down range and at the muzzle. Poorly stored amo can vary widely in velocity and will almost certainly show lack of accuracy and sometimes terminal effects in hunting or defensive ammunition.

I recently came into several thousand primers of various types that were in a cardboard box from here in Missouri, they are probably 40 years old or so. I've been loading them up and firing them. I haven't had a single dud. At first I was curious, but now that always go bang, I am using them without fear. And good chrono results too they are no different than new primers of the same type. I thought they were probably junk, but I have been pleasantly surprised.

I had various types on ammo in a storage shed for over 20 years, in the hot, cold, and moisture of Arkansas. And it was over 10 years old when put in storage. We took some out last month and it still shot like brand new.

There's a reason that ammo is kept in cardboard boxes. They absorb moisture. I keep them in their original boxes, then place them in an ammo can with silica beads.

My Dad reloaded some .357 back in the 1960's. It sat in a wooden box for 50 years, traveled 5 states, and 10 homes. We shot some of it during covid, worked great.

The green crapp that forms on the brass cleans off easily with a green scrub pad,but a wire brush works even better, rounds are nice and shiny again Pronto! I had 2 cans of 30 plus year old 5.56mm all fired just fine after a little cleanup!

Almost 4 minutes for a message: “put your ammo in a box”

I had a whole bunch of ammo that I bought in 1981 when I got out of the Navy. I had it stored in my northern Wi. garage until 2013. I shot it and it worked fine.

I live in a house made in 1894. No furnace or central air. I have ammo from 1996 to 2013. It all works just fine.

Rice will help control excess ambiental moisture when sealed up in an ammo can. If you keep an air conditioner going during the summer and heat with wood in winter, outside corrosion is not so much of a problem.

The same is true for storing your grenades. Just fyi.

For long term storage, ditch the plastic cans and get the GI surplus cans. The rubber seals in good condition keep it air tight.

Make sure to keep a few of the store bought boxes...if you need to take gun/ammo on a trip and fly, they only let ammo in original boxes to be packed in your check in luggage. I make sure to keep a few for my reloads, TSA wouldn't know, they just look for the boxes

sweet on the silica-gel packs,i ordered some because i though it might help me store ammo.was nice to hear them say it too.

I absolutely love that this video came out 10 days after the beginning of lockdown and these dudes are sitting right next to each other acting as if nothing happened. They were truly ahead of their time and could see the common sense of the situation

I’m still shooting 100 year old ammo from my grandfather! That was on a shelf in a moist cellar. Since ww2 functions just fine !

You ought to make a playlist called "With That Being Said". It is astounding how common this phrase is used in your content.

Left a box of 7.62 nagant ammunition from the 70s in the back of a truck on accident, Always kept it in the paper box, loaded up and made all 20 go bang. Not saying ammo cans are a bad idea, but brownells definitely sells them

If you are going to store ammo on stripper clips, it's smart to toss a couple of spoons (aka stripper clip guides) in the can, too.

A relative inherited a WW2 army .45 pistol wrapped in an oily rag. Supposedly never fired since the war. He took it to a gun range and luckily the clerk was the gunsmith. He field stripled it for free before letting it be fired. They loaded the mag with the 50 year old ammo and mag. Flawless. The relative's wife bitched so much about a gun in "her" house that he sold it to the nice gunsmith. She's also not happy about the WW2 bayonet, cap, medals he kept (old dusty junk!). I told him to demand she get rid of her grandmother's old, dusty jewelry SHE inherited !!

I keep my ammo stored in Tupperware that I put inside of ammo cans and then put them inside a fire proof gun safe with absorbent pouches on every shelf, then I shrink wrapped the safe and built a cedar box to put it in then I sealed that in plastic and encased it in liquid spray foam and then cement and then I buried it in the backyard

Ammo is more robust than people think. I forgot a Box of 40 in a bucket in the back of a truck I wasn’t driving, discovered it completely submerged a few months later and all performed normal when I fired them.

I have 60 year old .22LR ammo that has never seen the inside of an ammo box it is still as good as new.

You guys have become one of my favorite channels. Glad I found you.

I'm a reloader and collector..over the years I've reloaded or acquired large amounts of ammo...I keep the reloads in freezer type Ziploc bags in quantities of 100 ea...all my reloads, surplus & factory ammo goes into GI ammo cans...I've kept the cans on the floor of my garage here in S FL...with no ill effects ...thevother daybI went looking for soecific ammo and found ALL the stuff in pristine condition...TRUST those GI cans!!!!

I've kept it in one of those air tight tubs with a big bag of rice in my closet. Opened it the other day for the first time in about 5 years and it was still pristine. Grabbed a few boxes and had no issues. Actually the higher end ammo that's in my magazines is in great shape too and is the same age, the brass is a tad tinged due to oxidation but that's about it.

For an extra layer of protection: Almost all over the counter drugs these days has a little white pouch in the bottle. This is desiccant a drying agent. A couple of those in your ammo box will absorb any residual moisture.

I live in the middle of New Hampshire and we have been having an unusually humid summer. Humidity levels are above 80% just about every day. I have one weapon I cannot get into the gun safe and that is an ar-15. So I got creative and I modified a piece of furniture and inside of that piece of furniture is my AR-15 and 1000 rounds of 556/223 ammo in ammo cans sealed. But the rifle itself is not in an airtight container. I went to Walmart and I bought one of those arm and Hammer containers where the top half of it is filled with calcium chloride and there's a baking soda packet in there as well and the bottom is empty so when the calcium chloride pulls the water out of the air and has somewhere to go. It works beautifully. For those of you that are having humidity issues with however you're storing your firearms.. baking soda is a friend of firearms and so isn't calcium chloride so long as it doesn't touch the weapon or the ammunition. Thank you folks for another wonderful very well spoken video. Stay safe out there, keep carrying and God bless 🙏

Use the metal ammo cans..the plastic cans generally do not have as good a seal ring as metal ones. Some plastic ones will "breathe" through the seals if you squeeze the box. I put moisture detection strips in the boxes. Metal cans stay @ 30-35% for years, plastic maybe 2 mo. at best before the strip read 60% or so. Tupperware may work well, I haven't tried it, but makes a pretty good seal.

Not all old ammo is created equal as some may lead you to believe. Fun Story: The one and only experience with a squib load occurred with some lead cast .44-40 loaded back in the early 1900's. Even though a squib load is probably the worst catastrophic failure one can have with a firearm; I did learn _a lot_ about gunsmithing that day as a result of this malfunction. Not only is a squib round an incredibly rare occurrence, but I also got to observe them work on a highly collectible Winchester Model 1873. Thankfully no one got hurt but it certainly startled everyone and thoroughly upset all the old fudds around me. It was quite the learning experience for me at such a young age. With that squib load malfunction, I could safely say that I have observed nearly every possible malfunction a firearm could have with the exception of an exploding barrel (and I hope I never have to go thru that either). I also remember shooting some .38 Special Wadcutters from the late 60s that my Father had reloaded. You'd think we were shooting black powder with the ridiculous amount of excess smoke. Keep up the good work my friends. EDITED (as always) for double spacing.

I recently shot a box of 50 rounds of .38-special lead ball I purchased in 1993. Stored them "in the box, on the shelf"...all 50 fired perfectly. Not stored in a sealed box, never stored in the garage, never stored in any condition other than inside the home. I don't plan to keep any ammo longer than this going forward, but I think this is a non-issue...28 years without special storage conditions and 100% without failure is good enough for me...

These guys always get a laugh out of me. One hand they talk about storing ammo outside of a ammo container is not good for ammo. The other dude brings out ammo that’s been outside and says it look yucky lol. Then they talk about putting ammo in a container in a controlled environment. Lol. If you keep ammo in a box or a container in a controlled environment they will last the same amount of time. Now put that sealed container outside in Florida and let me know how it turns out lol. Gotta love these 2 dudes even if it’s just for a good laugh.

This is very basic good info for the average economic buyer, thank you so much!!! 😄

Still have about 1500 rounds of 22LR that was bought about 25 years ago. It shoots fine.

Definitely, throw a desiccant pack in your ammo cans, and store them in a cool, dry place that's out of direct sunlight. Closets work great if you can't find anywhere to put them.

i am all for playing it safe with your investment but would like to share a personal experience. I was born in 1980, when i was 16 one time, i had stopped at my grandparents house. Grandpa was cleaning out an unattached non-heated garage and gave me a half box of cardboard hulled 12 gauge shells. The box had the name duxback on it. Until that time i had never heard of duxback or even cardboard hulls. I am positive these shells were much older than i was! Grandpa said the had been in that cabinet in the garage since the end of the last rabbit season when he had bought them new. A few months later i thought i had some turkey shells left and realized at 5:00 AM on opening day that i did not! As a matter of fact, those paper hulled shells were the only shells in the house and this was before walmarts in small towns were open 24 hours. I took those paper hulled shells and harvested a turkey! Later, i shot every one of those shells and didn't find a single dud in the box! Thanks Grandpa! Wherever you are!

Here's the "resistance fighter" method: Put the ammo and a few moisture absorbent packs in a 30 caliber can that has a good rubber seal. Then make a mixture of paraffin and mineral oil (50/50) and coat the can with the waxy paste. Wrap the can in thick paper and coat the paper with the paste and then put the wrapped can in a crate made from the slats of a pallet. You can bury that crate and it will last a hundred years. A 30 caliber can, so prepared with 400 rounds of 7.62x51, (carefully stacked w/cardboard separator) will weigh 30 pounds. You can put 1000 rounds of 9mm Luger in one and have room for the pistol too. 127 grain ball ammo will weigh about 30 pounds, but 9mm can be had with bullet weights from 50 grain hi-velocity rounds to 165 grain subsonic and 1000 of those can range from 23 pounds all the way to 35 pounds. Still you'll have room for a pistol in the can. That's my take on ammo storage. Plan for the worst and have several caches of ammo in widely separated places. Perhaps three or more 9mm caches with gun in remote locations and three or more 7.62x51 and 12 gauge in different places. 10,000 rounds of 22LR weighs about 80 pounds. I'm not sure how many you can get in a 30 caliber can, but if you're planning on using a 22 as a survival weapon I'd recommend you lay back 30 or 40 thousand rounds of it at least. When the SHTF you won't find any 22LR in the stores.

You'd think that storing the ammunition in the original manufacturer's packaging would suffice. I mean manufacturers routinely make and store very large quantities of their own inventory in this packaging for years on end.

Store in a cool, dry place, away from sunlight and above freezing temperatures. Or look at your nearest medicine bottle.

wow you guys really thought about what you were going to say before this video.

I store my ammo in a large heavy duty plastic container in my basement. I use those mini dehumidifiers that plug in to dry them out for re-use. I have 6 of them. 2 in my ammo storage and 2 in my gun safe then 2 extra as stand by units. When a mini dehumidifier needs dried out I just put another in its place and then plug in the one that needs dried out. Never had an issue.

Quick tip: always buy the metal military style can on the right, NOT the plastic crap can on the left. The handles on those are not designed for weight, and only barely insert to each side. I bought two, and both broke right away when fully loaded.

I keep all mine in ammo cans with desiccant packs in them. Good enough.

Foodsaver vacuum sealer for long term storage.

I rotate my defense ammo every 5 years. The ammo that I rotate out I use on the range.

So basically, have all your ammo in an ammo box, don't open it ever. If an intruder breaks in, scream at them how fresh your bullets are, don't make me prove it.

My ammo gets stored in new metal mil-spec ammo cans, with way to many Silicone Gel pack's. I always have a dehumidifier running 24/7. I change my gel packs every two years and my ammo looks new and keeps perfect. I leave some in factory boxes and some downloaded by one, in metal mags. I always keep up with the original date stored and I'll log down every time I change my gel packs. Its a great way to keep your ammo. I have a few boxes that came from the old and closed Whitakers Gunstore in storage since 1992 and it looks like brand new ammo today. keep moister away and your ammo will outlast you.

I have bought WW1 .30-06 ammo that was stored in a warehouse in the American southwest (no heating or air conditioning) for over 80 years and it was 100%. I have bought AK and Tokarev ammo that was stored in 55 gallon drums sitting on the desert floor for 60 years, it also was good ammo and I suspect the handful of Tokarev that did not go bang had more to do with it being manufactured in Russia than the storage climate. Not to say these guys are full of it, a cool, dry, temerature stable place is certainly the best option, Just don't panic about attic storage if that's all you have to work with. Moisture kills ammo, that's the main thing, damp and humid storage places should be avoided at all costs.

wow the guy in the blue shirt ought to consider a career in Hollywood, he's so entertaining...

According to the manufacturers of primers ,they recommend NOT storing them in ammo cans as they aren’t hygroscopic ,and have an indefinite shelf life ,but best stored in relatively cool stable place.

I have .30 cal and .50 cal military grade cans full of loose rounds, all organized of course. But I’ve had 2 floods in my basement and still no problems with the ammo as long as it was contained. They never got submerged in case you were wondering.

I throw all my ammunition into Rice. It's a trick not many know. And it's a trick some know that will question "well how is that working out for you?' because they are afraid to do it themselves.

You can also microwave your silica desiccant packs to dry them out.

Epic vid bros that was intense.

I put 3 boxes of factory ammo Blazer Brass, American Eagle and Magtech on my balcony for 5 years. I wanted to see what would happen. Originally I wanted 2 years but I just left it there. It got rained on, Brutal Atlanta Summers, sun beating on it for 5 years. I took them to the range they all fired perfect and hardly had any oxidation.

My wife is mad her Tupperware is missing and the oven is filled with burning silica packs.

Ahem...”as you’ll demonstrate” Caleb must’ve missed rehearsal that day LOL

Great info. I'm new to all of this so I'll be sure to invest in proper storage for the few rounds that I have.

Sane gun owner here you do not need to have you guns loaded , just the one or two you need for home intruders. Oh yea all you ammo hoarders STOP your driving up the cost of ammo.

I put kitty litter in 4" x 4" burlap bags, and stapled the open end and threw the bag into each ammo box. Did that over 30 years ago and ammo is still almost as good as I bought it.

I've shot old sh1te from decades ago with green corrosion. Surprisingly, that sh1te worked just fine. Don't let a few minor blemishes put you off.

I put mine in heavy duty zip lock bags measured for reloading my mags, with a silica gel pack in each one, in a ammo can. I also use gloves cause im over cautious.

To all the elite know-it-all's yelling "I had an old box of ammo submerged in a bucket of water for 50yrs in my basement and it fired just fine" - This video obviously isnt intended for those of you who cant justify spending $20 on silica and surplus ammo cans to protect 100s if not 1000s of dollars in ammo... lmao. Its like arguing against needing a firearm for protection because chances are you will never need it "well I've never been attacked so the fact that you are protecting yourself is just stupid".

I always put a pack of silica gel in every ammo can

Very excellent, helpful info...hillarously awkwardly conveyed!

A bag of rice can take the place of those silica packs. It's how you stop salt from clumping up because the rice grains absorb the moisture.

...as I glance sideways at the 1,000 rounds of pistol ammunition chilling on the floor in my living room...On an unrelated topic, the illuminated Henry case full of lever actions behind them is ill.

That whole conversation just seemed awkward but good advice!

I unbox my rounds and put em in the ammo can loose. Can fit alot more that way and I've never had a problem.

Glad to see I keep my ammo the right way always in Cans except for self-defense, which is in the drawer you’ll never know what’s in there unless you’re laying on the floor!!

I thought I was watching a lost episode of Andy Griffith .

A question regarding primers. Uniform fire code (UFC) and all the reloaders I know and respect forbid the use of ANY container not having a light resistance to internal pressure. Such as a military ammo can. Settling off primers in such a container will often result in a 'sympathetic explosion' of all the primers; the resulting pressure spike can burst the container. Bursting the container at low pressures results in a pop and the excess pressure is fairly harmless in terms of physical danger to life and property. (Probably made a mess.) Letting pressures build up to a high pressure will turn the container into a bomb. Fragments of the container will tend to act as shrapnel. UFC recommends a wooden container (box) with minimum one inches walls (including top and bottom) and put together encouraging structural failure at low internal pressure. The question is: Does this fit in with your recommendations?

ahhh tuperware, i haven't heard that name in 10 years.... my child hood is coming back to me now with those tomato color stained see through containers...

Military-grade AMMO CANS... and only the type with a good RUBBER SEAL. And use plenty of those moisture-wicking thingies in them. They'll store for years. You could even bury them but routinely inspect for rust on the container and swap out if necessary. I also like to use ABS or PVC pipe to bury ammo. And like an ammo can, use a rubber seal on a removable cap or vacuum out the air and seal the tube completely like a time capsule. You can easily cut the tube open when needed.

Good video for insomnia.

All the ammo I bought? I wish I could find some that wasn't $1 a round lol

Wish they made ammo cans that ammo boxes could actually fit in somewhat evenly. Cant put 2 boxes flat side to side, if you stand them up theres half sections, i mean come on. Geeeesh

I vacuum seal my long term ammo in heavy plastic and vacuum seal it using a food saver type machine. I do 90rd packs of 223 hand loads on stripper clips and I include a spoon to load them into mags. I also put a plastic snap blade cutter into each ammo can. I also vacuum seal factory boxes of ammo right in the box. I put a snap blade cutter in those containers too. I wipe a bit of white grease on my ammo can seals and on the hinges too.

Not mentioned in the video is the importance of Lot numbers. Caleb mentioned that he stores magazines loaded and I know people who unbox their ammo and store it loose in order to store more in the can. When the boxes are tossed, the lot number is lost. I recommend storing the ammo in the original box or at the very least, put a flatened box in the can. That way if you ever have a problem with the ammo or there is a recall, you can take the proper action. I can tell you from personal experience, the first question asked by the company is, "What's the Lot Number?"

I don’t have enough ammo to worry about this. And guessing by the price and availability currently, this will be a long term problem

had ammo stored in those plastic boxes and they melted around the ammo during a house fire, the ammo in the metal cans was unaffected i don't use the plastic ammo cans anymore

Cool and Dry is key. Even though I live in an area of low relative humidity, I still throw a moisture absorbed in my ammo cans. I inherited some 60+ year old .22 LR when my Grandad passed away 10 years back. Though he didn't use moisture absorbers, he always kept all of his ammo in Anmo Cans in a cool and dry location. I've used up most of what I inherited, but I expected a lot of duds because it was old and because it was rimfire. I was pleasantly surprised when only one or two cartridges per box/100 failed to fire. Rather exceptional in my view and definitely shows proper storage does have a positive impact on longevity.

The way i do it, i just put the ammo without the box in the container and i put some dehumidifier in it to keep moisture out of it. And it work like a champ

Still waiting on my extra ammo shipments from y’all

Label what is in the ammo can so you are not opening them up looking for a certain caliber.

Good Information Blessings To Fellow American Patriots Amen