...when the weather is high but maybe just a tad too hot to turn on the oven, in your kitchen, for three or so hours - even on low heat - may seem like something that has to wait until September or October. Yet, there is another way to get those suckers completely dried out and ready to suck up all the moisture in your gun safe or tool chest. If you have a gas fired BBQ grill, one big enough to have three or four burners, you can set one burner (one all the way to one side of the grill, not a burner in the center) to it's lowest, or next to lowest setting, to achieve the desired temperature and place the packs of desiccant on the grill all the way on the far side from the lit burner. You will have to monitor the grill for this and luckily mine has a thermometer set in the face of the grill cover so I know the temperature is good when I do it.
A temperature of about 175 to 250 degrees Fahrenheit should do the trick over the course of about two to three hours. Too much higher than that and you may burn some types of the containers holding the desiccant or the dryness indicators (mine are in cardboard or aluminum containers both with dryness indicators inside them) and too little may not sufficiently dry out the desiccant to have made it worth the effort of the gas. Of course, make sure to follow the manufacturer's instructions as to whether or not you can recharge your silica desiccant and if so then as to how to accomplish it.
Mine will be going onto the grill, this afternoon, once it cools enough after grilling the marinated pork chops (bacon's cousin) that are on today's dinner menu. While the info on the desiccant packs say the stuff is harmless, I take few chances with it and put them atop a piece of aluminum foil to assure none of that stuff gets in my oven. I usually let the oven cool completely before removing and using them, or if taking them out when still hot or warm, I wear an oven mitt to avoid getting burned.
All the best,
Glenn B
A temperature of about 175 to 250 degrees Fahrenheit should do the trick over the course of about two to three hours. Too much higher than that and you may burn some types of the containers holding the desiccant or the dryness indicators (mine are in cardboard or aluminum containers both with dryness indicators inside them) and too little may not sufficiently dry out the desiccant to have made it worth the effort of the gas. Of course, make sure to follow the manufacturer's instructions as to whether or not you can recharge your silica desiccant and if so then as to how to accomplish it.
Mine will be going onto the grill, this afternoon, once it cools enough after grilling the marinated pork chops (bacon's cousin) that are on today's dinner menu. While the info on the desiccant packs say the stuff is harmless, I take few chances with it and put them atop a piece of aluminum foil to assure none of that stuff gets in my oven. I usually let the oven cool completely before removing and using them, or if taking them out when still hot or warm, I wear an oven mitt to avoid getting burned.
All the best,
Glenn B
No comments:
Post a Comment