LTS: Metal Containers

Rather than press ahead as planned, recent weather has caused me to reconsider and move up my planned discussion of metal containers for Long Term Storage (LTS). No, not terrestrial weather, but space weather — specifically solar weather.

If you were fortunate enough last week to have a clear sky (we didn’t, alas), the aurora borealis was seen with the naked eye as far south as parts of Texas. Normally, such is only seen at the higher latitudes such as in norther Alaska and such. Thanks to some very energetic solar storms and coronal mass ejections, we have had quite the light show.

All well and good, but if you are not familiar with the Carrington Event you should read up on it and the potential for the Sun to do much worse. Let’s face it, the event allowed telegraph operators on both costs to disconnect their batteries and keep operations going for hours, which means a tremendous amount of energy was getting pumped into our Earthly system. It had some amazing effects then. Dumping that much or more on us now has the potential to be catastrophic.

Now, in terms of normal preparedness, metal cans meet a lot of needs. They are long lasting, resistant to a variety of harms, can be easy (if heavy) to carry, etc. There are commercial containers available, but I tend to be cheap so go for mil-surplus you can get for a good price (normally, but not as much recently).

I like the cans as they come in different sizes, the gaskets are usually good and will stay that way (resilient), and even if buried good for a decade or three. They can hold ammo, cigars, and a lot more. They are great for controlled environment storage. For cigars (before I effectively stopped recently) for example, I lined a can with Spanish cedar, loaded in my cigars with cedar sheets in between layers, threw in some Boveda packs (the single best way to get perfect humidity for storage of cigars, guitars, and much more), and checked on them every six months to a year. They are also the best option for semi-dangerous storage, things that are flammable or could otherwise do damage if stored improperly. Also, with padding, great for storing fragile items.

Metal is going to be the most protective material for any storage, much less long-term. It gives a range of options to you and can be modified at need. Drawbacks are weight (good cans are heavy, but you don’t want cheap and thin cans) and cost.

Now, given our recent solar weather, here’s another advantage to metal cans — they can be shielded. The can itself can provide some level of shielding, and my plan if there was advanced warning on a nuclear exchange was to put as many of my electronics and chargers in a metal can as possible. To make it even better, keep it in a basement, or better yet a shielded area in a basement and run a lead to a good ground, and you’ve got decent protection for those electronics. Key is, you want the items unplugged (longer the “tail” the greater the chance for EMP or anything else to burn out the electronics, and the tail doesn’t get much longer than the miles and miles of lines bringing you power to your home), shielded by other metal (grounded by preference, and underground and grounded if at all possible), and powered down.

For LTS of goods, metal is great. For LTS of foods, it is not necessarily as good. Some metals can and do leach like bad plastics. Some metals can oxidize in ways that can harm food. So, if you want to use metal cans for LTS of food, go in layers. Use mylar bucket liners (available in a variety of sizes) plus mylar food storage bags (just like you would for LTS of food in food-grade plastic containers), and you should be good. Just use good quality cans that are properly finished. Using Cousin Abdul’s homemade cans with his special “secret” finish is not the way to go. Go good mil-surplus or storage grade commercial, it is worth the money.

Oh, if you are going to go for LTS of musical instruments, wooden items, or items needing a bit of humidity, look at using both large mylar bags (sealed with Boveda or other inside) inside metal which also has a controlled environment. Two or more layers of protection, plus the metal will give maximum protection to the contents. You can go for certain grades of plastic case (think Pelican as one brand), but keep in mind price will be high, it may not be the same formulation as even a few years ago, and plastic will go brittle before metal.

For truly critical items, consider some form of normal case, inside plastic, inside metal. This works for artwork, instruments, and much more. Put the final case into storage in a geologically-stable area underground, and you are golden.

For home use, you can get a lot of protection via layering. Depends on what you are trying to protect, why, and for how long.

Just some quick food for thought this morning. The world is wonky. The Sun is being interesting (keep an eye on Space Weather Here). Be prepared. Remember, keep your family and real friends close, your preparations as complete as possible and as close to your vest as possible, and your things where you can find them in the dark.

Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, which include moving once we have medical issues cleared up, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.