Help Help with SN storage?

[.............]

So I got my SN in a plastic bag, but it's not exactly sealed tight. Got nothing to vacuum seal it with or anything. Have no idea how to go about storage. Help please?

 

[sharky]

Im also interested in this. Maybe investing in a vacuum sealer isn't a bad idea? They're not that expensive.

 

[pudds]

Maybe you could try wrapping the bag tightly with heavy-duty packaging tape? That's what I would do. Luckily I have a vacuum sealer myself so I used it to seal the plastic bag that contains my SN, then I stored it in a dry cupboard.

Maybe you could try buying a vacuum sealer ? If you're not in the position to do so however then maybe try the heavy duty packaging tape.

 

[.............]

Maybe you could try wrapping the bag tightly with heavy-duty packaging tape? That's what I would do. Luckily I have a vacuum sealer myself so I used it to seal the plastic bag that contains my SN, then I stored it in a dry cupboard.

Maybe you could try buying a vacuum sealer ? If you're not in the position to do so however then maybe try the heavy duty packaging tape.

Buying a vacuum sealer would make my family super sketched out. But yeah, that tape idea sounds pretty good. I'll probably put my SN in a ziploc before I tape it for good measure. Thank you!

 

[Cathy Ames]

As a start, I would suggest getting "ziplock" type freezer bags and squeezing the air out as best you can before and while you seal the bag. I'd do two layers. The freezer bags are usually heavier plastic and have a better seal than the others.

 

[Symbiote]

I have mine stored in a tiny glass jar, one of those canning jars or mason jars that you can find at any big box store or kitchen store. Canning jars are great because they are meant to preserve food for long periods of time. Just be sure to shake it up every few months to prevent clumping.

 

[Ethereal Knight]

this is weird, why would they not seal something that clearly reacts with oxygen?

mine came completely sealed.

did you guys buy food-grade or laboratory-grade SN?

mine is lab grade, I bought from a store that sells reagents.

it's recommended that the SN has to be at least 95% pure.

contact with oxygen (air) makes sodium nitrite converts into sodium nitrate. that's not what you want. NANO2 + O = NANO3

 

[Cathy Ames]

This is why we need a storage guide write-up on SN. Not a write up, but what I have gathered so far:

-I believe it has already been advised to NOT store SN in plastic bags, even if they are vacuum sealed and then closed in a way that you have to cut them to open them up again. Several plastic bags will still not do, either, and this is because plastic bags are permeable to oxygen/air/moisture.

-Vacuum sealers, whether you are using a food saver, or a brake bleeder pump, usually do not suck out all the air. Some food vacuum sealers do better than others, and some electronic pumps, including medical air pumps, get close or may actually get down to 99.9% or more reduction in air.

-If using a rigid container, inert material can be placed inside along SN to displace more air, before the vacuum is made. Obviously nothing toxic, or that will mix with the sn. The sn should probably be in a separate holder, too, if this is done.

-Mylar bags are preferred to plastic bags. Unsure if a vacuum sealed mason jar is even less air permeable.

-Food grade oxygen absorbers and food grade silica gel beads (for moisture control) may replace the need to do any vacuum sealing at all, or may compliment the process. They should be able to get the oxygen down from standard atmospheric 20% to a fraction of a percent, which is what is needed.

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I'm going to place my SN in a mason jar, stuff it with inert stuff, add some oxygen and moisture absorber packets, vacuum it, then place the mason jar someplace that is dark and room temperature. May even find a way to make the mason jar protected, too.

OP said a vacuum sealer would raise too many questions. I think buying the mylar bags and food grade oxygen absorbers would be equally sketchy seeming. What would be a good cover story?

 

[Blackcomedy87]

this is weird, why would they not seal something that clearly reacts with oxygen?

mine came completely sealed.

did you guys buy food-grade or laboratory-grade SN?

mine is lab grade, I bought from a store that sells reagents.

it's recommended that the SN has to be at least 95% pure.

contact with oxygen (air) makes sodium nitrite converts into sodium nitrate. that's not what you want. NANO2 + O = NANO3

Is the recommended Purity 95% or 98%? Sorry for asking this. I just don't want to fail like I've failed before with another method.

 

[its-about-time]

What about temperature for storage? The season is changing and it's starting to get very hot in my house, will properly sealed SN be okay at 80-100F? I'm almost wondering if I should put the bag in a Tupperware and bury it to keep it cool.

 

[Ethereal Knight]

bIs the recommended Purity 95% or 98%? Sorry for asking this. I just don't want to fail like I've failed before with another method.

both are good enough. above 95% is good enough. the higher, the better.

What about temperature for storage? The season is changing and it's starting to get very hot in my house, will properly sealed SN be okay at 80-100F? I'm almost wondering if I should put the bag in a Tupperware and bury it to keep it cool.

yes it'll be OK. just keep it sealed, that's good enough.