[kev]

As my wife was cleaning out a storage closet, I noticed that several of my AR-15 magazine pouches had mildew on them. These have been in storage for around 3 years.

How do you go about preventing mildew on cloth items that have been stored for several years?

The better quality answers will be posted on my other site - survival articles and gear reviews With credit given to the people that posted the better suggestions.

 

[ijuswannalive]

would a bunch of those silicone absorbent packs do the trick? or maybe a dehumidifier is in order here?

 

[prettypaisley]

I know that Thieves Oil is great to wipe down surfaces that are modly and I'm sure there is a way to incorporate it into cloth, but I don't know how to go about it.

Here's a site with lots of info, complete with a shopping cart. I make my own and use it for general household clean up from info I found online and an order through the co-op. Hope this will help.

 

[Wulf23]

Spray with ODOBAN once a year.


http://cleancontrol.com/OdoBanRetail/OdoBan_Odor_Eliminator.html

 

[mongo]

large dessicant packs, and wrap the bags tightly in plastic.

Works for canvas tents.

These would be best for ammo storage
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=799452

 

[charlieb]

Two tablespoons of Clorox bleach in one quart of water, then sponge this onto the bags to clean them.
In future, store them in plastic bags with dessicants if in a humid area. If not, simply put a dessicant inside each one and store them in a cool dry place.

 

[HammerHand]

Mildew - and other molds/fungi/bacteria - need an environment not too different from human beings.

They need nutrients, a proper living temperature, and water.

If you remove any of the above, you limit the ability of the mildew to grow - although there are types of mildew that can continue to grow at temperatures almost as low as the freezing point.

Desiccant packs and/or vacuum sealing will slow or halt mildew growth. Oxygen absorbers might have an effect, but there are several types of fungi/bacteria that need no air to grow. But something as simple as storing things in a place that gets a steady flow of air, without wild swings in temperature, and with low levels of humidity will get the same results as desiccant/vacuum sealing.

Mildew feeds off of organic matter - so another way around it would be to buy gear with synthetic materials only.

 

[4294]

Although my brother was extremely lucky in finding one cheap, an ozone air cleaner (not the "Sharper Image" type ion air cleaner) is the trick to killing mold and mildew. The things that hotels use and evacuate the room for 4 hours after.... The ozone is harmful to your lungs and pretty obnoxious in mild concentrations. Search e-bay, they are very effective in killing mold and mildew, and eliminating any odor.

Additional comment: These units produce harmful amounts of ozone: the only recommended use is in commercial applications and in smoke abating hotel cleaning and crime scene cleanup. When we use ours, we evacuate the houses for even a few hours more than recommended.

Ion generators, on the other hand, provide similar results but minimize the ozone output and are somewhat residential and benign in use and effect.

This is one site, though not recommended, or unrecommended, that sells similar items to what I'm referring to: http://www.mold-kill.com

I've been unable to find the web site for the company that made mine, Rainbow Technologies, but it is awesome in mold killing capability and I avoid it when it is working.

 

[arisinwind]

Wash them in borax, dry, store wrapped up with desiccant.