Silica gel is also used for drying flowers - craft shops and some = florists should carry supplies. =20 I noted in looking for a source of the silica gel that borax is often = used as a desiccant. It's cheap and you can use what's left over for washing. However, with my weak chemistry background, I cannot recommend it = because I know nothing of its reactivity. Perhaps someone else can tell us if it = is safe or not. =20 Regards, -Tim Carpenter- =20 -----Original Message----- From: psn-l-request@.............. [mailto:psn-l-request@............... = On Behalf Of Dave Willey Sent: Saturday, December 09, 2006 6:03 PM To: psn-l@.............. Subject: Source for Desiccant Packs? =20 Does anyone have a source for small amounts of desiccant packs such as bentonite clay or silica gel? (Something non-corrosive.) Similar to = the canisters/capsules found in the bottom of some medicine pill bottles. = I've found a bunch of suppliers on the web. But I only need 2 or 3 , not = 4000 per 25 lbs pail!! I'm trying not to hit up the local druggist/chemist if I can help it. = But I will if I cannot find another source I'm about ready to seal up a 2" PVC container with three Mark L15b's geophones & bury it 10 feet down. As an aside: As Chris pointed out in a separate e-mail to me, don't forget to seal = the OTHER end of the cable. Water and air can still enter inside the = "sealed" container via the inside air space between the wires in cables. =20 I used to work/run a engineering reliability lab & have autopsied 100's = of marine shore power cables that boaters had carelessly dropped one or = both ends into the water. Water gets wicked up inside the cable amazingly = far. Even after only a very brief dunking. =20 Water traveling 10 to 30 feet or more inside a 50 or 100 foot long cable wasn't all that unusual with some of the fiber twine used in power = cable. Many of the data cables I've looked at often use some sort of thread = added along with the individual wires in the bundle. Perfect path for water = and damp air to travel down. So the desiccant packs would be a great last ditch effort to keep things = dry around the geophones.. Dave WilleySilica gel is also used for drying = flowers – craft shops and some florists should carry = supplies.
I noted in looking for a source of = the silica gel that borax is often used as a desiccant. It’s cheap and = you can use what’s left over for washing. However, with my weak = chemistry background, I cannot recommend it because I know nothing of its = reactivity. Perhaps someone else can tell us if it is safe or not.
Regards,
-Tim Carpenter-
-----Original = Message-----
From: = psn-l-request@.............. [mailto:psn-l-request@............... On Behalf Of Dave Willey
Sent: Saturday, December 09, 2006 6:03 PM
To: psn-l@..............=
Subject: Source for = Desiccant Packs?
Does anyone have a source for small amounts of desiccant packs such as = bentonite clay or silica gel? (Something non-corrosive.) Similar to = the canisters/capsules found in the bottom of some medicine pill bottles. I've found a bunch of suppliers on the web. But I = only need 2 or 3 , not 4000 per 25 lbs pail!!
I'm trying not to hit up the local druggist/chemist if I can help = it. But I will if I cannot find another source
I'm about ready to seal up a 2" PVC container with three Mark = L15b's geophones & bury it 10 feet down.
As an aside:
As Chris pointed out in a separate e-mail to me, don't forget to seal = the OTHER end of the cable. Water and air can still enter inside the "sealed" container via the inside air space between the wires = in cables.
I used to work/run a engineering reliability lab & have autopsied = 100's of marine shore power cables that boaters had carelessly dropped one or = both ends into the water. Water gets wicked up inside the cable amazingly far. Even after only a very brief dunking.
Water traveling 10 to 30 feet or more inside a 50 or 100 foot long cable = wasn't all that unusual with some of the fiber twine used in power cable. = Many of the data cables I've looked at often use some sort of thread added = along with the individual wires in the bundle. Perfect path for water and damp = air to travel down.
So the desiccant packs would be a great last ditch effort to keep things = dry around the geophones..
Dave Willey