Shipping containers may be essential to your business, but they can also be a huge hassle if you’re not careful and humidity enters the equation. Humid shipping containers can promote a moist environment that wreaks havoc on whatever you’re storing or shipping. At Super Cubes, we’ve been working with shipping containers for years, so we know the proper precautions to take. Knowing these 5 tips for minimizing humidity in your shipping container can save you time and money by preventing your goods from going bad.
Desiccants and moisture absorbers are your best friend. Desiccants might be an unfamiliar word for you, but they are a variation of the tiny salt-like-looking packets that say “Silica Gel” or “do not eat” that you can often find in packaging. This simple solution contains a chemical formula that absorbs moisture, so your products or storage items are unaffected. Obviously, you want something bigger than collecting boxes of those little packets. Instead, you can buy dissecting products meant to absorb moisture from rooms on a larger scale. One popular brand is “Damp Rid”. It works with the same concept - pellets that absorb moisture. But they trap that water in a bucket, bag or another vessel of your choice. They are reusable products that allow you to empty the water and add fresh pellets to absorb water.
Damp Rid is available in most hardware stores, Amazon and plenty of other places
This option is generally where we recommend people start for a few reasons. It is the cheapest and least invasive way to manage humidity. People spend a lot of money to get a container that doesn’t have holes. It is a shame to start putting holes in it before you know you have to. The desiccant products don’t require any holes in the container, electricity, or equipment. You just open a bag or two and get started. You check on them every once in a while and reset them as needed. If you keep the doors closed, the air will slowly change with the small passive vents built into the container, so you need to change them occasionally. In humid months, you will need to change them more frequently.
Not only does air help us breathe and dry clothes on a windy day, but it also keeps everything dry within a shipping container. Some climates are just too humid to manage with desiccants. Sometimes, what you are storing requires more airflow than a closed-up container. Adding vents to your shipping container can be one way to manage this airflow. There are a few different types of vents to handle different situations.
Louvered vents act as a great way to create a cross breeze in a container if you position one vent on one end of the container on one side and put another on the opposite side on the opposite end. This will create a breeze that will change the air through the container nicely. For some climates, this is ideal. Most louvered vents are fixed open with screens to keep insects out, with angled metal slates to keep driving rain out. It will let in humid air, however.
Turbine vents go on the roof and are turned by wind. This draws cooler air down into the container and hotter air rises up and out of the container. One downside is that it will continue to work during rainstorms, bringing rainy air down into the container as well.
Motorized vents are an additional option. This may be something to consider if you are storing something with fumes that have more specific requirements for changing the air or if you are cooking in your container and need to clear those cooking fumes, grease and other smoke out of the air.
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Depending on what products you are storing or shipping, installing climate control might be beneficial. Adding dehumidifiers or air conditioners can help you get the ideal climate your products need to thrive and survive against moisture and more. If you are storing items that need a cooler climate, air conditioners or a refrigerated unit might be in your best interest. Adding a dehumidifier can also help remove unwanted moisture. Keep in mind that if you are adding air conditioning/heating to your container and it is not a refrigerated container, you will want to insulate it. Containers are made of 14 gauge corten steel. That means that if you are running the AC in it, it would be like using a paper bag as a cooler. Sure, it will be cool, which is fine if it is just in quick, short bursts, but you will work really hard over the long run to keep anything cool.
The easiest way to ensure your shipping containers remain dry at all times is by installing a humidity monitor. Using a monitor can help you track moisture levels in your shipping container so you can take action immediately if needed. If the humidity starts to escalate, you can install dehumidifiers or desiccants if you haven’t already. You can also track to see if it would make sense to take bigger steps if you notice trends. You can also prop the door to the shipping container open if you have the capacity to do so and the weather is dry. Only do this for short periods of time while you are in the container. It will also allow small critters to come into your container, or more humidity if the weather changes quickly, so do this at your own risk. It goes back to our feeling about creating openings in something you work hard to seal up.
Last but not least, ensuring the products or items in your shipping container are packed properly can reduce the number of issues in the humidity department. This can mean using plastic boxes instead of cardboard for some products and making sure that there are desiccants inside those plastic tubs so you don’t have issues inside them. It can also mean wrapping furniture in blankets to protect it from any condensation in the container. It would form on the blankets instead of the furniture. Knowing the proper way to store your items goes a long way. Then, periodically checking the inside of your container to check on the contents will ensure that you are keeping everything in good shape. By taking this step, you can prevent your goods from getting destroyed by humidity, moisture, and more.
Related Blog: 5 Ways Homeowners Use Shipping Containers As Storage
We know we mentioned 5 tips, but that’s excluding one of the must-have humidity deterrents: investing in a high-quality shipping container. By getting a shipping container that checks all the boxes, it’ll be easier to hold up against humidity and moisture. If you are hoping to get your hands on a shipping container today, our team at Super Cubes can help. Contact us today to get started.
Super Cubes is a family-owned business located in Minneapolis, MN, that provides containers anywhere in the continental US. We offer personalized service for individuals and businesses, providing high-quality containers at competitive prices. With nationwide facilities, we can modify and deliver containers close to you. Contact our experienced team for your next container project.