Inquiring minds want to know! I would like to know as well. By oxygen packs do you mean oxygen absorbers?
I would think that the dehydrated epsom salts would be moisture absorbers rather than oxygen absorbers. Edit: Epsom Salts (Sulphate of Magnesium) have a multitude of uses, in the same way that Baking Soda (Soda Bicarbonate) is a multi purpose product. Epsom Salts have a number of uses in the fields of gardening, health and beauty. I have listed a few websites that can suggest a wide variety of uses should you wish to recycle used moisture absorbers that use Epsom Salts as a dessicant. It should be noted that Epsom Salts is non-toxic in moderate dosages if digested, so should a moisture absorber bag split and contaminate the food, the food will still be edible, just that Epsom Salts tends to have a laxative effect if taken internally. Hence the colloquial aussie expression "Jeez mate...the boss went through Fred like a dose of (Epsom) salts" (Meaning, Fred's boss gave him a reaming out) http://www.care2.com/greenliving/use-epsom-salts-13-wonderful-ways.html http://www.rd.com/home/home-and-garden-uses-for-epsom-salt/ http://www.epsomsaltcouncil.org/about_epsom_salt.cfm http://gomestic.com/homemaking/15-unknown-uses-for-epsom-salt/ http://www.essortment.com/benefits-uses-epsom-salt-41936.html
I have a welder with a large Argon tank so I bought a seperate guage, attached a 1/4 line, and fill my containers with it. You get an inert gas that is totally dry that will not support any vermin, bugs, fungus, or molds. You can rent small bottles of Nitrogen or CO2 from welding suppliers or party rental places and do the same thing.
You can also buy dry ice and use a quarter sized bit in your 5 gallon buckets. Let it sublimate until it is about the size of a dime then seal closed. Also, dollar store (2 packs for about a dollar) hand/foot warmers are oxygen absorbers (same chemical make up - it is how heat is generated, oxygen is absorbed and the reaction with the chemical creates heat). One per 5 gallon bucket is adequate.
And no...you CAN'T fart into your bucket and seal it closed tightly and expect good things to happen.
Why???????? the 02 absorbers is the cheapest part of food packing into buckets ...... the food itself is always the most expensive and important part ...... you are depending on the food be eatible and safe when you need it for an emergency ...... why take an chance for a 25 cents?
I agree. I don't think that the proverbial fart in a pickle bottle offers much in the way of preservative properties. ; ) though the H2SO4 component of flattus may be a useful deterrant to looters. : ) Another feasible method of expelling O2 from food storage containers is by using the CO2 that is a waste product of Beer and wine fermentation. Run a line from the airlock of the fermenter to the storage container. CO2 being heavier than air will displace much of the O2 from the container and should do a good enough job off creating a hostile environment for most oxygen breathing critters....naturaly it will probably offer little protection against anaerobic bacteria...so keeping food in a dry, cool environment will also help a great deal. YMMV
