How to dispose of old powder .

JasonGTA said:
Dump it in your garden for fertilizer
Click to expand...

One of the members here who used to work at/with a powder manufacturer has stated that this doesn't work.

The powder supposedly won't break down properly to act as fertilizer?


Personally, I just burn it........

found this online, I'm not a chemist so I don't know how accurate it is:

gunpowder does contain alot of nitrogen, but it is the wrong type of nitrogen.
there's also the problem that its not water soluble and does not break down easily in soil or water, so plants can't absorb it anyway.

gunpowder nitrogen comes in the form of nitrocellulose or nitroglycerin. what plants look for is some kind of nitrate- ammonium nitrate, potassium nitrate, etc. its a totally different chemical. there's actually alot more to this than just putting nitrate in soil. for more information regarding plant fertilizer i suggest wikipedia or asking a gardener.

old fashioned gunpowder, aka blackpowder, while containing the right kind of nitrate plants need, also contains other stuff like sulfur that can poison plants rather than help them.

if you have lots and lots of blackpowder you could fertilize your plants with it- if you can extract the nitrate from the powder and leave the sulfur/charcoal behind. its a laborious task that really isn't worth the effort. same process as extracting kno3 from dirt.

one problem with using blackpowder for fertilizing is that there's something called nitrogen burn... too much nitrate can burn and cripple your plants. because blackpowder is very high in nitrates there's a high possibility that instead of helping your plants you will kill them instead. typical plant fertilizer is maybe 5% nitrate, while blackpowder is more than 30%.

so with that all said, its not practical to use gunpowder or blackpowder for fertilizing, its not cheaper, its not better than regular plant fertilizer, and there's a good chance you will cripple your plants with too much nitrate.
Click to expand...
 
Yes, contrary to popular belief, it's not an awesome fertilizer, but dumping it on the ground or burying it is an easy way to get rid of it.
 
sixty9santa said:
Don't want to sound dumb, but I'm a noob to reloading, why get rid of the powder?
Do they expire?
Click to expand...

I have bought lots of reloads over the years, most I pull for the components. I am fairly particular about using someone else's reloads. I have found more than 2 different kinds of powder in a 20 round box of reloads. I toss the powder collected on the lawn.
 
I keep all my waste/unknown powder in an old powder can marked waste powder. I probably have 1.5lbs at the moment. Last time I had almost 2lbs I just lit it off on a concrete pad on Canada Day.

Or....

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom