I have noticed that BIC lighters lose their pressure over time, although they will still produce a small flame even after ten years. Also, I found some old Esbit tabs still in the packaging that had turned yellow after ten years. I haven't tried them to see if they still work as well as when white.

Anyone discover anything else that might need to be checked/replaced after a number of years?

well anything with a expire date, corrosion on metal(alloy) things, things made of rubber, knowledge can be lost or be outdated...

Almost everything has a limited shelf life in practice. The most critical on my list - medical supplies (including water purification tablets!), food, water, matches (wood or paper, both degrade after a few years), firestarters (some types deteriorate within a few years), batteries - alkaline as well as rechargeable, ammo etc.

High temperature, direct sunlight and high moisture all increase the rate of decay. Anything mechanical that isn't in use regularly must be checked every now and then. Also, a lot of folks seem to believe that syntethic materials are more resistant to decay than natural ones. Wrong - sunlight and UV radiation can affect many plastics and synthetic fibers in a very short span of time.

Anything plastic, if it is exposed to sunlight or heat...

me

Whats the life of shotgun shells, the plastic shell type.. is their one? Can I extend this life by packing in a #10 can with oxy absorbers.. Or maybe a mylar bag..

Thanks,

Don't know if this is a very good test, but I recently shot about 400 that were about 20 years old and didn't have one that failed to go bang.

I need to add that these were not stored in any specific way to preserve them. They were hand loads also, and to tell the truth they "felt" a little "hot" compared to normal.

I realize that storing ammo in the garage or shed would cause a degradation in quality. but if my shells are stored in a 24 hour air conditioned location, these should last forever.. My thoughts.. I mean what within a piece of ammo actually goes bad?

on a side note, were is the best place to get ammo for a 12 gauge? I have been hitting walmart and paying maybe 10 bucks for 15 00 shells. Does hand loading cut down cost considerably with these days of cheap walmart ammo?

I don't know if 24 hr climate control even matters. The recent "find" of 400 12 Ga. hand loads had been in an unconditioned storage for all of that time. I know I loaded them, because they had my initials on the boxes and the last time I loaded was 1988. My folks forgot what was in the big boxes of hunting stuff. When I helped to move my dad out of his storage into mine I found them.

As to what goes bad in ammo, the powder / primer could get "wet" from humidity in theory. It seems this would be more likely in shotgun shells since there is no "true crimp" of case to projectile like a rifle/pistol round.