On Wednesday 18th Audrey Yardley-Jones asked:
>Does anyone have experience with the storage of flares or smoke signals?
>An aviation museum recently contacted me for information about how to
safely store two new >acquisitions: an M6 daytime aircraft emergency smoke
>signal and a flare (approx. 1' long, paper casing with a pull tab).
>Neither have been used.

>Other than the general guidelines for safe handling and storage of
hazardous materials, are there >other precautions? Do they need to be
de-activated? Is this possible without jeopardizing the >artifact?

Storing live pyrotechnics in a museum collection is really asking for
trouble. You really have to ask yourself "does the value of the live smoke
signals and flares really  out weigh the risk of injury to staff and/or
visitors, or the risk of losing your museum in a fire?". Flares are
extremely difficult to extinguish once they're alight.  Personally, I think
that my life is worth more than any museum artifact.

My first piece of advice is to have the items made inert. This should be
done by someone qualified to disarm explosives. The local military unit
should be able to help, and if you make it clear that you want the items
deactivated but not destroyed, there should be no problem. They'd probably
look at it as a real life training exercise. The Royal Australian Army has
always managed to do it for the Australian War Memorial.

The other safe alternative would be to dispose of the live items properly,
and replace them with inert dummies. Most manufacturers of explosives and
pyrotechnics also make inert dummies that are used for training etc.

If you really feel that having live pyrotechniques in your museum is
necessary, then they should be kept in a cold, dry and dark place, handled
as rarely as possible, isolated from vibration, isolated from any
electrical and magnetic equipment, and appropriately protected from static
electricity.

Hope this helps.

George Bailey
Objects Conservator
Australian War Memorial