Paintballs have expiration dates. Additionally, how you store your paintballs will determine their shelf-life.
Old paintballs aren’t a wise option to use. Instead of making the game interesting, old paintballs can make the game uninteresting.
Old paintballs are a menace and when you have a lot of old paintballs lying around your house, what to do with them becomes the issue.
This post talks about old paintballs; what to do with them and the problems they can create for you. Read on to get more tips.
What Can You Do With Old Paintballs?
Old paintballs aren’t good for playing paintball. They’re old and could frustrate your effort to take clean shots.
Why are old paintballs not useful for the game? Here is what happens to your old paintballs.
When you keep paintballs for a long period, their fillings will separate, causing their shells to absorb moisture and swell. That’s why old paintballs bounce a lot.
Using old paintballs can be frustrating to paintballers. Why? These balls have become so thick that their shells don’t break and release the content even when they land on the target.
Of course, if your paintballs don’t release their content when they land on the target, you can’t eliminate anyone. So, old paintballs aren’t a wise choice for paintball games.
Instead of playing paintball games with old balls, here are some of the things you can use them for.
Here are things you can do with your old paintballs.
1: Display old paintballs in a bottle for decoration:
One of the creative ways to use old paintballs is to display them in a bottle.
Just ensure the paintball and bottle are clean and dry. If they’re dirty and wet, clean and dry them before use.
You can use any transparent bottle you want, but I’ll recommend you go with fuze bottles. I like them because of their unique shape and size.
Additionally, you can paint the bottle cap with acrylic and glue some rhinestones to the bottle cap to introduce some bling. You’re also free to use beads or buttons to decorate yours.
Finally, tie a ribbon to the neck of the bottle. You can also replace the bottle cap with a paintball marker’s plug.
2: Paintball painting on a canvas:
Do you have old paintballs you plan to discard soon? If yes, it’s time to put them to some creative use.
You can turn your old paintball into a piece of art. However, if you’re too shy to do it yourself, invite your kids or your neighbor’s children to do it for you.
One thing you need to understand about paintball painting on canvas is that you’re going to get dirty. But if you can bring yourself to do it or organize the kids to do it, you’ll get a unique piece of art, consisting of a blend of varied colors.
What you need for this are old paintballs, a hammer and canvas. Place the paintballs on the canvas and crush them gently. And remember to use varied colors on different parts of the canvas to make the design appear more creative.
A Handy Tip: If the paintballs are being squashed by kids, ensure they’re wearing old clothes that you can easily discard.
Additionally, ensure the area you’re using is large enough and you have water on-hand to clean up the mess when you’re done.
Is paintball safe for kids? Yes, paintballs are safe, as they are food-grade ingredients. But then, paintballs aren’t edible, so your kids shouldn’t be eating them.
3: Discard old paintball:
Another thing you can do with old paintballs is to discard them. Paintballs cannot be recycled because they contain different materials.
So, if you don’t want to use your old paintballs for some artwork or put them in a bottle to decorate your space, then go ahead and discard them.
You can discard paintballs by burying them, as they’re biodegradable. However, make sure you put them in a biodegradable bag before burying them in the ground.
A Handy Tip: You can contact your local waste company to know if they have special instructions for paintballs disposal. If they do, follow their instructions to dispose of your paintballs.
How To Identify Bad Paintballs
Paintball can actually go bad, whether new or old. New paintballs can go bad if they aren’t stored properly.
So, how can you tell if your paintballs are no longer suitable to put in your marker? Use the following tips to find out.
1: Consider the shape of the paintballs:
One of the ways you can tell if your paintballs are bad is via their shapes.
Normally, paintballs have to be round. Anything besides this means the paintball is bad and you should discard it or use it for other creative purposes.
Here’s how to know if the paintball is out of shape.
Run your hands around the paintball. Check for dimples or soft spots. If you find any, then your paintball isn’t good anymore.
A good paintball should be round and not oblong or pear-shaped.
2: Consider the outside paint:
Another way to know if paintballs are bad is their outer paint. Are the paints cracking? If yes, then your paintballs are in bad shape.
You can tell if the paints are bad via visual inspection. The balls would be faded, cracked or have started chipping.
3: Watch out for contaminants:
Is there any dirt, water, oil or foreign particles on your paintballs? If yes, then think twice before throwing such balls into your paintball marker.
Paintballs with foreign particles will coat your marker’s barrel, and make your shots inaccurate.
So, if you find any foreign substance on your paintballs, discard them. Additionally, if your paintballs fell on the ground, don’t reload them. Get new paintballs that are round and clean.
4: How do the paintballs feel?
You can tell the state of your paintballs by feeling them. They have to be tough and brittle.
If paintballs are too strong and brittle then they’re not in good shape. Paintballs too strong won’t break when they hit the targets. And if they are too brittle, they might not even make it out of the paintball marker. They’ll shatter there.
Good paintballs need to be tough enough to make it out of the paintball barrel and brittle enough to break on impact.
How Long Do Paintballs Last?
Paintball can last for 3 – 6 months, depending how they’re stored. If stored properly, paintballs can last up to a year or longer.
Furthermore, understand that how long paintballs last differs from one brand or type of paintball to another, as there are different types of paintballs in the market.
The variation in durability between paintball brands and types is due to diverse factors. These include the paint consistency, ingredients used, shell thickness or hardness.
Another thing about paintballs’ durability you need to know is that you can’t tell which box or bag of paintball will last longer by mere looking at them. The only way to know is to use the paintballs.
You might even purchase two boxes of paintballs from the same brand, only for one box to last longer than the other. So, don’t forget there are elements affecting paintballs’ durability that are totally out of your control.
Do Paintballs Ever Expire?
Firstly, know that paintballs will get worse over time. They’ll get to the point that you can’t use them in games anymore.
Now, do they expire or have expiration dates? Yes, they do. However, how long paintballs would last differ from one brand to another.
Paintball shelf-life depends massively on different factors and every paintball is made differently.
Have this in mind: some paintballs will last for 3 -6 months before losing usability while some can last for a year or more and still perform well.
Some players have also reported paintballs shooting fine after 2 years, which might be possible. Unfortunately, we cannot confirm if this claim is true or not.
When you store paintballs properly, their lifespan increases. Just keep them away from sunlight, and a humid environment. Remember that these environments can make your paintballs unusable.
Paintballs don’t have to reach expiration dates to become unusable. How you store paintballs will determine if they’ll become unusable for the game before their expiration time or not.
Store your paintballs in a cool and dry place. And remember to flip them now and then so they can retain their spherical shape.
Final Thought
We have explained what to do with old paintballs and expect you’ll get creative and use yours the same way. You can also come up with creative ways to use your paintballs instead of discarding them.
Paintballs can last between 3 to 6 months and some can last up to a year. It depends on how you store them and where you store them.
Keep your paintballs in a cool and dry place. And don’t always assume your old paintballs aren’t good anymore. Instead, conduct physical observation to see if the paintballs are still in good shape before discarding them.
