Egon said:
If the wooden handle sticking out didn't give you a clue that it wasn't paper beef or paper chicken then you are so far gone you might as well go ahead and eat the brush.
Now back to reality...
A vacuum is airless and a sure fire way to exclude oxygen but the differential outgassing of the volatile constituents would not have a desired effect on the brushes contents.
Storing the brush in dry air is not going to give the desired effect either. Excluding oxygen is an important issue. A simple way to exclude oxygen is to wrap the bristle end of the brush in foil. My foil is impermeable and with a modicum of care there is a "near" hermetic seal which for my purposes exceeds the requirement.
As far as condensation on the brush when removed from the freezer... I unwrap the bristles and plunge them into the can of finish. I don't unwrap it and let it sit out to become wet from condensation. The stored heat in the room temp finish "thaws" the bristles nicely in short order and you are good to go.
As regards the "hassle" of decanting paint into a smaller container... I haven't found it to be a challenge. There are numerous plastic gadgets available for easy paint pouring without spilling it down the side of the container or filling the groove on top of the can for the compression lid. Decanting to a smaller container reduces the available oxygen which for many finishes is as or more deleterious to storage as the small amount of moisture in air.
I have no quibble with drying the air, it doesn't hurt and may help with some finishes but it does nothing to reduce the available oxygen which is a sure fire aging agent for stored finishes.
Now for another tip:
When you finish off a tube of caulk in a good strong plastic tube, stick your air nozzle (with trigger) into the dispensing end and aim the big end of the tube in a safe direction. Give it a shot of air and the piston will be driven from the tube with quite a force and a pop sound (like a tater gun which can also be built from a used caulk tube.) Not only is it fun but it lets you access the inside of the tube to clean it out. If the contents was silicone, it may be easier to let it cure and then peel it out but water clean up materials are best attached right away with water.
Now you can put whatever material you want to dispense in the tube. Two ways of doing that (there are others) is to use a putty knife and or a spoon to pack the material into the tube. If you have vacuum available you can hook a vacuum line to the nozzle of the tube, stick the big end into the material of interest, and let the vacuum suck the stuff up into the tube.
When the tube is filled to your requirement you put the piston back into the big end and you are ready to dispense the new material. This will work for various products that you might want to dispense but can't find in a tube or the bulk price is far better or it is your custom stuff. It will also dispense heavier paste consistency home brew BBQ sauce, cake icing, mortar, grout, and whatever can be forced out the tip.
Caution with food stuff, you need to clean the tubes well.
Pat
