Can last year’s crackers still be used?

After Diwali, most homes have a carton of leftovers on a high shelf. By next October, people wonder whether they are still safe. The short answer is that well-stored crackers are usually fine for a year, but they need checking before you light them.

Open the carton in daylight, outdoors. Look at each box. If the cardboard is soft, stained or smells musty, it has taken in moisture. Damp crackers may fail to light, light slowly or burn unevenly, which is more dangerous than not lighting at all. Lucknow’s monsoon is humid, and a carton kept near a bathroom wall or on the floor almost always shows it.

Check the fuses. A fuse should be firm and dry, without cracks or bends. If it crumbles or has come loose from the body, set that item aside. Sparklers should feel stiff, and the coating should not flake when you touch it. Flower pots and koti should not have cracked bases.

Anything doubtful should not be lit. Do not try to dry crackers on a stove, in the sun on a hot roof or in an oven. Soak rejected items in a bucket of water overnight, then wrap them in newspaper and put them out with dry waste, telling your collector what is inside. Next year, store leftovers in a closed carton, raised off the floor in a dry inside room, away from the kitchen. A packet of silica gel in the box helps in July and August.