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 Replies: 20 / Views: 7,550 |
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Valued Member
294 Posts |
Since Singapore's just about right on the equator and is surrounded by ocean, the only climate we get 365 days a year is hot, sticky and awfully humid. I'm not sure how that would contribute to gradual deterioration of coins, especially the lustrous ones, but I'm pretty sure it will. Is anybody also in the same boat?
I store all my coins in 2x2's or wrapped in acid-free printing paper which are then placed into ziplock bags and placed in steel tins and a few felt/leatherette boxes, in a room that is air-conditioned at night and left to warm up gradually to the daytime heat until sundown.
Already makes me insecure about the pretty decent option of organizing my 2x2's in BCW pages.
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Valued Member
United States
368 Posts |
Do you have any silica packs or anything else like that you could store with them?
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Valued Member
 294 Posts |
yes I've done that, unfortunately they aren't the reusable type and they're as good as the biggest serving of veggies i'd ever eat is for a hungry elephant. I just can't seem to find it here and I was going to buy some from a supply shop over in the US but eventually that didn't go through. is humidity the main cause of deterioration though?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1037 Posts |
The silica packs I use are reusable, the instructions state to put on a 300' oven for a couple of hours. I use 2 of the 40 gram units from this seller: http://www.jpscorner.com/silica-gel...control.htmlOne other option I might consider if I were in your locale would be to vacuum seal the coins. The vacuum sealer is generally used for food storage. I would still use the 2x2's for added protection. I'm sure you'll be able to find similar products in your part of the world. Good luck and keep us updated with your progress. |
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
Large airtight plastic containers, suitable for food storage, should be available for storing coin albums in.
The use of silica gel is an obvious and very useful suggestion.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
The use of any gel packs or similar moisture absorbing substance is only as good as you. By that I mean all of them only absorb so much moisture, then become useless. If your constantly watching, yes they will do some good but again, once full of moisture, useless. Rechargables too are only as good as you. I too live in a high moisture area. I put most of my coins in Albums. Then the Albums are placed in a Zip Lock Plastic bag with as much air pushed out as possible. For the really valuable sets, I use two of those bags. Again a moisture absorbing substance added is only as good as you are in rememebering to either replace or recharge. Actually, once full of moisture, could create more damage than good since some of the moisture absorbed by them will now leak off unless replaced or something.
The best is to keep coins away from moisture anyway possible.
A smart thing to do is go to almost any decent store that may carry a highgrometer. They measure the moisture, humidity, in the air. Keep one in the same place you store your coins. Will tell you just how bad the air really is.
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Valued Member
294 Posts |
ok I never knew that moisture could leak out the silica packs. reminds me I've got one of them at the bottom of my box of coins. going to have to take them all out now. Are ziplocks actually really air-tight once sealed or can air and moisture seep through the joints in the sides?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1314 Posts |
I've been told that dried rice will absorb moisture. It's cheap and can be stored in small cloth bags. Is this true?
In a drier climate, I like military surplus ammo cans with a good sealing gasket.
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
9377 Posts |
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Valued Member
294 Posts |
haha gee would that do my coins some real justice now. sounds a great idea though, maybe I should buy one of these some day. right now I'm all but broke from buying coins over and over again. can't complain though, I just scored a few lots way below value again.
about dried rice, I've no idea, but given that rice is a staple food in asia and thus for singaporeans, I might give that a try, but I wouldn't bet a penny on it. not my BU's or key dates that is :D
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
17884 Posts |
Quote:
is humidity the main cause of deterioration though? It is a major cause because toning and most forms or corrosion are the result of oxidation-reduction reactions and those require water in some form to proceed. No water, no reaction. |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
19935 Posts |
MO LAYERS = MO BETTA!  |
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Valued Member
United States
315 Posts |
If I had a better camera, I could show some of the damage I'm seeing from 70s-80s coins stored in hawaii conditions (80 degrees year round, 60-80% humidity.) the worst coins show staining from what appears to be condensation, while others show pinhole corrosion.
Im a newbie, but here's what I learned so far:
1. The only air tight container I've seen is plastic bags, eg the old blister packs from the mint. All other containers aren't air tight or will become compromised by changing temperatures as you've described.
2. Imho, probably the worst thing to do is keep them in a situation where the temperature varies widely. A temperature change leads to warping or condensation.
3. Keep them away from paper or cloth. Silver is ok in a cloth pouch like an old sock. Right now, I'm seeing if the modern coin-specialized plastic pages help.
My advice is to leave them in a cool, dark, dry place with a consistent temperature. Any extreme is bad, low or high. As long as the temperature is consistent, the high humidity shouldn't affect your coins.
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Valued Member
294 Posts |
@badThad as a sidenote, if you wore more layers in our wonderful local climate you'd melt! seriously I just have to sit for a bit and I start perspiring.
@Superhal that's got to stink. hope they weren't expensive, sure wouldn't like to imagine that happening to my collection.
well, the diurnal temperature range here is about 5-8 degrees, but my room doesn't get direct sunlight and I keep the door shut after a night of air-conditioning so I guess that helps a little?
pictures in a bit anyway
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Valued Member
294 Posts |
probably not the best place for some of them but this is what I've been keeping them in until my collection grew too big. it's a pierre cardin box or something. does require a little push to get the lid down tight, lots of air vented out.  wonder what's in this treasure chest...  just the 10% of an (humble) iceberg. this box isn't as air-tight, but it'll do for now I suppose.  So this is how I store each and every one of them, 2x2's in ziplocks, air sucked out and folded over. I've yet to get a whole lot of LMC's out of the printing paper I wrapped so many coins into until a small lot of 2x2's arrived days ago. really needed them. Any room for improvement so far? :D |
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Moderator
 United States
23522 Posts |
So far, I'd only worry about what those boxes might/might not be capable of outgassing into their interiors. If they're 5-10 years old, no need to worry. You're aware that Singapore has its' own coins/notes museum, right? http://www.singaporecoinsandnotesmuseum.com/Chances are those guys would have some pretty location-specific ideas. |
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Replies: 20 / Views: 7,550 |
Posted 11/08/2013 11:27 am
