bluechip Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 I don't know if anyone's dealt with this before, but after several days of 110+plus degree weather I suddenly remembered a bank branch where I have a safe deposit box has been closed due to Covid, and I found myself imaging that the AC was off all during the summer, causing my books to age several decades beyond their years due to the heat. So much was I concerned that I arranged to retrieve the most susceptible items, and when I got there the place relatively cool (not chilly but 30-40 degrees cooler than outside. And I was told they basically had to come in every other day to deal with people getting into their boxes, so it never got above 80. While that's not as reassuring as hearing they keep it at 40 degrees temp and humidity, it was much better than my fears. Wondering if anybody has had similar concerns and if so how they dealt with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Man Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 My bank is still open and cool as heck porcupine48, onlyweaknesskryptonite, Skunkboy and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamstrange Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 33 minutes ago, bluechip said: I don't know if anyone's dealt with this before, but after several days of 110+plus degree weather I suddenly remembered a bank branch where I have a safe deposit box has been closed due to Covid, and I found myself imaging that the AC was off all during the summer, causing my books to age several decades beyond their years due to the heat. So much was I concerned that I arranged to retrieve the most susceptible items, and when I got there the place relatively cool (not chilly but 30-40 degrees cooler than outside. And I was told they basically had to come in every other day to deal with people getting into their boxes, so it never got above 80. While that's not as reassuring as hearing they keep it at 40 degrees temp and humidity, it was much better than my fears. Wondering if anybody has had similar concerns and if so how they dealt with them. The bank vault is usually isolated, well inside the building but most banks don't make any special attempt to keep temperature at an ideal level for comic book storage. You can get a temperature gauge that will record the max temperature and place it in your SD Box to determine how well your bank does. Most people will not like what they see if they are in a hot climate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porcupine48 Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 9 minutes ago, Robot Man said: My bank is still open and cool as heck I'd love to have a set of drawers like that on a wall for some funny books!I don't mind my comics resting flat,heck,my Mad and Cracked mags have been in a box like that for decades! Here's a sort of on/off topic question-would having comics in short/mag boxes in the room,nearby with a window air conditioner be detrimental? Larryw7 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manofsteel Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 Is there an ideal temp and humidity for comic storage? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCOComics Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 3 minutes ago, manofsteel said: Is there an ideal temp and humidity for comic storage? I read about this year's ago. My numbers may be a little off, but I think 65 degrees and 50% humidity is ideal. I keep mine in a small bedroom closet and target 68 degrees or so. Moondog 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circumstances Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 Cool and dry. Cool and dry. I live in South Florida, so what many would consider a heat wave, we consider 9 of the 12 months of every year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manofsteel Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 11 hours ago, KCOComics said: I read about this year's ago. My numbers may be a little off, but I think 65 degrees and 50% humidity is ideal. I keep mine in a small bedroom closet and target 68 degrees or so. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N e r V Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 13 hours ago, circumstances said: Cool and dry. Cool and dry. I live in South Florida, so what many would consider a heat wave, we consider 9 of the 12 months of every year. And you have those pesky hurricanes to cool you off from time to time... circumstances 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circumstances Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 1 minute ago, N e r V said: And you have those pesky hurricanes to cool you off from time to time... Unfortunately. One looking like a good candidate to slam us right now (Tropical Depression 13). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timely Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 (edited) There are many vaults that have safety deposit boxes on an outside wall. Be sure your box is not on an outside wall as the contents will get hot and cold at an accelerated rate, especially if the sun hits the wall! Edited August 20, 2020 by Timely Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince G Posted November 7, 2020 Share Posted November 7, 2020 I'm in a similar situation where my branch was closed, and I do live in a warm climate. I will be checking mine next week. I have a similar question regarding deterioration, specifically page integrity and quality, and staining/oxidation. I have one book with some light staining on the back, which appears to be a small water stain. If stored in a high temp/high humidity environment, can that stain darken and possibly migrate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moondog Posted November 20, 2020 Share Posted November 20, 2020 My old bank had their vault in the basement and it flooded twice in the 30+ years I stored books there. Thankfully the water only dampened the floor in the vault. After the second time I closed the box and moved to a ground level facility. I checked with the bank there and they do not care if the humidity/heat is too high. Their contracts state that any damage to contents in a box due to humidity/heat is not their concern. I stop in from time-to-time just to see and it's always cool, but I know at night it gets hotter and the same goes for Sundays. Larryw7 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark Knight Posted November 20, 2020 Share Posted November 20, 2020 I've been storing my mega key books in a safety deposit bank at my local bank for over a decade now and never had any problems Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
