Storage question

[Paramarine]

I'm losing my "war room" to my soon to arrive grand daughter. I plan to move it into my home office, but I won't have the room to display it as before. Any storage ideas? Thanks in advance.

[Kevin1261]

Find some ammo cans,once closed there air tight and come in differnt sizes....not pretty but they work

[Craigob]

what would you be storing.. paper , metal?

[Mat Holloway]

My deepest condolences!!
Dont forget to take a few pics before you have to move out

[Frank Schneider]

what would you be storing.. paper , metal?

Exactly - storage depends a bit on the items, but in general I would say: not too dry (but also not too humid), even temperature, and dark. I have 2 of these german parachute containers. They can be closed air tight, and can store quite a few items. But Tupperware will do too

Good luck,
Frank.

[Paramarine]

Thanks for the replies so far! I'll be storing a lot of webbing and leather items like holsters, scabbards, and slings. All firearms are in a vault, with no move needed. The uniforms will fit into a ceader wardrobe cabinet, which is actually better than before. I was thinking about those stackable Rubbermaid storage boxes, but after reading the replies, I'm unsure of them, since they're clear. Would an opaque version work OK? Any chance of a reaction between the plastic and contents?

[pbuchh7715]

Greetings!

I had the priviledge of working at the US Army Quartermaster Museum as well as the Slaton Chapter of the Confederate Air Force Museum and was introduced to some excellent (and not so good) storage techniques. Leather, by far, is the biggest pain in the ass to store and most of the saddlery and briddles at the USQM Museum was stored in a climate controlled room with the main focus on maintaining humidity. VA is pretty humid to begin with but it can get a little dry in the winter. I think (THINK) we maintained 65% in the room and around 75F (I THINK!). Leather flight jackets (if you have them) are an entirely different animal.

I've stored canvas in Texas and Wisconsin (as well as Iraq while serving as Unit Historian) and found cotton duck to be pretty resilient. It's the metal fittings you have to worry about and there has to be a "happy medium" that doesn't dry out the fabric but doesn't cause mold or surface rust to the metal fittings.

With fabric, we stored everything in a climate controlled room but EVERYTHING was wrapped in acid-free paper. If it was cloth, it was wrapped in acid-free paper. Woe-be-tied anyone who argued with the head curator on this one . I have a fairly extensive collection of nylon and fabric flight jackets and have NOT run into a problem storing these items without acid free wrap. I keep different fabric types separated and anythig stored flat has a cotton divider, more for the sake of keeping anything metal (zippers, snaps) from making contact with the fabric, than anything else.

I store alot of textile items in the big "tupperware" containers and find them a god-send when protecting fabric from critters. Based on consultation with a curator at the Milwaukee Museum of Art, there are no SHORT TERM detrimental effects to storing in plastic containers. At least with textiles. Cedar is nice but who has room for 20 cedar chests?

When I was at the USAQM, there was a full time armorer who maintained edged weapons and firearms (a limited number). As an Army Officer, I'm convinced that firearms require CONSTANT PMCS and that's the only secret to longevity

Bottom line: light, dirt, moisture.....BAD. But I'm not telling you anything you don't already know If you want to know want DOESN'T work, feel free to email and I'll provide horror stories of a museum collection gone bad.

Peter

[Ralph P]

Peter...OUTSTANDING background data about how to protect collection items. Thank you very much in providing some of your knowledge.

Greetings!

I had the priviledge of working at the US Army Quartermaster Museum as well as the Slaton Chapter of the Confederate Air Force Museum and was introduced to some excellent (and not so good) storage techniques. Leather, by far, is the biggest pain in the ass to store and most of the saddlery and briddles at the USQM Museum was stored in a climate controlled room with the main focus on maintaining humidity. VA is pretty humid to begin with but it can get a little dry in the winter. I think (THINK) we maintained 65% in the room and around 75F (I THINK!). Leather flight jackets (if you have them) are an entirely different animal.

I've stored canvas in Texas and Wisconsin (as well as Iraq while serving as Unit Historian) and found cotton duck to be pretty resilient. It's the metal fittings you have to worry about and there has to be a "happy medium" that doesn't dry out the fabric but doesn't cause mold or surface rust to the metal fittings.

With fabric, we stored everything in a climate controlled room but EVERYTHING was wrapped in acid-free paper. If it was cloth, it was wrapped in acid-free paper. Woe-be-tied anyone who argued with the head curator on this one . I have a fairly extensive collection of nylon and fabric flight jackets and have NOT run into a problem storing these items without acid free wrap. I keep different fabric types separated and anythig stored flat has a cotton divider, more for the sake of keeping anything metal (zippers, snaps) from making contact with the fabric, than anything else.

I store alot of textile items in the big "tupperware" containers and find them a god-send when protecting fabric from critters. Based on consultation with a curator at the Milwaukee Museum of Art, there are no SHORT TERM detrimental effects to storing in plastic containers. At least with textiles. Cedar is nice but who has room for 20 cedar chests?

When I was at the USAQM, there was a full time armorer who maintained edged weapons and firearms (a limited number). As an Army Officer, I'm convinced that firearms require CONSTANT PMCS and that's the only secret to longevity

Bottom line: light, dirt, moisture.....BAD. But I'm not telling you anything you don't already know If you want to know want DOESN'T work, feel free to email and I'll provide horror stories of a museum collection gone bad.

Peter

[Paramarine]

GREAT! And thanks to everyone for their help. Now, at least I have a starting point. Should bayonets be kept in the scabbard if it's fiber? I'm certain not in leather!