Requesting advice about storing wool in the tropics

[Salvatore L]

Hi guys

I live in the Caribbean, were the climate is very hot and the humidity is high, particularly this time of the year. I have a pretty good size collection of mainly german army and SS uniforms and flags. Most are made of wool, but there are some leather coats and wraps.

I am not to sure about how and where I should be storing and/or displaying my uniforms. Down here, we do not deal a lot with wool clothing because of the climate. Right now, I have each of them inside plastic clear laundry bags, carefully fold, stored inside various plastic trunks, along with cedar balls. The trunks are stored in a closet with a constant temperature.

The only one I keep in display in a torso mannequin is a mouse grey leather SS coat, evidently because the material is strong and inmune to moths.

I am afraid that the folding may alter the shape of some of the tunics. But hanging them in a closet seems to me like a higher risk of exposing them to humidity and moths. I would like to display some wool tunics once in a while, but there may be a risk involved because of the humidity and the moths.

What do you suggest?

All ideas will be appreciated.

Thank you

[Salvatore L]

Guess not many members from the tropics, right?

[Paul R.]

It sounds like you have a nice collection of items. I would first of all change you storage methods and also seriously invest in a good dehumidifier, and a good humidity gauge. Moisture and poor storage is enemy number 1. There have been many postings on the WAF site on sound archival storage systems. Moisture attracts mold, mildew and insects.
There are cedar moth ball and the herb lavender is another item that can be used to deter insects. Never use the old fashion white crystal moth ball. They can cause a lot of very serious health issues. As a conservator I’m not a fan of plastic bags or plastic storage bins. Many of these cheap plastic bins can out gas causing damage to cloth. A few people are using a large plastic bag and use a vacuum to suck out air. that may sound like a good idea, but why use a off gassing plastic bag, and why crush your several thousand dollar ss tunic.
I would also stay away from medal trunks. They can in time rust causing a headache and if they are paper lined can be a host for insects. There are companies that make archival acid free storage boxes. Yes they are expensive, but so are the replacement costs of tunics of a one of a kind tunic.
I’ m not a fan of long term mannequin displays. Mannequins are a one size fits all. Tunics are not made like that. In time tunic displayed on mannequins will be stressed especially seams on tunics. Also displaying tunics you are making the display a magnet for insects.
If you look at my pinned thread on how to stuff a tunic for storage you will not have to worry about folding any item. Conduct a WAF conservation thread search on the topics and you should find plenty of information. It best to use sound judgment on preserving your collection for years to come rather than a quick fix to the problem.

[Salvatore L]

Thank you very much Paul for a lot of good and useful information.