Humidity and temperature

[The Jackal]

50% humidity is fine for me. Never had any problems in the last 15 years.

Regards,

Jac

My collection: www.ww2-militaria.webklik.nl

[Hans Kristian]

You may want to conduct a WAF search on this topic. There are many opinions on this very topic. As a museum conservator I suggest to stay in the museums perimeters. Don't forget the air temperature is also a factor.

Museums also have a varied opinions on humidity. Country to country these standards can vary though all are trying to be more uniformed. It's best to draw your own conclusions on this topic.

Please consider a good humidity/ temperature gauge. Running a good dehumidifier in the room where your collect is is vitally essential.

Never store you collection with in 5 feet of your dehumidifier. The dehumidifier pulls humidity to the dehumidifier unit itself as it takes it out of the room. It can be as high as 80-90 right beside your dehumidifier..

I know as i am posting this I will have many members disagree with this post. As I always state. These are your items to do as you see fit to do with them. We all hold our own opinions as truth even if they could be wrong. As i have said best to do your own research and draw your own conclusions. On any of the WAF threads.

DAZZA3483 actually humidity can start forming on some objects around 50% Humidity will affect many items from medals, leather, paper, cardboard, glue, fabric, paint, cellulite. Dirty and finger prints on objects will attract humidity also.

Hi Paul and thanks for commenting.

I do have a good little apparatus for measuring humidity and temprature, I do spot-checks once a week. I cannot remember the name, but is bought in a "Museums-shop" where I buy all my archive stuff; archive material for storing photoes (Secol), for storing paper items, caps etc, etc...really expensive but as you write: we spend fortunes on our hobby, so why not protect it well.

I will consider getting a dehumidifier during the winter.

Hans Kristian

[pak 40]

50 a 55% percent is perfect for leather and tunics,,, atleast for me,,, i used to work in textile industries and between 40 and 45 % humidity is rathezr dry and fibres are brittle and tend to break ,,, above 60% is to moist
and if tunics are realy used and have been sweated in, wen its to moist they tend to create mould,,, so thats way my dehumifier most of the time on and i dont have any great problems acutaly and there are still 3 boxes with packs in my place,,, about 80 M²


my temperature is about 13 a 14 degrees enough to keep the coldness out and aprox Always the same heat and temp is a ok,,,

[Hans Kristian]

Thank you all for the comments here.

So, all in all I guess that my 56% and 18-19 dgr celcius is not all that bad for conserving a mix of stuff.

And honestly I do not have any problem, but needed some confirmation.
Difficult topic, anyway.

Hans Kristian

[o.r.k.]

I read quite a lot about that, too- 45% is a good medium for all stuff, 50% still in museum range. Below 35% is way too dry and harmful, too (for cloth an leather- it gets brittle- but metal and paper feel well...). I too know the rule not to get over 60%. Totally opening windows on both sides to ventilate the collection room can, due to the strong indraft, very much affect paper, canvas, soft cloth and other soft materials. You should ventilate carefully if you have things in the open because the indraft and sudden change in humidity and temperature can harm soft stuff. Literature says the temperature is good around 20 degrees celsius. Direct sunlight bleaches and dust is also detrimental. In other words owning that stuff really is a bag full of problems, too. Most collectors must choose a way that is sensible and economical. I use prosorb satchets and keep them to the right humidity with small clay satchets- you can bake them in the stove if the humidity they store gets too high. Nevertheless I use a room dehumidifier to get the humidity down during the day- as I have to store my things in the bedroom. In the winter the room can reach 70% humidity and still the showcase remains at 42-48% due to the satchets. You can tighten showcases, if necessary with the non solvent crystal tesa strips- just put a layer along every edge horizontal and vertical to tighten the showcase (f.e. for the owners of Ikea showcases). A hygrometer inside on top and one at the bottom of the showcase can help you to find out if you took the right measures.... well you can really take a degree on that horrible topic.....

[o.r.k.]

One little addition- using hygrometers is quite confusing- take 3 no matter if digital and/or one with a fibre- you always have quite condiderable differences ranging up to 8- 10 values. So you have the choice- taking the average? taking the highest result???? who knows..

[pak 40]

i have to one digital hygrometer and a tradional one, and i take the average of those two.
and set my dehumifer in on aprox 45 % so it should be aprox 50-55 % in the room ore somewhat more.
and i do think this is quite good
al the best

Tom

[o.r.k.]

Sounds reasonable- I more or less handle it the same way, trying to keep humidity in the average of all measured humidity values.