Re: [ARSCLIST] storage media

["Richard L. Hess" <arclists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello, Donna,

My preliminary investigations indicate that cardboard boxes are serving us well
and should not be changed. If they are highly acidic, they should be replaced.

If you have acetate tapes, I believe the cardboard allows enough breathing and
also acts as a buffer (like a molecular sieve in a film can) that absorbs the
outgassing acetic acid.

I haven't fully proven this, but it is a logical hypothesis.

So, unless the boxes are really yellow and brittle, I wouldn't change them.

You might finr some useful information on my "tips" page at
http://www.richardhess.com/tape/tips.htm

If you have any questions as you undertake your digitizing project, feel free to
ask me.

Cheers,

Richard
--

Richard L. Hess
http://www.richardhess.com/tape/


Quoting Donna Sinclair <Donnas@xxxxxxx>:

> Speaking of storage media, can anyone tell me whether reel-to-reel should be
> put in special storage cases?  Most of our tapes are currently in the boxes
> the tape comes in.  We are planning a digitizing project and I am trying to
> calculate cost.  Any assistance would be helpful.
>
> Donna Sinclair
> Special Collections Coordinator, Oral History
> Oregon Historical Society Research Library
>
>
> >>> "Nancy's Overland Stage Lines (Nancy and Larry A. Hall, Sr.)"
>   <NancysOverlandStageLines@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> 06/09/04 09:57AM >>>
> The only dumb question is the one not asked.
>
> Have lurked for a while on the list.
>
> Recent comments about 78 storage in zip-loc bags prompts me to ask the
> following:
>
> Can cd's, in their little jewel boxes, be safely stored in metal boxes?
>
> I've been fotunate to be exposed in my lifetime to almost all the recording
> media.  Having accumulated a treasure of audio tapes over the last thirty
> years, has always made me allergic to magnets and metal boxes.
>
> I presume CD's are plastic and the coating to be aluminum.
>
> Comments appreciated.
> Thanks.
>
>
>
> Nancy and Larry Hall,
> Members:
> National Radio Club,
> American Radio Relay League
>
> Â"You see, wire telegraph is a kind of a very, very long cat.   You pull his
> tail
> in  New  York and his head is meowing
> in Los Angeles.
> Do you understand this?
>
> Â"And radio operates exactly the same way:
> you  send signals  here, they  receive  them
> there.     The only difference is
> that there is no cat.Â"   --  Albert Einstein
>