Safe woes...(Did I spell that right?)

mrpaseo

OK, so I went into my safe today to add another Modern Slab (I keep the moderns here the old stuff in the bank, I only hope they are doing better than this stuff). So I am moving the slabs within the PCGS boxes to keep the years in order and I start to see it.....

Toning...Hazing....even a fingerprint that was not there before.....

What am I to do?

A few days ago I pulled some cash out of the safe and it was damp...not wet but damp like. I have a silica packet in there, the one in the tin can, and a butt load of little packets I have been picking up here and there.

But yet there is still moisture in there....What am I doing wrong? The safe is pretty new (About 6 months old) I keep it on the floor (To heavy to put on anything else) the floor has a rug on it....No concrete slab under the rug, my house is up off the ground.

OK, so any reccomendations would be nice.

Thanks,
Ray and sleeping cat.

IvanOnly

Hum...Don't you have to Boil the silica(SP?) packs every once in awhile to get the moisture out of them?
Try buying new Silica packs?


You might also want to try a dehumidifier in the room where your safe is.

Russ

How many cubic feet is the interior of your safe? You may not have enough desicant for the area you're trying to cover. I have overkill in mine, just to be safe. Interior is 1.2 CF and I have two 40 gram cannisters. One cannister is supposed to be good up to 3 CF, so I have about five times the theoretical coverage needed.

Russ, NCNE

mrpaseo

Ivan, Yes, periodically we must bake the liquid out of the desicant (Of which I need to do by the way).

Russ, I think you have the right idea, I think I'll get another can of this stuff.

You know, thinking about it. All that desicant in there holding all that water may be my problem. If you figure they are saturated (Of which I don't think mine is yet, but to be safe, I'm gonna cook them tonight) then I let in moisture when I open the door....maybe they are detramental to the coins having them in there. I think I will start a weekly cooking program for my little balls of desicant, just to be safe, and like Russ, I'll get another can for over kill!

Thanks guys,
Ray and....um, cat left the room.

goose3

buy one of those Dehumidifier Rods for it! They're cheap!

Placid

This is from the faq. at sentrysafe.com for fire safes.

Q. Do I need to do anything special for storage & maintenance?

A.Yes. Due to the protective insulation in our Sentry® Fire-Safe® products - during normal use, moisture may be released into the interior of your product. To protect your items against this moisture, we suggest that you open your unit for a half hour, twice a month to let the air circulate on the inside. If this is not possible, we suggest that you place delicate articles, such as stamps, coins and jewelry, in an airtight, molded plastic container inside your Sentry Fire-Safe unit. (We do not have airtight containers available for purchase; check for these products in your area.)

Pearls or jewelry with pearls should not be stored in any Fire-Safe product. This is because pearls are more sensitive to damage than the 350° F interior temperature maintained during a typical fire.

Q. Why is there moisture in my fire resistant safe?

A.Sentry Fire-Safe products which offer fire protection have a patented insulation. Any fire resistant safe contains insulation, which in turn, contains water crystals; thus the high content of moisture. In addition,the Sentry advanced safes close airtight to offer water resistance, which may also cause moisture to accumulate inside your safe.
We suggest that you open the safe at least once every two weeks for approximately 20 minutes. To alleviate any musty odor, we suggest that you remove the items from the safe and wipe the interior with a paste of baking soda and water.

CLASSICS

a dehumidifier will remove any moisture in the air. and keep everything nice and dry. you can go wrong, just be sure and remember to empty the water container.

itsnotjustme

I bake my dessicant every week to two weeks. I don't know the number of grades, but it fills about half the volume of a 12 oz can. (Or the same volume as a 6 oz can). The safe is well over a year old now, and I've had no moisture problems. It even went un-baked for about 4-5 weeks without a problem.

Placid

Putting dessicant in something that isn't airtight dosen't do squat. It's like saying if you put dessicant in your backyard you can reduce the humidity level outside.

The best thing in my opinion is to get some airtight tupperware containers and store your slabs in them with a good amount of dessicant.
And if you can spend the money use intercept shield as well.

goose3

here you go Ray, this is what I was talking about.

Linkage

Russ

<< <i>we suggest that you open your unit for a half hour, twice a month to let the air circulate on the inside >>



Twice a month? I have a hard enough time going a day without opening mine to do a little fondling.

Russ, NCNE

JLW

goose3,
And the AC cord comes out........where? I am fortunate, don't live in a high humidity area, I have found that opening safe once a week or so to air out along with dessicant will suffice.
Joe

Neptune

Don't know if double baggies - gallon size work, but they seem to work OK for some items in keeping them dry that is - just don't know for how long. Seems everything I had in baggies is AOK for couple yrs. - Also I use the thick ones and use two of them. Of course, be sure to seal it completely and push the air out. Then use your dessicant. I have no clue how you would plug that contraption into a safe that has no outlets - maybe I am just not technical. As with most safes, they are expensive for a little bit of room. Once you get all the containers, your space is taken up. Baggies conform to tite spaces too.

hookedoncoins

airtite container? Ziplock?... lol.

Russ... where do you buy these canisters I have heard you talk about so much.

-Jarrett Roberts

Russ

Hooked,

I get them here.

Russ, NCNE

newbiecollector

I will add a cooment here which I hope gives some value to the thread/question. Personally I do not have a sfe but have many, many years of experience with mositure problems and silica gel........ in my work.

We manufacture, deliver and install very high voltage electrical switchgear (6 to 220 thousand volts). This equipment is very large, takes a long time to produce and install and almost ALWAYS be in place for months before energising. This is a quality problem. The installations are industrial (guess you knew that).

We almost always have to cover the swithboards in big sheets of plastic to keep all of the construction dusk out. A very bad thing for sensitive and high voltage copper components coated in silver and gold. But we do it.

We also chuck in a load of silica......... a big load. This works. Now we do not re-cycle the silica gel (we should but we don't).

You must remember that any, and every time you "close a space" that has been open before or after, damp air will rush in.

I do not have any idea of the cost of Selica Gel, even though we buy it in large volumes. For us it is a necessary and protective expense......

Just remember...... if you open your safe, wet air comes in. I recommend an over protection, similar to what Russ stated and cook your gel often.

Ray...you should get your safe off of the floor......even if it is just on some 2x4's ..circulation under the safe cute down on moisture.

WOW........ did I get carried away here and maybe not even made a point? I hope not.

goose3

my huge gun safe has a tiny hole in the bottom to feed the cord out of.

Avalon01

I have a large gun safe that I keep plenty of silica in. More than enough to cover the inside of the safe.

So far, I have never had any dampness in the safe.

Av.

Kejun99

mrpasseo,

Excellent post ! A valuable subject in the world of coin conservancy.
thanks for bringing it up.

The Web Site that Russ introduced is awsome...A huge benefit to anyone within a reasonable postage cost distance ! I copied the URL for later reference... He inserted the word "Hooked"... He is right ! that company.."Jakes Marketplace ? has everything !
Thanks again..