Clear plastic bank rolls deadly?

MaineJim

Are the clear plastic rolls that some cents come in from the bank bad for long term storage? I have a couple boxes of 2009 cents that seem fine but now I'm wondering if they should be transfered to something more stable?

Maine_Jim

oreville

I am very skeptical of the stability of those clear plastic rolls.

On one hand, it is possible that they might not contain any PVC which you can test for.

If it were me, I would slowly shift your rolls from the plastic to paper or hard plastic tubes. Slowly, meaning over a 10 year period.

If the coins look good in the opened rolls then you could proceed at a very slow pace. If you detect any problems speed up the changeover process.

PerryHall

Stretch the plastic material and smell it. If it smells like a new shower curtain it's PVC. Otherwise, it's probably polyethylene which should be safe for coins.

Edited to add that if you don't smell the PVC, it may still have a very minimal quantity amount of PVC. The Beilstein test is the only way to be totally sure that your plastic is free of PVC.

Billet7

Deadly??? Probably not, unless you chose to eat them...then I guess it would depend on how many you ate.

Seriously, I'm not sure, probably would be a good idea to look into.

tahoe98

...the only 100% safe rolls are the mint wrapped coins that you pay a premium for.

TwoSides2aCoin

<< <i>Are the clear plastic rolls that some cents come in from the bank bad for long term storage? I have a couple boxes of 2009 cents that seem fine but now I'm wondering if they should be transfered to something more stable?

Maine_Jim >>




Dear Jim,

Yes, your coins should be transferred to something more stable. Might I suggest the bulk grading department at PCGS for clear plastic slabs instead of those deadly clear plastic bank rolls ? I would be interested in the MS 67s. Let me know if and when I might get a few for a reasonable price. By reasonable... under fifty $ would be most generous.


Your friend in coins,

Joe