Sterilte Boxes and baseball cards

DeutscherGeist · December 29, 2008 8:04PM

This topic has been touched upon to some extent, but not from the angle I am proposing.

I recently went to a target and saw so many Sterilite boxes of various sizes. I am wondering if there is any harm in storing baseball cards in those boxes in terms of the chemical environment.

The cards I am referring to are either graded, in sleeves boxed in a carton, in card savers and boxed, in album sheets......I want to safely put all that stuff in some medium sized Sterilite boxes so I can stack them in a cool dry storage room to kind of ease space in my own bedroom.

Are there any plasticizers or other chemicals in Sterilite boxes to worry about that may harm the cards even though there is no direct contact? The new Sterilites do have a nauseating chemical oder when new. I just don't know if that is harmful to cards. Its better to be safe than sorry, so I am asking the wisdom of the board if anything is known.

I am being cautious because as a coin collector, we have to keep our silver coins away from rubber bands and anything else that is rubbery. We cannot have silver and rubber in close proximity or else the silver start reacting from the fumes of the rubber however slight.

fattymacs · December 29, 2008 11:36PM

Look at the recycling code on the container in question, there will be a number and some letters. The letters (ex. HDPE, PP, etc.) are the type of plastic they are made of.

bman90278 · December 30, 2008 12:12AM

Hi, I have some nice sized Sterilite boxes that have the PP on the bottom. How are those to keep cards in?

Thanks for any input.

Brian

slantycouch · December 30, 2008 12:16AM

I've had mine stored in them, as you've described, for nearly 10 years and have not seen any ill effects. I think (in terms of cards) without direct contact you're fine.

fattymacs · December 30, 2008 12:23AM

PolyPropylene is PP and is just fine for storage.

Dboneesq · December 30, 2008 12:32AM

I have had some cards (both graded and raw) stored in those type containers for well over ten years and I cannot see any damage on the cards from the containers. Now maybe if we are talking about storing them for 500+ years, there might be an effect! LOL

DeutscherGeist · December 30, 2008 1:38PM

Thanks to those that replied. I had no concrete reason to believe those storage containers do cause any harm to cards, but you never know without consulting with others. I will now proceed in buying some from Target so I can get better organized.

In terms of silver coins--which I also like to collect--more research is needed to see what containers are safe. Mylar material is excellent for silver. Gold coins are not a problem since gold is inert (it won't react with anything).

Polypropylene is safe for cards as many high end penny sleeves are made out of it. It's the PVC containing plastic that is the problem for archiving things.

If one can seal off oxygen, like the Sterilite containers do with their snap on lids, it helps the longevity of the cards. Oxidation causes yellowing of paper. For really valuable cards, its best to store those in some sealed off container filled with helium gas only. Helium will not react with the paper stock. Regular air always contains some oxygen, so that is no good.

TheMcgwireMuseum · December 30, 2008 2:22PM

<< <i>For really valuable cards, its best to store those in some sealed off container filled with helium gas only >>

I tried that before, but it became a pain to shoot them down with a BB gun everytime I wanted to look at them!

DeutscherGeist · December 30, 2008 6:19PM

Sterilte Boxes and baseball cards

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