Using Desiccants to Protect Fine Collectables

Protecting valuable collectibles from other hazards is as simple as keeping them dry. Water is essential for bugs and other harmful living things. Some destructive chemical reactions can be -at most- helped by moisture. It is a complicated subject that involves too many chemistry terms. The easiest and most straightforward advice I found was to bake a pound of rice at 300 degrees for about an hour. The rice should then be placed in a tray to absorb moisture from the air. You've probably read my article about bio-hazards, particularly silver-fish, and know this is a bad idea.

Calcium chloride is another bad idea. This is what they use to make icy roads in certain parts of the globe. It absorbs moisture well, but when it does, it becomes liquid.

This brings us to the smartest way to do it. A proper desiccant is gypsum, the same stuff used to make sheetrock. This is specially prepared Gypsum. They add a chemical to it, which changes the color from red to blue when it reaches full water. You have two options when it reaches full water: either you throw it out and start over (which isn't too expensive) or you can bake it until it dries and then use it again. Although the water absorption ability doesn't decrease, the indicating chemical does wear out. It doesn't wear out -it migrates into the Gypsum granules and becomes thin enough to not show the color change. Gypsum is, by the way, completely safe - have a bowl of it as breakfast. However, the moisture-indicating chemical is toxic.

You can also buy a small aluminum container to store it in. The aluminum container and desiccant can be tossed into the oven, when necessary. You can also bake a lot of 'taters. You should not cook the desiccant simultaneously with the 'taters. The desiccant will absorb any steam as they cook. It all depends on what you need and how much effort you want to put in. It is so innocuous, you could just spread it out in your bag or in a drawer. You'll need to sweep it up after it has finished its job. You can either put it in a small saucer, make an aluminum foil boat, or sew a bag using porous cloth. Desiccant Product Manufacturer makes small bags that have the contents already inside. This is their opinion on the matter of how big a bag should be for how much space.

Indicators of Humidity

A few issues are worth addressing regarding desiccants, fine collectibles, and other topics. Some items, such as fabric, may not like to be bone dry. This makes them brittle and can cause them to fall apart. You may also be able to seal your collectibles in a tight container. If humidity is present, you can pull it out with a single-use desiccant bag. As long as it remains in the container, you are done.