Storage

The best advise I can give you is to make sure that you store your trains in a low humidity environment.  I know this from experience as I stored my collection for quite a while in a regular unheated or cooled storage area and it didn't take long for rust, mold, etc. to damage many of the pieces.....  Part of the problem was also putting every piece in a plastic bag because under the conditions I think moisture was trapped...so....you may want to consider that...

Alan

I'll second the dehumidifier. 

Also, stay away from freezing temperatures.

I like to wrap them in acid-free paper and then into the box.  If they're loose, some bubblewrap outside the paper.

As stated, don't seal them in and keep the humidity low.  If you are comfortable in the environment, chances are your trains will be too.

Alan makes a good point about plastic bags trapping moisture. Also bubble wrap has been known to stick to finishes when used for long term storage. I'd suggest wrapping each item in tissue or other thin wrapping paper, or the very thin foam sheeting that MTH uses for locomotives, and then plastic. 

Truthfully, the silica gel packets are pretty useless unless you recharge them with a few hours in the oven, and then only in a sealed environment.  Once you've had them exposed to open air for an extended period, they're not much use without a recharge.  You'd be pretty amazed how much desiccant is required for even a moderate sized sealed container to properly keep things dry.  Also, they're only good for a limited time before requiring baking again to chase the moisture out.  It takes a few hours in a low oven to get them ready for use again.

What do you have available:  If you have space under the bed, that means they have a controlled, environment, (kidding about the bed), But,  I would go and get you some

cardboard inserts from the liquor store.  These will have honey comb, style in them, and

place them in between you engines and cars ,in a nice flat box. Put cover on the box,

they wont roll, you have climate controlled storage, and no chance of mildew from plastic.

The boxes are thicker as they protect glass, thus better choices that cheapo, cosmetic style boxes from Wal mart.

The suggestions on here are all very good.  I would also add: DO NOT store trains on the basement floor, even in plastic storage boxes.  Try to place them on a table for better air circulation as well as less dampness.  Basement floors have higher moisture than walls.  If you use a dehumidifier, it will keep the air dryer above floor level.  Cardboard boxes can absorb moisture in the air unlike plastic, but plastic keeps moisture in, unlike cardboard.  The question is whether to store in the basement at all. Of course, keeping a consistent humidity level and temperature is ideal, but who has the room in livable areas to store a lot of stuff?  I have stored things in the attic that had a ventilating fan to exhaust heat in the summer months.  I have found that storing train stuff in cardboard boxes in the attic is probably less problematical than in the basement, although probably more inconvenient.  You can also put a plastic sheet over the boxes to protect them if your roof ever has a leak.  It is true that wiring can become brittle over time, but if you are taking things out for awhile and using them rather than long-term storage, that problem will take years to occur.  Keep  in mind that trains get warm as they operate, so the heat in the attic environment is probably less offensive to the engine components than moisture.  Cold temperatures in the attic are really not as bad as being outdoors because the heat dissipating from the rooms below is sufficient to keep things from freezing (even with attic floor insulation).  Just make sure that the vapor barrier on the insulation is facing down toward the floor (heated side) and that you have plenty of ventilation in the roof or gable ends so that any water vapor can leave and not condense on the rafters.

All very true - those little packets are basically worthless unless you have the means to re-activate the silica. 

If you're determined to employ a desiccant, I suggest that you spend the money for calcium sulphate with the blue indicator in it that turns purple when its activity is spent.  Better have real air tight storage on hand though to do this otherwise you're just tossing away money.

It's easy to reactivate the desiccant packs, you bake them at around 250 for a few hours and they're good as new.  I then seal them in freezer bags until I need them.  This topic came up before, the amount you need for a decent sized box is pretty amazing, I'm not sure if the few packets that we find in our new train stuff are all that effective.

There are no perfect ways to wrap any model trains. Even under the best of circumstances, the trains can be damaged or encounter unforeseen issues after being in storage for an extended period of time. While I do agree that a controlled environment is the best way, this of and by itself will not guarantee that when you reopen everything that they will run properly.

Personally, I would just do the best you can.

Pete

I've re-activated kilos of silica at a time; vacuum oven at over 200C overnight. 

I think that they put those packets in there for a placebo effect and very little else.  People like to believe that they do something and unless the box is air tight, they're spent in minutes.

http://www.silicagelpackets.com/

http://www.desiccantproducts.com/

How much Silica Gel should I use for my application?
The coverage areas as stated are estimates when used in an enclosed air tight container. The amount of Silica Gel or Desiccant required will depend upon several factors including: the chemical characteristics of the product, volume contents of container, physical properties of the container, and conditions in which container will be stored/used. Use the chart below to get an idea of how much to start out using.

Minimum Requirements:
Container Size - Packet Size
70 cubic inches - ½ gram
100 cubic inches - ¾ gram
130 cubic inches - 1 gram
260 cubic inches - 2 grams
389 cubic inches - 3 grams
648 cubic inches - 5 grams
1296 cubic inches - 10 grams
2 cubic feet - 28 grams
4 cubic feet - 56 grams
8 cubic feet - 112 grams
16 cubic feet - 224 grams
32 cubic feet - 448 grams
15 cubic feet - 200 grams
33 cubic feet - 450 grams
57 cubic feet - 750 grams
66 cubic feet - 900 grams

quote:

Alan makes a good point about plastic bags trapping moisture. Also bubble wrap has been known to stick to finishes when used for long term storage. I'd suggest wrapping each item in tissue or other thin wrapping paper, or the very thin foam sheeting that MTH uses for locomotives, and then plastic. 

Sorry to read of Alan's bad experience using plastic bags.

I put my trains in food grade plastic bags before putting them in boxes, or wrapping them in newspaper. The bag protects the items from box rubs, or ink transfer from newspaper.

Most of the Modern era trans I've seen come in plastic bags too.

Some of my trains have been stored for a very long time with no ill effect. I do not close the bags, and sometimes I will punch vent holes to prevent moisture from being trapped.

I can only ad what my father did with my childhood trains. We had moved to a basement-less house in Miami while I was in high school; given my age and the absence of room, not too difficult to see that no trains were run for a long time. He stored these post-war trains by 1) spaying them with WD-40 (he LOVED this stuff, especially for the Miami climate); wrapped them in newspaper, and then 3) put them in sealed food bags. Fast forward 30+ years: no rust, worked perfectly out of the bags.

I do not claim to be an expert in this; I don't know what WD-40 (or similar) would do in a sealed bag to newer plastic formulations, electronics, etc. But this was my experience.

FWIW (maybe <$0.02!)

Bruce

I am glad the WD-40 didn't damage Bruce's childhood trains.

WD-40 can act as a solvent, damaging paint and graphics. Sometimes I use it as a metal protectant. I spray it on tools. Sometimes I will carefully apply it to bare or blackened metal parts with a QTip, being careful not to get it on any plastic parts.

From my experience with old guns, I would never recommend WD-40 for anything but perhaps a cleaning agent or to flush out water before doing proper lubrication.  I have had a number of old firearms that were "preserved" with WD-40 and then put away for some years.  The stuff turns to glue, for several I had to soak them in solvent for days to get them apart so I could properly lubricate them!

WD stands for water displacement, it is not really a lubricant or a preservative!