Safety of long-term minifig/part storage in plastic bags

[emramada]

1 hour ago, NathanR said:

Yes.  LDPE is supposed to be inert, it doesn't react or break down so in theory it should be safe for minifigure storage.

Honestly, I've no idea. Anything designed for food storage isn't going to be good long term.  Supermarket food-freezer bags are typically made of an acidic plastic (possibly with a PVC component, which breaks down to release hydrochloric gas, that will attack whatever is in the bag.  Not such a problem for food being kept for a week or two, but for Lego...). There's an interesting article with recommendations here, but these are USA stores.  Personally, I've been ordering from here but I haven't had the bags long enough to know if they are any good.

I saw that article too and im Still confused on what to do... But thanks NathanR for the insights.. Unfortunately GTzips doesn't ship in my region. And im hesitant about Chinese Pp plastics being sold in the net... I will keep looking. Thanks again

[fred67]

These are what I've been using for some years for minifigures.  They are LDPE, and you can get other sizes.

There are a number of "regular" food storage bags in my collection, too, but they get phased out as time goes on.

Edited February 5, 2018 by fred67

[emramada]

Hi i was able to find this Anti Static Shielding Bags, composed of APET/ CPP (Amorphous Polyethylene Terephthalate/ Cast polypropylene)  will this be ok? For long term storage? It has polypropylene which is good,but i don't know about polyethylene Terephthalate.. Hoping for the reply guys thanks in advance

Edited February 13, 2018 by emramada

[emramada]

 

On 2/6/2018 at 5:58 AM, fred67 said:

These are what I've been using for some years for minifigures.  They are LDPE, and you can get other sizes.

There are a number of "regular" food storage bags in my collection, too, but they get phased out as time goes on.

Hi i was able to find this Anti Static Shielding Bags, composed of APET/ CPP (Amorphous Polyethylene Terephthalate/ Cast polypropylene)  will this be ok? For long term storage? It has polypropylene which is good,but i don't know about polyethylene Terephthalate.. Hoping for the reply guys thanks in advance

[fred67]

I don't know.  I've read the LDPE was good, and it turns out that's what I'd been buying (I did intentionally get thicker than "sandwich bag" plastic).

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

On 2/5/2018 at 2:57 PM, emramada said:

I saw that article too and im Still confused on what to do... But thanks NathanR for the insights.. Unfortunately GTzips doesn't ship in my region. And im hesitant about Chinese Pp plastics being sold in the net... I will keep looking. Thanks again

Is your issue that you can't buy from US stores? Because if so my sources will probably be no good to you, but I will leave these here anyways in case someone can use the recommendation:

https://www.clearbags.com/2-x-3-ldpe-clear-zip-bags-100-pieces-2pe23.html

http://www.gtzip.com/ziplock/P2pz.html#

Personally I've made the switch successfully to polypropylene. (Wow this thread is now quite old!). At least with the bags above, there are a couple of things to note:

1. They are really clear, which means your minifigs look better (i.e. the colors look brighter and less dull) when in storage.

2. They tend to be less deformable, so that folding them can cause them to become almost unusable if that kind of thing bothers you. Also this means that they constrain more minifigure capes and deform them more eventually, which may or may not bother you.

3. They pick up a lot of static, so they pick up dust and lint more easily.

4. Since they are so clear, fingerprints on them can be a nuissance.

Overall I am happy with the change. It also got me the chance to photograph a bunch of my minifigs. I think my collection looks better and safer now.

I think I might use polyethylene for figures that have capes and require more flexible bags, but it is my understanding that that material is less clear, so I am sticking with polypropylene for the majority of my figures.

Edited February 19, 2018 by BrickHat

[splatman]

On 2/19/2018 at 12:43 PM, BrickHat said:

Also this means that they constrain more minifigure capes and deform them more eventually, which may or may not bother you.

Have you thought of storing the capes separately?

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

4 hours ago, splatman said:

Have you thought of storing the capes separately?

Yeah, but I don't really want to. I already store the accessories separately. I just do my best to ensure the capes are not being folded. It is a little annoying but it satisfies me. Honestly I don't want to make the minifigure storage issue more stressful. In any case, another bag will probably solve the issue. Thanks for the suggestion, though!

[emramada]

On 2/20/2018 at 4:43 AM, BrickHat said:

Is your issue that you can't buy from US stores? Because if so my sources will probably be no good to you, but I will leave these here anyways in case someone can use the recommendation:

https://www.clearbags.com/2-x-3-ldpe-clear-zip-bags-100-pieces-2pe23.html

http://www.gtzip.com/ziplock/P2pz.html#

Personally I've made the switch successfully to polypropylene. (Wow this thread is now quite old!). At least with the bags above, there are a couple of things to note:

1. They are really clear, which means your minifigs look better (i.e. the colors look brighter and less dull) when in storage.

2. They tend to be less deformable, so that folding them can cause them to become almost unusable if that kind of thing bothers you. Also this means that they constrain more minifigure capes and deform them more eventually, which may or may not bother you.

3. They pick up a lot of static, so they pick up dust and lint more easily.

4. Since they are so clear, fingerprints on them can be a nuissance.

Overall I am happy with the change. It also got me the chance to photograph a bunch of my minifigs. I think my collection looks better and safer now.

I think I might use polyethylene for figures that have capes and require more flexible bags, but it is my understanding that that material is less clear, so I am sticking with polypropylene for the majority of my figures.

Thanka brickhat and fred67 for the tips. Happy storing..

[Grover]

After searching this and the CMF storage thread, this seemed the most appropriate place to ask:

Has anyone had problems with storing their bricks or CMFs in acrylic (PMMA) containers?  PVC is probably the worst at outgassing, but PMMA causes problems releasing methyl methacrylate upon pulling vacuum, so I didn't know if long term storage in some clear amac boxes (acrylic) like these were problematic.  I'm dubious, and though these boxes are very nice looking and stack easily, I don't really want to ruin my figures through outgassed VOCs.  I'm actually leaning toward mason jars right now because of their chemical inertness, but wanted to see if anyone had issues long term with acrylic storage.

EDIT: Added pics and description

Here's one of the larger figures, Ursula, on a base (yeah, I know it's a batman base, but it's what I had at hand) in one of the Amac 60300 boxes.  It fits OK, but her larger frame makes it so she can't fit flat on the base.  I'm also worried about the methyl methacrylate outgassing from the acrylic box.

On the other hand, you have the Ball 4oz. Mini storage mason jars, which are glass with a metal lid, no plastic (not even a plastic o-ring seal), so there's no chance of outgassing.  The figure isn't quite as clear as the glass distorts it a bit, but since I"m looking more for long-term storage without degredation and being able to see into a container to identify the mini without having to open boxes, I'm perfectly happy with this solution.  It does add more weight and is more breakable (although the mason jars are tough), but it's approximately the same size as the Amac box, so it will fit on the same shelf.  Best news is that Ursula now fits flat on the bottom.

Edited July 13, 2019 by Grover

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

On 7/13/2019 at 3:08 PM, Grover said:

After searching this and the CMF storage thread, this seemed the most appropriate place to ask:

Has anyone had problems with storing their bricks or CMFs in acrylic (PMMA) containers?  PVC is probably the worst at outgassing, but PMMA causes problems releasing methyl methacrylate upon pulling vacuum, so I didn't know if long term storage in some clear amac boxes (acrylic) like these were problematic.  I'm dubious, and though these boxes are very nice looking and stack easily, I don't really want to ruin my figures through outgassed VOCs.  I'm actually leaning toward mason jars right now because of their chemical inertness, but wanted to see if anyone had issues long term with acrylic storage.

EDIT: Added pics and description

Here's one of the larger figures, Ursula, on a base (yeah, I know it's a batman base, but it's what I had at hand) in one of the Amac 60300 boxes.  It fits OK, but her larger frame makes it so she can't fit flat on the base.  I'm also worried about the methyl methacrylate outgassing from the acrylic box.

 

On the other hand, you have the Ball 4oz. Mini storage mason jars, which are glass with a metal lid, no plastic (not even a plastic o-ring seal), so there's no chance of outgassing.  The figure isn't quite as clear as the glass distorts it a bit, but since I"m looking more for long-term storage without degredation and being able to see into a container to identify the mini without having to open boxes, I'm perfectly happy with this solution.  It does add more weight and is more breakable (although the mason jars are tough), but it's approximately the same size as the Amac box, so it will fit on the same shelf.  Best news is that Ursula now fits flat on the bottom.

 

I somehow missed this post. Is there a reason you're not using PP or PE containers? Do those outgas as well?

[Grover]

8 hours ago, BrickHat said:

I somehow missed this post. Is there a reason you're not using PP or PE containers? Do those outgas as well?

I wanted to stack them, so I needed rigid sides.  PP and PE are fine, but are usually not rigid unless opaque, and I didn't want all my stuff in bags.

[Xman0311]

How has your minifigs held up with the polypropylene bags?