Loft Conditions

Idpullthecurtain

I was wondering if anyone had experience of this.

I have got a lot of boxes I want to store in an (unconverted) loft.  I am concerned about moisture and mould.  Airtight plastic containers would be best I realise.  But I have a lot, and good quality containers are going to cost an awful lot.

My Question is;
Would wrapping cardboard boxes tightly in cling film be a good protective idea? (Boxes contain paper based items).  TIA

Cherryfudge

We have a mixture of plastic and cardboard boxes in our loft but it's not airtight so I think the circulating air has helped stop problems with damp. I'm not sure cling film would be sufficiently airtight to stop cardboard eventually absorbing damp.

I had to clear my parents' loft and was very surprised to discover an open cardboard box of magazines dating back to the 1930s that were in relatively good condition and certainly didn't smell damp. I'm not sure how long ago they were put up there - somewhere between 10 and 50 years I think. If the loft is rain-proof, but has air circulation, that may help preserve things better than cardboard boxes and cling film but I'm not sure of the science of it.

WIAWSNB

You could place them inside bin bags, and for good measure stick your vacuum cleaner hose in there to extract as much air as possible. Grab the neck of the bin bag and give it a good twist as you extract the nozzle, twist some more, and hold with tape. When you put in the nozzle, push it up against the boxes inside so the surrounding bag doesn't just get sucked into it! 

Tbh, if your loft is well ventilated, then it should be fine, but I think it's sensible for you to do this too. 

Idpullthecurtain

WIAWSNB said:

You could place them inside bin bags, and for good measure stick your vacuum cleaner hose in there to extract as much air as possible. Grab the neck of the bin bag and give it a good twist as you extract the nozzle, twist some more, and hold with tape. When you put in the nozzle, push it up against the boxes inside so the surrounding bag doesn't just get sucked into it! 

Tbh, if your loft is well ventilated, then it should be fine, but I think it's sensible for you to do this too. 

Thats a good idea I hadnt thought of.  I need to establish how ventilated the loft is. 

Albermarle

Idpullthecurtain said:

WIAWSNB said:

You could place them inside bin bags, and for good measure stick your vacuum cleaner hose in there to extract as much air as possible. Grab the neck of the bin bag and give it a good twist as you extract the nozzle, twist some more, and hold with tape. When you put in the nozzle, push it up against the boxes inside so the surrounding bag doesn't just get sucked into it! 

Tbh, if your loft is well ventilated, then it should be fine, but I think it's sensible for you to do this too. 

Thats a good idea I hadnt thought of.  I need to establish how ventilated the loft is. 

Well it needs to be well ventilated anyway, as if you have moist air in the roof space, it can cause rot in the timbers.

However even if you ( hopefully) have a well ventilated roof, it could always leak at some point.

How about use cardboard boxes, and then loosely cover them all with a large sheet of plastic. An old vinyl tablecloth would be ideal, or some bin liners opened out and taped together.

ButterCheese

Might be an idea to buy or borrow a dehumidifer, have it going up there for a few days to extract as much moisture as possible.  Then use bin bags to cover everything.  Clingfilm would probably work but you'd need a lot and it would take longer.  You'll need to ensure that the opening of the bin bag is airtight though, and of course when you unwrap it you'll rip the bag.  

Or for extra measures you could wrap the contents in clingfilm first, put them in a box, then put the box in a bin bag

casper_gutman

If the loft lacks ventilation then possibly a dehumidifer could help in the short term, but ultimately you need to sort proper vents out. A loft should be ventilated well enough that a dehumidifier will make no difference and you might as well put one outside and try to dry the patio out! 

FreeBear

ButterCheese said: Might be an idea to buy or borrow a dehumidifer, have it going up there for a few days to extract as much moisture as possible.

Don't think that will work too well. Lofts have (or should have) plenty of ventilation, and the air changes will overwhelm a dehumidifier. Whilst you might get a small drop in relative humidity, that would disappear within an hour or two.

Idpullthecurtain

So maybe Im worrying unnecessarily?  I had heard storing paper based stuff in a loft was a bad idea? 

(I am going to check it has regular ventilation as soon as I can, Im sure it does)  

FreeBear

Idpullthecurtain said:

So maybe Im worrying unnecessarily?  I had heard storing paper based stuff in a loft was a bad idea? 

I came across some papers that had been up in the loft from at least 1968. Apart from a bit of dust, they were in reasonably good condition. Meanwhile, there are some chrome plated bits up there that are pitted and have quite a bit of surface rust.

WIAWSNB

Don't dehumidify the loft! Utterly pointless. The next gust that passes through will restore it to the RH of the outside air or higher.

You also don't need to 'check' how well ventilated your loft is' if it ain't damp, condensing, or dripping, it's fine. 

Chuck 'em inside b-bags, vacuum, tape, and enjoy.

I took a whole pile of boxes down from t'in-law's loft after they'd been up for at least a decade, and they were all fine - the cardboard boxes, and all the contents, which included papers and magazines. Framed pictures ditto. Radios dittditt. 

I'd already noticed, when up there doing wiring, that on a windy day there was a howling passing through, and - as it was winter at the time - it was bludy cold. Bone dry.