Table of Contents
Photo Storage
Care must be taken to prevent deterioration of old photographs. The enemies of photographs are sunlight, heat, moisture, and chemicals.
Sunlight
Ultraviolet light from the sun fades photographs and makes them difficult to impossible to restore back to their original condition. If you want to store photographs where they might see the sun, make a copy and store the original away from the sun.
Heat
Heat accelerates deterioration. Store photographs in a cool, dry place.
Moisture
Moisture can cause mold. Store photographs in a location with low humidity.
Chemicals
Ordinary paper has acid pulp from processing. Vinyl and PVC (polyvinyl chloride) plastic can emit hydrochloric acid as it ages and cause things to stick to the plastic. Other chemicals in the air can also harm your photographs.
If you can smell the plastic (the “new car smell”), it is not safe to store anything in it.
Instead, store photographs in traditional style photo albums (some magnetic style photo albums are unacceptable), or choose polyester/Mylar, polypropylene (such as ziplock bags), or polyethylene, or acid-free paper to store photographs. Of these, polyester/Mylar is the best because it is the most chemically stable and is gas-impermeable.