I have some questions for you guys. I am using Ultimate Guard Flexxfolio Xenoskin.
Will my cards stick to the plastic pockets after a certain amount of time? I know some plastic do that.
If they are archival, they should not. I stored cards in binders for over 20 years in Ultra-Pro pages and not one stuck to the plastic. They were damaged (more on that in a moment) but none was a result of the plastics used by Ultra-Pro.
Why do sleeves and binders advertise themselves as acid and PVC free? Do they harm cards?
Yes, they absolutely do harm cards as well as photos and anything else. PVC stands for PolyVinyl Chloride. In it's pure form, it's a white brittle powder. To create a plastic we all know and love, plasticizers have to be added. Depending on the additives and formulation, it can be made hard such as PVC pipes or soft and pliable, like pool toys.
Ever open a plastic thingamajig and got a good healthy whiff of plastic? That sort of sweet smell? That's the plasticizer in full force. That plasticizer never stays in the plastic, it's constantly evaperating. It's called outgassing.
Once enough of the plasticizer is gone, the plastic will start to crack and break down. You'll see this a lot with pleather or with auto dashboards. When it comes to paper, the chemicals will usually attack the paper cellulose and break it down.
It will also react with other plastics, sometimes violently as is the case with PVC and Polystyrene (misnamed as styrofoam) causing some impressive, and sometimes costly, damage.
Inks. Same thing. The ink will remelt and transfer to the plastic. Nasty.
Technically, as long as it's not burnt, the PVC is stable but useless. The plasticizers are necessary to create a useful product. Burning is a whole different ball of wax. But since no one plans to burn their cards, I won't bother discussing it here.
For archiving, the #1 plastic of choice is Mylar. Super stable and zero plasticizers. It's also mad expensive, usually relegated to museums and electronics. Other choices, IIRC, are acrylic (PSA cases), HDPE and LDPE (ziplock bags), Polyester, polyethylene and polypropylene, Most penny sleeves are probably made with polypropylene.
For some reason, many top loaders are made with PVC and notably lack the PVC free and Acid free monikers. So I strongly recommend double sleeving before storing them in top loaders. However, I have never noticed any plastic smell with new packages of top loaders.
ACID has many of the same problems as above so I won't reiterate.
Binders are a pain (remember I said to hold a thought?) since many cheap binders use vinyl as the outer cover. 20 years ago, I didn't know anything about plasticizers so I stored thousands of cards in binders. The type generally sold in Staples. He covers had that nice plastic smell (strike 1). I also had problems with dust so I covered the binders in bags (strike 2). Most of the cards stays that way for a long time (strike 3). When my son got interested in them, I started pulling them out and nearly all of my white bordered cards had yellowed wherever they were exposed to the vinyl of the binder. So the top of the card has this yellow tinge that gradually lightens to white towards the bottom. I WAS NOT HAPPY.
This is why I don't recommend binders unless they specifically state they're PVC and Acid free. Nearly all of them don't.
Will my cards stick to the plastic pockets after a certain amount of time? I know some plastic do that.
Why do sleeves and binders advertise themselves as acid and PVC free? Do they harm cards?
Salt is part of the game. Deal with it.
If they are archival, they should not. I stored cards in binders for over 20 years in Ultra-Pro pages and not one stuck to the plastic. They were damaged (more on that in a moment) but none was a result of the plastics used by Ultra-Pro.
Yes, they absolutely do harm cards as well as photos and anything else. PVC stands for PolyVinyl Chloride. In it's pure form, it's a white brittle powder. To create a plastic we all know and love, plasticizers have to be added. Depending on the additives and formulation, it can be made hard such as PVC pipes or soft and pliable, like pool toys.
Ever open a plastic thingamajig and got a good healthy whiff of plastic? That sort of sweet smell? That's the plasticizer in full force. That plasticizer never stays in the plastic, it's constantly evaperating. It's called outgassing.
Once enough of the plasticizer is gone, the plastic will start to crack and break down. You'll see this a lot with pleather or with auto dashboards. When it comes to paper, the chemicals will usually attack the paper cellulose and break it down.
It will also react with other plastics, sometimes violently as is the case with PVC and Polystyrene (misnamed as styrofoam) causing some impressive, and sometimes costly, damage.
Inks. Same thing. The ink will remelt and transfer to the plastic. Nasty.
Technically, as long as it's not burnt, the PVC is stable but useless. The plasticizers are necessary to create a useful product. Burning is a whole different ball of wax. But since no one plans to burn their cards, I won't bother discussing it here.
For archiving, the #1 plastic of choice is Mylar. Super stable and zero plasticizers. It's also mad expensive, usually relegated to museums and electronics. Other choices, IIRC, are acrylic (PSA cases), HDPE and LDPE (ziplock bags), Polyester, polyethylene and polypropylene, Most penny sleeves are probably made with polypropylene.
For some reason, many top loaders are made with PVC and notably lack the PVC free and Acid free monikers. So I strongly recommend double sleeving before storing them in top loaders. However, I have never noticed any plastic smell with new packages of top loaders.
ACID has many of the same problems as above so I won't reiterate.
Binders are a pain (remember I said to hold a thought?) since many cheap binders use vinyl as the outer cover. 20 years ago, I didn't know anything about plasticizers so I stored thousands of cards in binders. The type generally sold in Staples. He covers had that nice plastic smell (strike 1). I also had problems with dust so I covered the binders in bags (strike 2). Most of the cards stays that way for a long time (strike 3). When my son got interested in them, I started pulling them out and nearly all of my white bordered cards had yellowed wherever they were exposed to the vinyl of the binder. So the top of the card has this yellow tinge that gradually lightens to white towards the bottom. I WAS NOT HAPPY.
This is why I don't recommend binders unless they specifically state they're PVC and Acid free. Nearly all of them don't.
Salt is part of the game. Deal with it.