Game package cleaning and care?

Video Games
1

I am an avid lurker of the board. Over the last few years I haven’t had access to my retro game collection. BUT now I do!
With that being said I have some storage and care questions for board members. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

  1. Cleaning boxed games (SNES,NES,GB,ETC.) what/how do you clean off dust,grime,mold on paper boxes without damaging them???

  2. Similarly what can be put around complete system boxes to protect them from dust/the elements? (Some of my system boxes are in good
    shape, but my NEO GEO AES gold system is really decomposing.

  3. Any affordable humidity solutions for storing things in the basement?

  4. Where do people get bags for there boxed games? I used to order seal king bags like ten years ago.

Thank you to anyone who reads this and can offer any advice.

Happy New Year.

2 Likes
2

Happy New Year to you as well!

For #2, you could check out https://www.retroprotection.com/. I have many of their game box protectors and a few system ones. I’m pretty happy with them. They offer bags as well for some system games.

For #3, I always keep the desiccant bags that come from purchases and put them in the tupperware type bins I keep my games in. I make sure they’re not touching any cardboard or anything. I don’t keep them in a basement though. In a basement you would want them in a sealed container (as much as you can) so you’re not trying to remove the humidity from the entire basement. The little packets aren’t going to do much there. You can also buy them online (Amazon, Grainger, McMaster-Carr, etc). They’re not too expensive from a quick search.

3 Likes
3

For questions 1, use 100% isopropyl alcohol. It can be used on paper and card and does evaporate quickly. Be very careful though as rubbing too much or using too much IPA can also take away ink.

For question 3, in Japan we can buy these pots that are filled with some type of white “stone” which absorbs moisture from the air. They’re very inexpensive here. I used about 15 or so throughout the summer months. In total they absorb 15 liters of moisture!

3 Likes
4

Thank you for the help, I see now they make plastic boxes that go over boxed systems! wow.
thanks for the advice.

2 Likes
5

Yakumo,
Thanks for the advice on cleaning and evaporation. Love your Youtube channel. Thank you!

2 Likes
6

Yeah box protectors are the biggest thing.

You can get them cheaper direct from China now. they can be tricky to find on Aliexpress, but there is more selection than any individual box protector shop.

1 Like