First of all, I hope any of our members affected by the recent storms are safe and sound. I am just getting ready to get back home after having to evacuate from Hurricane Irma, and it is never a fun time. I live in Florida and ended up having to leave home for a few days to try to dodge the storm. Everything is fine here now, but it is still something that I hope our readers do not have to deal with. Picking up your life and leaving your home is a huge, involved process that is tedious and nerve-wracking.
This was the first time since I have started collecting that I have had to evacuate due to weather. I wanted to share some tips on how to Protect Your Action Figures from Natural Disasters.
Now, I know that protecting your collection from weather sounds silly to some. Obviously, keeping your family and friends safe is the number one priority. Protecting your home is the next step, especially if you have to evacuate.
If you are like me, you may have a significant amount of money invested in your collection, which is not to be ignored either. I am going to be going over what I did with my figures, as well as some more general tips about protecting your collection.
Don’t Store Your Figures In Boxes
Now, this one was learned the hard way many years ago. I had a few boxes filled of some old books that ended up getting damp when my roof leaked. Unfortunately the soggy box ended up destroying the books in the process. Now I am terrified to keep my figures in the boxes when weather is an issue.
Frequent readers will note that I am very selective with keeping art boxes, and this is one of my main reasons for that. The absolute last thing I want is a box rotting around a figure. If that happened obviously the figure could be ruined, whether it be water damage, or mildew smell. I usually trash boxes, and when I do keep them I keep them separate from the figures. Speaking of figures, I have a few things that I do to keep them safe.
Ziplock Bags Are Water Resistant
The main issue at my house is power outages and flooding during storms. The power issue is tough since I live in Florida. For those who aren’t aware, Florida is essentially a humid hellscape. If you do not have air conditioning your house can and will get humid extremely fast. As many of us know from experience, even slight exposure to humidity can be disastrous. Humidity degrades plastic over time, and it also annihilates some of the pleather materials commonly used. Additionally, figures on the bottom shelves are extremely susceptible to flood damage, god forbid water made its way into my house. So, as much of a pain as it is to take the figures out of the cases, it must be done.
What I ended up doing, and what I recommend to fellow collectors is to break down the figures, their accessories, and stands into Ziplock Bags. So for me, this led to several bagged figures. At this point, I was like ‘well what do I do with these now?’ I took one of my two suitcases and stuffed all of my figures into that. Then I took the suitcase and just set it into a high shelf in my closet. Cool, dark, and high was the criteria, and that works well.
Get Collectibles Insurance
Now, I have actually not done this step myself, but I am in the process of researching. I have heard the silly GEICO commercials about collection insurance, but I always kind of wrote it off. However, this recent evacuation opened my eyes a bit on the issue. I have finally sat down and started to look into insuring my collection.
The issue with insuring a collection is of course setting the value. You do not want to overestimate the value and have an insane rate, but you do not want to underestimate incase disaster does strike. Finding an agreeable price is vital, as is making sure your coverage suits your needs. I have read some horror stories of collectors not being covered from the type of damage that they ended up sustaining, and no one wants that. Of course, make sure that you read the fine print just as you would with any insurance agreement. For example in California, collectibles like statues and figures are not covered under earthquake insurance. In cases like this you will probably have to contact a collectibles insurance company. There are several listed on Google you can choose from.
Closing Thoughts
Storms are terrifying, and it is never fun to have to leave your home. Luckily these days it is much easier to get a heads up on upcoming whether conditions. Having plenty of time to prepare is crucial in these situations.
I hope that some of the stuff that I went over would help you out if you ever needed to try to protect your figures from the elements. Everyone is different, and I know I am sure that some of you have been in the same situation. I would love to see what your strategies are as well! Different regions probably need different precautions as well. If you do end up insuring your collection, make sure that you pick what is right for you and your region.
No one wants to deal with harsh weather, but that is what life hands you sometimes. Be smart and safe and everything will be okay. I know it sounds silly, but just as you might protect your home or your car, if you have a significant amount of money in your collectibles it is not a bad idea to try to protect them. Protect your family and friends first but if time permits you can definitely Protect Your Action Figures from Natural Disasters.
