Record warping mystery

In my last post I mentioned a warping issue - well, I decided to post more detail about it because I'm feeling a bit confused and hope someone could provide some insight.

I recently discovered that several of my LPs and 12"s have developed bends and warps that make them either completely unplayable or unplayable on one side. Now, I have a Technics SL-5 linear tracking automatics table, which has very tight clearance between the platter and the tracking mechanism, so it doesn't take a severe warp to cause problems dragging against the mechanism. I'm having trouble identifying why the warping is occurring. You can see my storage below - they are stored vertically in Ikea shelves. The room does receive a short period of direct sunlight, and I took this picture at the most acute period of light, approximately 8:30 am. The light has moved beyond the shelves by 9:00. This low-angle light couldn't possibly by a problem, could it? I'm aware it may have negative effects on the ink on the spines, but that's not my concern right now.

The only other change I have made recently is that I began to store nearly all of the disks behind outer sleeve, in the inner sleeves, inside the plastic protector bags. Could this be putting extra pressure on the disks? It doesn't seem that likely either, but it's the only recent change made.

I haven't been able to identify a common factor in the disks that are warping. Some had a minor warp that became worse, one was dished in one direction and now I can play neither side, some were flat previously, one is 180 gram.

Help! My collection is small but very "hand picked" and I've invested a lot of time and money in it; I'd very much like to stop any further damage. Would putting the albums in the insert drawers that fit into this furniture be helpful?

 

Do they always stay that nicely upright, or do they ever have more of a lean to them? The angle you have shown is the absolute most I would be comfortable having them lean on each other, personally, and I could see how they might flop over and put more pressure against each other at times with that amount of space in the middle. So that’s one thought.

Otherwise, does this brief period of sunlight ever feel particularly warm? I could see the pressure of the slight leaning angle along with a short period of daily warmth having some cumulative warping effect, maybe?

My collection gets some sunlight, too (practically unavoidable in my house, though my storage has acrylic doors that I convince myself provide some shade against fading of the spines), but I am fairly obsessive about each cube being full enough that every record is exactly verticle. If I have a cube that doesn’t have enough records to fill it, I have some CD box sets and books that serve as filler until that cube is filled up.

 

Thanks for the feedback. They certainly have spent some time leaning a bit more than this picture, which is after I've been obsessive about having them as straight as possible. I can see how that would exert warping pressure, particularly on the ends.

The sunlight doesn't feel particularly hot. It's low angle morning sunlight (the house faces East and has many windows).

Again, I feel that the issue is accentuated by the peculiarities of my table, and perhaps the level of bending wouldn't be as noticeable otherwise.

 

The photo clearly shows that your problem is direct exposure to sunlight. It’s not a huge thing, it’s an ultraviolet radiation thing. There are some ultraviolet rays that are not visible to the human eye that penetrate cardboard and immediately attack and degrade the vinyl polymers. I would construct a little curtain to hang in front of that shelf. You could either have it raising up-and-down vertically like a Venetian blind or something that slides across a horizontal curtain rod. Try Home Depot or Bundabergs if you’re in Australia. You could even coordinate the color of the curtain to the rest of your room decor, I’m sure your wife would love that. Hope this helps!

 

Johnny Action, that is the first time I've seen someone mention the ultraviolet/polymer interaction. It makes sense!

I am going to pick up a few door inserts for the shelves.

 

Stopped storing my records behind the jackets when I noticed it was causing minor edge warps. That combined with sunlight is likely the issue.

 

I think the problem is . . . your wine rack appears to be empty.

 

Having your turntable on top of your receiver isn't the best place. Do you ever leave records on the turntable while listening to radio?

 

I would resleeve them, store them upright (use books to fill in the empty space), and get them as far out of the sun as possible. When you store the record outside of the sleeve you’re giving up both rigidity and basic sunlight protection. This may not be a problem for some, but it is in your case where you have direct sunlight (with no jacket to block some of it) and angled LPs (with no jacket to keep it somewhat rigid). At the end of the day I’d choose to protect the media over the sleeves themselves.

 

I would avoid that sunlight. It can do bad things if conditions are just right. I found this 45 at a record show after years of looking. Stopped at a deli to grab a drink for the ride home and found this when I got back to the car. It was in a picture sleeve too and it was a mild day. I would also imagine that the amount will change based on the season. I have to watch for sunlight on my CD cases and album shelves in the winter months when the sun is lower on the horizon.

 

... but is your cart able to track this ?

 

Regarding the low angle light, the low angle is more direct on a vertical surface. The (morning) sun's radiation is not spread out on the records, but very focused, and this will be converted to and re-radiated as heat. The low angle of the sun does require its rays to travel through more of the atmosphere, so this does help to reduce its intensity. Even so, the morning or evening sun (spread out over horizontal surfaces) may not be enough to stop its heating of the vertically oriented record jackets and the records inside.

Storage of the records outside the sleeve helps to protect the records and jackets, absolutely no chance this promotes warping. They just need to be out of the sun. I suggest maybe a separate enclosed (white) cabinet for the records, helps to keep them dust free, and would protect them from minimal exposure to sunlight.

 

Also, don't do a DJ gig in the sun. You don't need to ask how I know.

 

Quite frightening to hear that even low level sun can have an effect on vinyl inside jackets. I live in a sunny clime and it’s extra hard to keep sunlight away from things while avoiding gloomy rooms. And with a sizable record collection, cabinet doors become slightly impractical.

 

Agreed, ashamed

 

Thanks, everyone, for the responses. This has been more helpful and provided more insight than the tens of threads and articles I searched before posting. I feel way less crazy now that the mystery has become unraveled, and much more confident in being able to protect my collection of old plastic disks.

 

You need more records so you can pack them tightly. And yes, they belong in a "gloomy" room. But not a humid one.

 

The problem with keeping records in a gloomy room, in my home and I assume others, is that this means keeping the records away from where we use them. A locked-away, archival approach to record storage is no doubt better for the records, but not necessarily practical for actually listening to them. It’s a conundrum, for sure.

 

Whatever the cause, get thee a Vinyl Flat and Groovy Pouch!

 

That said, I moved my records from under the turntable to a darker area, and now I actually listen to the records I tell myself I'm going to listen to, rather than lugging them back. I found myself always reaching for the same records when they were stored together with the deck. Just my two cents.

 

I really feel this. I collect 80's EBM, I have a bunch of 12"s (mostly in the lower right hand cube), and having them under the stereo makes switching them out real convenient.

 

I agree with direct sunlight being the issue here.

I saw a LP many years ago warped almost beyond recognition by leaving it on a turntable under a window.

 

Agreed; the OP has to address both the sunlight issue and the strorage issue. Drapes for the sunlight and either fill that rack up with wav so they are perfectly vertical, or move them to a milk crate ASAP. Also the TT on top of the receiver is not a good idea in more ways than one. Lovely vintage rig BTW !!!

 

Sunlight does a ton of damage to everything in the house. We have a few high end leather pieces, and these can not be in direct light. I had some film applied to my windows, and on top of that we have either shades or shutters.

Shades are always closed in the room with my vinyl. I have a lot of my vinyl stored outside the jacket and never noticed warping issues like you describe. I also think its likely the sunlight that is causing your issues. Also, those albums need to be more tightly packed in those shelves.

 

Cut a piece of cardboard and place it over the cube during the time that sunlight is hitting it. I do this here in case my wife carelessly knocks something over;