Winter game storage

[RayB]

I'm still contemplating a bulk buy of cabs and I was wondering if any of you know if it's safe to store them in a "rental storage" type of place without heating, in cold parts of the country? (Im in southern Ontario, Canada, which is as cold as, Michigan, Vermont, Buffalo New York, etc)

Obviously we're talking about below freezing temps.

Renting a heated storage space is alot more expensive than non heated.

~Ray B.

[paigeoliver]

Yes, that is fine, just always allow a game taken out of said storage enough time to warm up to room temperature on its own before powering up.

[Generic Eric]

I would say the only other concern would ensuring that the storage space is built enough to prevent them from getting "soggy."  Ice and snow melting and all of that ya know...

[Ted_Striker]

maybe blocking the ones without leg levelers with 2x4's might not be a bad idea... in case of a wet floor.  and maybe a tarp on top in case of wet roof .

[Grauwulf]

I would also put down rat poison in strategic locations in the storage unit to keep the little critters from making a mess of your wiring, chewing on cabs and such.

[D_Zoot]

Be carefull of the maquees and monitor bezels !!!   You might want to pull any that are silkscreened or painted and keep them someplace warm.

The thermal cycling in early and late winter (large shifts in temp between day and night) causes expansion and contration.  The glass and the silkscreened artwork will expand and contract at different rates causing cracking. Plus the subsequent formation of condensation can  wreak havok with other forms of artwork and any open switch contacts like those found in leaf type joysticks and buttons.

In addition, those places tend to be dark, with little to no airflow circulation, so watchout for mold formation.  Condensation on the wood will promote mold when the weather warms up enough in the spring.

An operator friend of mine has a whole pile of electromechanical pins, desperate for storage one winter, he rented a large shipping container and had it put behind his shop. Loaded all the pins in it and sealed it up for the winter.   Come spring he opened it up to find many of the backglass artwork cracked, peeling and otherwise in bad shape and most of the EM pins no longer working fully!!     He was crushed.   Getting the pins working is no big deal,  but alot of those backglasses are not replaceable.

I'm not trying to scare ya out of it or anything.     Just to let you know.  You'll probably be just fine,  it's really going to depend on what the weather is like.

Pull any silkscreened plexi and glass and put them in warm storage,  don't wrap the cabs up tight so any condensation can evaporate off them,  put them on pallets so they are off the concrete, leave some room between them so air can move around some and get them out as early in the spring as you can (that's the worst time for them).

D

[Edgedamage]

In canada always use heated storage. Ontario is damp.

[Ken Layton]

I say a big NO NO to unheated storage. Moisture condensation is a big problem. Condensation can take place inside the cabinet on the monitor and game boards as well as the power supplies/transformers. Connectors and fuseholders even get corroded.

Most of these unheated storage places are built cheap or half-assed and have roof leaks, drain problems, or water runs under the door.

[RayB]

Thanks for the tips. I tend to believe the dampness claims, as here I have a dehumidifier in the basement running 24/7.

~Ray B.