Can CDs and DVDs be affected by dampness or high humidity?

Question

I store my DVDs on a shelf suitable for them but it's near an outside window that shows humidity on the inside glass especially in wintertime now, so I wonder if it's ok to keep the DVDs near there. Haven't much room elsewhere, however, that's why they are there. Just need advice.

Answer 1

Humidity will not harm them but make sure you don’t use them in your DVD/CD PLAYER UNTIL THEY ARE DRY! The machines that accept these discs do not like moisture and any decent machine may even give you an error code for high humidity and not run until the machine has dried out - (this can happen even without the disc if the machine is in a humid environment as same as the discs . If the discs were getting damp in a musty place such as a basement or shed or garage I would clean them with a disc cleaning device before putting them in the machine , there is one thing discs should not be exposed to and that would be direct sunlight under extreme conditions ,like sitting on the front seat of your car on a beach day , otherwise just keep smudges and dust off of them and they should be fine and wipe them with a DRY Soft lint free clean cloth in a straight line out from the center of the disc if you think they may be damp , one last thing the paper liner note booklets that come with Cd’s may not like the dampness and you may want keep them dry as well. CD’S AND DVD’S like any software like to stay clean and dry and so do the machines that use them. Hope that helps .

Answer 2

I have some cds that encountered a period of being damp, including the cardboard outer. They grew small black mould patches, which cannot be good for them.



In my ill-informed and uneducated opinion (^_^), if you cannot move the disks away from the window area (difficult, I know, where you are pressed for space), then try to keep the whole room drier.



The water is forming on the window as warm, humid air hits and condenses against the window glass. Keeping the room so warm that the glass warms is not very practical. Better options would be:

airing the room (by opening the window) so there is less humidity in it. As you breathe out, for instance, you add moisture to the air in the room. If there is insufficient ventilation, that dampness will just stay and accumulate. double-glazing the window, thus insulation the cold glass from the warm, damp room. This might seem impractical, but even fixing a sheet of clear polythene* during the cold period of the year will make a substantial difference. Of course, you could go further, fitting a removable perspex sheet or even changing the glazing on the window, though that is rather drastic.

* Such things are sold at d.i.y. stores in the insulation section.

Answer 3

Other then the paper inserts warping when subject to a lot of humidity, I haven't had any problems with DVD's or CD's being exposed to moisture. I have had some evidence of moisture problems with burned CD's in the ink on the handwritten title looking a bit distorted, but the CD performed fine. I did fine this quote from a library care guide on the storage of CD's and DVD's which suggested that poor manufacturing can lead to excess oxygen and then humidity might be a factor:



CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs are similar in that they are replicated discs—that is, the data are physically pressed into the disc when it is manufactured. ROMs are generally mass-produced and contain music, video, computer applications, or interactive games.



ROM disc longevity is determined by the extent to which its aluminum layer is exposed to oxygen. Oxygen, including pollutants, can migrate through the polycarbonate layer or the hard lacquer layer (CD label side and edge), carried in by moisture. Oxygen or moisture can more easily penetrate through scratches, cracks, or delaminated areas in the label. Oxygen can also be trapped inside the disc during manufacturing, although manufacturing improvements have reduced the likelihood of this.



If left in a very humid environment, moisture—and oxygen—will eventually reach the aluminum, causing it to lose its reflectivity. The normally shiny aluminum, which resembles silver, becomes oxide-dull and much less reflective, like the color of a typical aluminum ladder. The combination of high humidity and increased temperatures will accelerate the oxidation rate.



The life expectancy of a ROM disc therefore depends on the environmental conditions to which it is exposed over time. Generally, it is best to keep ROM discs in a dry, cool environment. If the disc is removed from a humid, hot environment to an ideal condition before damage has been done, it will "dry out" and should be as playable as if it had been kept in ideal conditions all along. Other contaminates, however, such as inks, solvents, and pollutants, have the potential to irreversibly penetrate and to deform, discolor, or corrode the disc, causing permanent reading problems for the laser.



The full text of the Library Care and Handling of Optical Media is at:



http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub121/sec4.html



Overall though, it sounds like you should be pretty safe with the occasional moisture risk.



Hope that helps!

Answer 4

There's nothing to worry about here. The humidity on the inside of the glass isn't going to affect your DVDs or CDs. The cold window is causing moisture to condense out of the room air, which will normally have a small amount of humidity.



Unless you keep your DVDs in a place so wet and stagnant that they mildew, you shouldn't see any problems.

Answer 5

duuuuh!