Over time how does smoking in a home where coins are stored (2 X 2's, coin albums, etc) affect or alter coins in general? What are your thoughs and does anyone have the scientific answer. Thank you in advance for your comments.
I can't give you a scientific answer, but I can speak from the voice of experience after having tended bar for 15 years. The next time you go into a bar that utilizes hanging glassware, take a close look at the glasses. Nicotine residue builds up on the inside of the glasses, and you can smear it with your finger. If the bar staff is real lazy and doesn't clean all of the glasses daily, try wiping the inside of a glass with a white paper napkin. It will turn brown. This is what can settle on your coins if you smoke indoors. Chris
smoke from all types of tobacco/cannabis will affect coins. Tar and nicotine will settle on coins if open. Find a area that is Smoke Free to store coins
This begs the question, what about those new fangled vapor cigarettes? How harmful would that vapor be to coins
I agree with Chris that the smoke residue will settle on coins. I bought a large group once, and noticed this on the coins. Thankfully most of it only settled on the packaging of the better coins, but my hands smelled like an ashtray after I reholdered them all. The loose coins I took a damp washcloth to, and old one thankfully, since it turned brown from the residue I wiped off. If you are going to smoke around coins, make sure you put them in protective containers, flips, etc. I doubt those new vapors will have ill effects. There is no smoke residue from them. Its not nicotine deposits really, its smoke. Btw, as an aside, a few of those coins I cleaned smoke off of had pretty toning. After I wiped them it was gone. A thin layer of smoke deposits on a BU silver coin can appear to be attractive toning. Just another thing to worry about for those who wish to pay a hefty premium for "pretty" toned coins. Its actually an old trick some dealers used to use.
Thank you for all your replies. I luckily have all my coins in 2 X 2's and store them in an area that is smoke-free. All your replies were extremley helpful. Thanks again.
Vape "mist" has up to 10X the metals found in cig smoke. Nearly all from the cartridges. Although contaminated nickel, silver & zinc cant be healthy for coins, either.
Sorry for being obtuse, but I was essentially commenting on treylxapi47's comment #5. Completely irrelevant to your topic.
I'm no expert but isn't the vapor created with water or at a min. I'm sure their is moisture in the vapor which could be an issue with copper.
One thing I can tell you is when I buy a coin from a smoker I can tell immediately when I open the package. Someone talked about this on here previously and the smokers didn't believe it, but the smell is very strong and sticks with the coins for awhile. It goes away eventually.
When I buy coins on ebay that have resided in a smoker's house/shop, I can immediately tell. The disgusting smell is impregnated in the holder (especially anything cardboard - plastic will have a film on it that can be washed off). When you open up a 2x2 that was in a smoker's house, you can definitely tell that they are not air-tight - the coin itself will smell of smoke. I quickly bathe these coins in acetone and remove the toxic residue. After de-toxifying my desk, washing my hands, taking out the trash, and disposing of the acetone, all traces of the noxious fumes have been removed and the coin has been saved. If you can't tell, I have an extremely low tolerance for tobacco products. Just a whiff of them makes me nauseous.
