Hello, I am not new to coin collecting as I have been collecting mint silver proof sets since the inception of the state quarters, but I am new this forum and I have a subjective question. My 1999 state quarter set is toning quite a bit and I was wondering, why it would do that in its case and is it going to hurt the value of the coin? I am sorry if this is a redundant question but there are thousands of threads to search through to find my specific answer and it is a dizzying search. Thank you for your time and understanding :smile
Welcome to the forum! I am not an expert on toning, but sometimes there is not a whole lot you can do to stop it from happening. Now some questions that come to my mind are they in a save dry environment? Maybe pictures would help one of the experts answer your question.
Yes, the coins are in a case, safe and dry, with dessicants all around them. I will look into posting some pics for viewing. Thanks
It all depends on the toning , is it light golden , or blue-grey on the nickle , nice eyeappealing toning will raise the value to a lot of people , while dark black splotchy toning will lower the price to many . Even with dessicants the humidity may be to high , as green said toning is inevitable but we can slow it down to almost nothing with the right storage . rzage
They are stored in their original proof cases from the mint, in their sleeves. I have them in a shoe box with almost a hundred dessicants that I got from medication bottles (from a pharmacy). When first stored I did not have the dessicants, it was after I noticed the toning that I added them and it has slowed down the process dramatically. Living in Florida doesn't help much.
It is a light golden toning which has slowed down dramatically since the dessicants were added to the box. None of the other sets are affected so far, just the most valuable of course.
Sounds like you have the problem under control , remember to check the set regulary and to make sure the dessicants stay viable , I use the kind with the indicator that turnd blue to pink then through them in the oven at 300 for a couple of hours . rzage:smile:thumb:
If it's of any solace to you Bruce, I've got a '99 set that's beginning to show signs of toning. None of the other sets show any evidence of this. The '99 was purchased in the aftermarket while all of the other sets were purchased directly from the mint. Can't account for past storage practices...
That's funny that's its occurring on the same year set, and I bought mine directly from the mint...maybe had problems with sealing them that year. It's good to know that I am not the only one.
I guess it wouldn't be a bad idea to periodically toss my dessicants in the oven, kind of renew them. Thanks for the tip.
I put this in another thread but i will add it here, I collect proof sets and mint sets. When collecting my proof sets I noticed that the 1977 & 1978 sets were toning alot. Especially the Ike dollar and the Kennedy halve. I now have collected all the mint sets from this same time period and I notice that the same years in the mint sets are toning the same way. Any ideas?
It is quite possible that the culprit is the shoebox. They are usually made of coarse cardboard and probably sulfur. I would switch to a polystyrene or polyethylene box such as found at Big Lots or similar. generally if they are approved for food storage, they are safe for coins as no PVC plasticizers. You can lessen toning by making a "sacrificial coins" container. Find a non-vinyl plastic container that can hold copper cents. I have used plastic prescription bottles ( I like the Target pharmacy flattened ones, drilled holes in them ( 1/8" ) and then took some modern cents out of change, and cleaned with detergent and a scrubber pad until they are bright and "raw" looking. Dry them, and put into the container. They are ruined, but because the copper is fresh, it will react with environmental gases more rapidly than the copper and silver in your other normal coins, saving them and sacrificing themselves. You can tell how much toning gas is in your enclosure by how fast the sacrificials turn ugly. Remove them and replace with new and repeat. I have drilled mylar 2x2 flips and put the sacrificials into them and put into the coin storage boxes ( both card board and hard plastic). You still need your dessicants to control the mositure. Jim
My '99 set did the same. I have an '81 proof set that's been doing the same for years now; the cent, nickel, and dime are showing haze, though it is a bluish haze on the nickel and dime. It's just the aging process. Toning is a subjective thing; some like it, others don't. I'm no toning expert, but rainbow hues are usually valued, and even toning is better than splotchy or mottled toning, from what I've always read on the matter. Good luck!
Well there's your reason. I don't know that you could pick a worse combination for storage. You have several issues to deal with. First of all, if you don;t want your sets to tone, always remove Mint and Proof sets from their outer cardboard sleeves for storage. The cardboard is laced with sulphur and will accelerate toning. This is not a maybe - it's gonna happen. Same for the shoebox - very bad idea and for the same reasons. And the desicant packs from medicine bottles - also a bad idea. To begin with they contain very, very little dessicant. Secondly, as they do what they are supposed to do for the medicine, they also absorb the various compounds that actually make up the medicine like a sponge. So when using them for coins, they are already saturated with all this stuff and exposing your coins to it. Bad, bad, bad idea ! You'll ruin your oven and stink up the house. The dessicant packages are NOT designed to be re-used and the package may even melt if placed in the oven. There are proper methods that need to be followed if one does not want their coins to tone. There are no shortcuts and if you don't do it the right way you will not be successful. As I said, always remove the outer cardboard sleeves the sets come in. Safely store them away someplace - away from your coins. Get a suitable container to store your coins in. Tupperware or RubberMaid with a sealable top would be fine. Then purchase silica gel packs that are designed to be used with coins and are reusable/re-chargable. Never use dessicant packs that have been used with something else - get new ones. The size of the silica get packs depends on how big the storage space is, and how much humidity you have in your area. The reusabale type even has a window that allows you to check on them - they change color when they need re-charged. And if you live in a humid area then you need to check them more often. Only these are made to be placed in the oven for re-charging. The others are not !
Wow, I didn't realize that I was my own worst enemy. I will definitely change what I am doing, remove all cardboard, change to tupperware and buy new coin friendly desiccants. Thanks to everyone for all their tips!!
I should have warned you about the different dessicants :headbang:, luckily Doug did , always follow the directions on the dessicants you buy . rzage:thumb:
