Leather jacket storage and humidity levels

[Gamma68]

I live in an old house without a lot of closet space. So leather jacket storage is somewhat of an issue. (Especially as I acquire more and need to hide them from the wife, LOL.)

Right now, I have a pile laid on a sofa and a few more hanging on wide shoulder hangers on a garment rack in the basement. A couple questions come to mind:

1. Any harm in laying them in a pile of four or five? Any artificial creasing concerns? I try to keep the heaviest ones on the bottom of the pile.

2. Because our basement can feel damp and become musty, I run a dehumidifier 24/7. I keep it set on 45% relative humidity. Any concern with drying out the leather at that humidity level? I keep my favorite/oldest jackets hanging in this area.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Guppy]

I'm not an expert, but 45% humidity doesn't sound particularly dry, so I don't think I would worry about it. I would worry more about mold in a damp basement.

As far as piles go, it's better to keep them hung up, but it shouldn't hurt (much) for the short term. I'd recommend buying another rack, or a metal cabinet, or hang them from a pipe or conduit on hangers.

 

[Sloan1874]

I also suffer from a lack of space, so I bought a set of storage boxes and duvet holders from Ikea to keep mine in. The ones that are in use get piled on chairs, the others current reside up on top of a set of wardrobes. Humidity is generally not an issue in Glasgow...

 

[Cooper A-2]

I'm not an expert, but 45% humidity doesn't sound particularly dry, so I don't think I would worry about it. I would worry more about mold in a damp basement.

As far as piles go, it's better to keep them hung up, but it shouldn't hurt (much) for the short term. I'd recommend buying another rack, or a metal cabinet, or hang them from a pipe or conduit on hangers.

Relative humidity always goes with a temperature to define dry or humid.
Pe. 45%RH at 20deg C is quite dry...45% RH at 10 deg feels very humid since close to condesation ( hence fog ).
IMHO, best is, to have them stored at approx. 18-22deg C and approx 40-50% RH.
I store them in cloth bags , made on order for each jacket, flat on the floor, some underneath beds in our bedrooms. Each bag receives also a few anti-mothing balls.
So far so good, even for original WW2 jackets.

 

[Big J]

All my jackets hang on metal racks, on hangers I modified to be as broad and big as I could.
They are in a room that gets plenty of sunlight (mold hates UV) and I run two dehumidifiers at max for 8 hours every night during summer, less frequently in spring/fall and once a week in winter.
I've been doing this for years with no problem.
In summer here, the humidity will cause mold that will cover a jacket in a week.

 

[rocketeer]

If you have anything lacquered such as a B3 or ANJ4, especially American spec, storing them piled may make the outer side stick to a similar surface such as another jacket (B3 sleeves folded onto body of jacket). If left for some time this may then pull some of the finish off as you separate/unfold the garment leaving natural finish patches. It happened to a friend whom for a few months had an Eastman B3 stored on top of an Easty ANJ4 in a high humidity room. Don't know if replica Irvins suffer from this though.

 

[Gamma68]

Thanks for the replies, guys. It sounds like 45% RH shouldn't be a problem. I can't really control the temperature of my basement, but I don't believe it varies much between 60-70 degrees F.

I've got another garment rack to assemble. Once that's done, I can increase my basement storage option and get rid of the pile.

 

[JMax]

Hanging the jackets with cedar blocks may help with humidity/moisture.