Dry Boxes, What's the Right Brand?

[boojum]

I find that my local annual ambient relative humidity of 80%+ is not good for cameras, small children and other things besides seagulls. There has been discussion on this in the dim past and what I have read says the dry box, set at 50% relative humidity, is a good idea to stop fungus and keep dust away. OK, if that is true I am in the danger zone - how exciting! - and would like to remedy that. Amazon and B&H have a bunch for sale and they all sound good. But that is what advertising is all about isn't it? Has anyone experience with dry boxes who would share what they have found to be good, reliable and of value?

Thanks

 

[Yokosuka Mike]

I've been using Toyo Living dry air cabinets for over 30 years. I swear by them.

https://www.toyoliving.co.jp/

I don't know about availability in the USA.

All the best,
Mike

 

[boojum]

I've been using Toyo Living dry air cabinets for over 30 years. I swear by them.

https://www.toyoliving.co.jp/

I don't know about availability in the USA.

All the best,
Mike

Thanks for the advice. Ordered a Ruggard just now.

 

[astrosecret]

if you can wait the ruggards go on crazy sales at b and h under their ‘dealzone’ section. like 30-50% off. have to check every day though. i have two. i am not convinced they are better than having cameras in a mostly air conditioned environment, sometimes i think it would accelerate the drying or evaporation of oils and lubricants. but i still use them, i am just not militant about getting them into the case all the time at home because the humidity inside a normally conditioned home is acceptable. i now live in coastal georgia for just over a year so i haven’t been able to assess their usefulness or lack thereof.

 

[punkzter]

I also use a ruggard. I have also worried about drying out the lubricants. But I keep mine set to 45....so hopefully that is fine. I do keep my lenses and gear in the case most of the time

 

[astrosecret]

one also has to wonder about VOCs inside the cases with newer cameras and lenses and how that affects everything inside. there is little airflow inside if i understand correctly, so the VOCs present in materials cannot properly offgas with exchange of fresh air.

 

[boojum]

AC is a good solution where it is present. My local temperature range is from 30F to 80F so there is no AC. I am also coastal so we get a good breeze, a damp one. Annual rainfall has been ~110" in the last few years and sunny days are less than half our days. We don't sell much sun blocker. LOL

I will follow the shared wisdom here and not keep the relative humidity too low in order to lower risk of drying out lubricants. I have not yet had a problem from the humidity. I have not had a flat tire in a long time either. But I still carry a spare.

I have no idea what VOC's are but I am interested.

 

[Yokosuka Mike]

In addition to keeping cameras and lenses safe from the ravages of humidity (fungus sucks!) dry air cabinets are a great way to keep gear all in one place and well organized. The cabinets are also dust free too!

All the best,
Mike

 

[astrosecret]

AC is a good solution where it is present. My local temperature range is from 30F to 80F so there is no AC. I am also coastal so we get a good breeze, a damp one. Annual rainfall has been ~110" in the last few years and sunny days are less than half our days. We don't sell much sun blocker. LOL

I will follow the shared wisdom here and not keep the relative humidity too low in order to lower risk of drying out lubricants. I have not yet had a problem from the humidity. I have not had a flat tire in a long time either. But I still carry a spare.

I have no idea what VOC's are but I am interested.

an air conditioning tech im friends with loves showing me pictures of brand new homes with new air handlers that are totally destroyed after just a year because of VOCs. What happens is, homeowner buys all new appliances and furniture that off gasses VOCs, as they are made from industrial sludge and petrochemicals in asia. those brand new appliances full of VOCs and furniture and fixtures are then placed into a brand new home that is entirely sealed off with spray foam insulation. since the roof is sealed, the foundation is an elevated slab, there is effectively no exchange of fresh air within the home. the vocs are trapped inside and get cycled endlessly through the homes HVAC system and corrode it entirely. after a year the radiator fins just fall off the bone when you touch them. at least here on the coast, this is a common issue. don’t want to imagine what it’s like inside a human body that breathes in that air all day. a window is not really enough as the push/pull of air is insignificant. a door opening and closing a few times a day is not enough to offset this.

the solution is to install an outside air intake fan that pushes air from the outdoors into the hvac intake system, basically like having a big window open with a large fan drawing in air all day every day. the air is then filtered through the hvac system which not only filters it but acts as a dehumidifier for the outside air and all is well.

anyway my point is, i wonder if trapping stale air inside a dry box with new electronics like dslrs and lenses can damage the expensive gear inside. with old film gear its not really a concern but i also put digital gear in there with electronics alongside my analog stuff which could contaminate it.

I think the solution would be, to keep brand new electronic gear out of the cabinet for a year or two. just keep it inside the air conditioned home. nothing will happen—problems arise after years of neglect, not mostly sitting inside an air conditioned building. then after a couple of years the stuff is probably safe to store in one of those cabinets.

 

[boojum]

Hardly a problem for me. My home was built in 1925, is all wood and barely insulated. There is always a window open at least a crack and as I have a dog a door is opened several times a day for Little Jesus to take his walk around the back yard. The dog has a pretty high opinion of himself, it is the breed. I have the one new camera, the Pixii. If it is off-gassing I am pretty sure it will be done soon. Additionally the dry box would be opened often enough to retrieve cameras and lenses to keep air in the box fresh. I do not see problems with it. True, I have been wrong in the past but think I am pretty safe on this one.

I do appreciate the information. Thanks.

 

[astrosecret]

same. we’re on a slab but at least the home is old and our insulation retrofitted.

 

[BWF]

You can also buy extra shelves for Ruggard dry cabinets, which can make it a lot more space efficient.

 

[lamefrog]

From experience (yes, i’m an idiot) i’d warn against storing anything leather in the dry box . in my case i was able to soften and salvage the desiccated leather straps and cases but i lost my Contax T3 case (not real leather) - so brittle it disintegrated . i was at 35% humidity. also i think the low humidity level impacted the vulcanite on my M2 as i later noticed a small chip . Just a PSA.

 

[astrosecret]

From experience (yes, i’m an idiot) i’d warn against storing anything leather in the dry box . in my case i was able to soften and salvage the desiccated leather straps and cases but i lost my Contax T3 case (not real leather) - so brittle it disintegrated . i was at 35% humidity. also i think the low humidity level impacted the vulcanite on my M2 as i later noticed a small chip . Just a PSA.

good to know. i think this is right, unless your only
option is a hot attic or closet with high humidity, one solution could be to place and refill a small dish of water in the cabinet. i did this with a wine fridge to raise the humidity.

i think i will scale back my use of dry cabinets and use them for negatives and the like. the cabinets are also good for tools you might otherwise leave in an unconditioned garage

 

[Nitroplait]

...
anyway my point is, i wonder if trapping stale air inside a dry box with new electronics like dslrs and lenses can damage the expensive gear inside. with old film gear its not really a concern but i also put digital gear in there with electronics alongside my analog stuff which could contaminate it.
...

There is a difference between a Dry Box and a Dry Cabinet.
The dry cabinet uses electricity and has an outlet that lets out air/humidity - at least my Toyo Living Dry Cabinet does.
I own a dry box as well - It is a closed circuit - basically an air tight plastic box with special space for de-humidifier sachets which needs continuous replacement. There is no provisions for finetuning the humidity levels on the latter.

 

[boojum]

You are correct. I was inaccurate in my original post.