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Flood...water damage??
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18 posts in this topic

Hi! I inherited a coin collection and don't know much about collecting.  I had the coins in a safe in my basement. We had a leak and several coins got soaked... some were in 2x2, some were in flips, some in plastic containers and some packaged in nice cardboard packaging (which is now ruined). Will this affect the value of ALL of them? If so, by how much? And anything I can do to help?? 

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I suggest you remove them all from their packaging (presumably still wet packaging) and carefully lay them out on a towel to dry, patting the surfaces carefully (don't wipe/rub) to remove any water drops.  Wiping or rubbing could cause scratches, etc. 

 

The value depends on the coins and their condition.  If they were briefly wet and then dried - perhaps no damage and no change in value.  Post some pictures of the coins to give us an idea of what you have. 

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Here is one photo featuring some of them, I have more laying out in other places.  I was afraid to take the coins out of the packing and the 2x2... are you suggesting I take them all out? 

20190522_140617.jpg

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15 minutes ago, Matt_dac said:

I suggest you remove them all from their packaging (presumably still wet packaging) and carefully lay them out on a towel to dry, patting the surfaces carefully (don't wipe/rub) to remove any water drops.  Wiping or rubbing could cause scratches, etc. 

 

The value depends on the coins and their condition.  If they were briefly wet and then dried - perhaps no damage and no change in value.  Post some pictures of the coins to give us an idea of what you have. 

Here is one photo featuring some of them, I have more laying out in other places.  I was afraid to take the coins out of the packing and the 2x2... are you suggesting I take them all out? 

20190522_140617.jpg

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Oh boy....

Do not remove any coins from solid encapsulation (proof sets, graded coins, etc.) but you don’t want water droplets or moisture on the surfaces of the non-encapsulated coins. If they are in wet plastic and cardboard squares I would remove them and dry then carefully to protect them.

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Just putting it out there, you may already know but there's always a newbie somewhere lurking, if you're removing from the cardboard 2x2's they're not re-usable.  Some folks try to carefully pry the staples up and slide the coin out but then you risk unnecessary scratches.  What I do is take a nice sharp pair of scissors and simply cut all 4 sides off the 2x2.  Then you can lay it flat and pull off the top half leaving the coin exposed to be moved to a safe space. 

And perhaps it's a little extra of me but I try my best to remove the paper dust after each removal operation, even going so far to spray the inside of the new 2x2 out with canned air before placing the coin in.  I hate looking at a coin in a 2x2 later and getting distracted by a stray paper hair running across the face of the coin.

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30 minutes ago, CRAWTOMATIC said:

Just putting it out there, you may already know but there's always a newbie somewhere lurking, if you're removing from the cardboard 2x2's they're not re-usable.  Some folks try to carefully pry the staples up and slide the coin out but then you risk unnecessary scratches.  What I do is take a nice sharp pair of scissors and simply cut all 4 sides off the 2x2.  Then you can lay it flat and pull off the top half leaving the coin exposed to be moved to a safe space. 

And perhaps it's a little extra of me but I try my best to remove the paper dust after each removal operation, even going so far to spray the inside of the new 2x2 out with canned air before placing the coin in.  I hate looking at a coin in a 2x2 later and getting distracted by a stray paper hair running across the face of the coin.

Yes!! By all means do not try to slide the coin out with staples in the cardboard! Many a nice coin has been ruined that way. Either use a wooden skewer or toothpick to cut the thin plastic around the edge (without touching the coin) or cut the cardboard as mentioned above. Even trying to remove the staples has risks if something slips, so I don't even do it that way.

And, the canned air is a good idea, as well.(thumbsu

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1 hour ago, Just Bob said:

Yes!! By all means do not try to slide the coin out with staples in the cardboard! Many a nice coin has been ruined that way. Either use a wooden skewer or toothpick to cut the thin plastic around the edge (without touching the coin) or cut the cardboard as mentioned above. Even trying to remove the staples has risks if something slips, so I don't even do it that way.

And, the canned air is a good idea, as well.(thumbsu

OOOH!  Great point about the plastic around the edge!  IF the coin is in a 2x2 designed for a larger coin - like a nickel in a quarter one or a quarter in a dollar holder, etc.... - then there should be plenty of room to just cut the plastic and skip the whole multiple cuts operation.  Based on the pics there's plenty holdered like that on the towel so that should make things easier.

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57 minutes ago, CRAWTOMATIC said:

OOOH!  Great point about the plastic around the edge!  IF the coin is in a 2x2 designed for a larger coin - like a nickel in a quarter one or a quarter in a dollar holder, etc.... - then there should be plenty of room to just cut the plastic and skip the whole multiple cuts operation.  Based on the pics there's plenty holdered like that on the towel so that should make things easier.

What do I do with these? This is a 2001 Silver American Eagle 

20190522_205746.jpg

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2 hours ago, Just Bob said:

Yes!! By all means do not try to slide the coin out with staples in the cardboard! Many a nice coin has been ruined that way. Either use a wooden skewer or toothpick to cut the thin plastic around the edge (without touching the coin) or cut the cardboard as mentioned above. Even trying to remove the staples has risks if something slips, so I don't even do it that way.

And, the canned air is a good idea, as well.(thumbsu

How about this one? It's a St. Gaudens and has water inside.  

20190522_210407.jpg

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For the 2001 Silver Eagle...I'm not familiar with that packaging but I'm sure @Mohawk is since he's done time in an actual coin shop.  Looks like a clam shell over some sort of mounted card.  Good news is that 2001 isn't a key date for the series and water won't damage silver aside from staining and spotting (that I know of).  Staining & spotting detracts from eye appeal but if you treat it like a straight buillion coin that matters less.  I think in the effort of effectively tackling this all I'd cut it out and place it in a flip then revisit it later.

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1 minute ago, CRAWTOMATIC said:

For the 2001 Silver Eagle...I'm not familiar with that packaging but I'm sure @Mohawk is since he's done time in an actual coin shop.  Looks like a clam shell over some sort of mounted card.  Good news is that 2001 isn't a key date for the series and water won't damage silver aside from staining and spotting (that I know of).  Staining & spotting detracts from eye appeal but if you treat it like a straight buillion coin that matters less.  I think in the effort of effectively tackling this all I'd cut it out and place it in a flip then revisit it later.

Thank you.  I'm just nervous to open any packaging.  Did you see my other photo of the St. Gaudens? Should I leave it alone? I know those are worth a lot. 

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4 minutes ago, CRAWTOMATIC said:

For the 2001 Silver Eagle...I'm not familiar with that packaging but I'm sure @Mohawk is since he's done time in an actual coin shop.  Looks like a clam shell over some sort of mounted card.  Good news is that 2001 isn't a key date for the series and water won't damage silver aside from staining and spotting (that I know of).  Staining & spotting detracts from eye appeal but if you treat it like a straight buillion coin that matters less.  I think in the effort of effectively tackling this all I'd cut it out and place it in a flip then revisit it later.

I am indeed familiar with that packaging....it's from Littleton Coin Company and as far as I know, it adds no value.  We sold common date ASE's and Maple Leafs in that packaging all the time at the shop I worked at for the going rate for a raw coin of the type that day.  It appears that water has gotten into the package, so I would recommend removing the coin as at this point it's likely doing more harm than good.  I hope that this is of some help!

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11 minutes ago, Learningcoin said:

Thank you.  I'm just nervous to open any packaging.  Did you see my other photo of the St. Gaudens? Should I leave it alone? I know those are worth a lot. 

yw, and I did, it's a nice looking strike on the reverse but I don't know enough about pre-33 gold preservation to suggest an answer.  I'm sure somebody will come along with a reasonable approach.

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That Capitol Plastics holder containing the double eagle should come apart easily by unscrewing the four plastic screws. Dry the coin by blotting with a soft cloth.

While we are on the subject, has anyone ever tried drying water using alchohol?

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3 minutes ago, Just Bob said:

That Capitol Plastics holder containing the double eagle should come apart easily by unscrewing the four plastic screws. Dry the coin by blotting with a soft cloth.

While we are on the subject, has anyone ever tried drying water using alchohol?

I'm not sure about rubbing alcohol, but I saw some people suggest acetone. 

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People use acetone as a 'dip' to try to improve the look of the surfaces that are dirty or have gunk on them.  I suggest old fashioned means to get those coins dry - careful removal from packaging (including the Saint Gaudens since it's not in a graded slab) and then careful pat dry.  Good luck.  Let us know how you make out.

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