Being that you are moving into a corner of the garage, I would wonder if you are building a room for your use, or just taking up some space in the garage, period. Don't forget about humidity and the effects it has on stamps and gum. While most houses are very well insulated, they hardly ever install insulation in the garage or the trusses and ceiling space above it. Also, you might need heat and/or air conditioning, depending on what area of California you are in.
Mike
I am in Maine which, while not overly warm, is also very humid. When I purchased my home several years ago, one of my first auxiliary purchases for my newly minted "stamp room" was a dehumidifier for around $150. It has been running 24/7 since (cost of electricity is less than for my PC) and I have not lost a single stamp to moisture (except for the batch I spilled my coffee on).
Hi Everyone;
I did forget to mention the one all-important item for any stamproom, if only because most garages have one anyway, and that is a well-stocked beer fridge.
Cheers
TuskenRaider
Hi Anglophile;
Hey another anglophile. I like to find English stamps with town cancels on them, and then google the town and read about it's history.
Did you know how Bogner Regis got it's name? After George V convalesced there after a long illness, the town pleaded with their King to add Regis (Latin for "of the King") after the town's name. The King was not very fond of the place, but gave in and added the suffex. Also the reason Queen Victoria always wore black? After her loss, when Prince Albert passed, she never got closure and mourned him until her death, very sad. The meaning of the watermark GvR, George-V-Regis.
On the plastic bins, NO...NO...NO and again NO. Plastic, especially recently manufactured plastic is notorious for out-gasing chemicals used to make the plastic. Remember in the 1970s when rubber nightcrawlers used for fishing would melt the plastic bins they were kept in?
If you are familiar with old library card catalog file drawers made from oak, that is the best you could want to use. Some tropical woods also out-gas chemicals. Rosewood is not named that way because of it's reddish hue, but for it's fragrance, which is much like a rose smell. Cedar is also a bad choice, as to keep out the moths, it also gives off a chemical odor that the moths hate. Pine would probably be fine if oak is too expensive. If you cannot build your own them maybe someone could build them for you.
I use a metal cabinet, however the doors do not shut real tight like I would like them to. I place several packets of dessicant (silica gel) on each shelf. Ideally I should have a type of metal cabinet with a door seal to keep out moisture. I think expensive gun safes for long guns are made that way to keep them from rusting.
Stamp supply mail order companies, sell 14" long boxes for glassines, and they come in the same sizes as glassines too. Most of them are cardboard, but I think I saw an ad for wooden ones somewhere. Try Google when looking for difficult to find items.
My preference for lighting is 4 foot long Florescent fixtures. Attach them temporarily to the ceiling, until you use them, to be sure they do not generate glare. If they do, just move them farther so they are slightly behind and above your head and try them again.
On your desk, one thought, a lip of about 3/8" above surface. This is so when sorting stamps, the fuzzy sleeves of your sweater will not snag and drag stamps off the edge and onto the floor.
Well got to get back to work
TuskenRaider
re: What's in your stamp den?
Being that you are moving into a corner of the garage, I would wonder if you are building a room for your use, or just taking up some space in the garage, period. Don't forget about humidity and the effects it has on stamps and gum. While most houses are very well insulated, they hardly ever install insulation in the garage or the trusses and ceiling space above it. Also, you might need heat and/or air conditioning, depending on what area of California you are in.
Mike
re: What's in your stamp den?
I am in Maine which, while not overly warm, is also very humid. When I purchased my home several years ago, one of my first auxiliary purchases for my newly minted "stamp room" was a dehumidifier for around $150. It has been running 24/7 since (cost of electricity is less than for my PC) and I have not lost a single stamp to moisture (except for the batch I spilled my coffee on).
re: What's in your stamp den?
Hi Everyone;
I did forget to mention the one all-important item for any stamproom, if only because most garages have one anyway, and that is a well-stocked beer fridge.
Cheers
TuskenRaider