How to Store Vintage Toys to Preserve Their Value

When owning a collection of vintage toys, proper storage is such an important factor in order to preserve its value. Proper storage will ensure your collection keeps away from damage. Since so many things impact the condition of a collection, keeping it in proper storage gets the best results in keeping the value of your vintage toys.

Also, securely storing items rather than leaving them out helps to avoid theft and loss. You will be able to have peace of mind with your vintage toys through storing them properly. You won't need to worry if they are decreasing in value or if they aren't safe.

Follow along in our blog to see just how to store your vintage toys to preserve their value. Stick with us as we soar through different things to note when storing vintage items. These will include keeping record of items, keeping them away from damage, how to store them properly in different locations, how to clean your toy collection, and the importance of insurance.

Keep Record of Value Before Placing in Storage

Keeping records of the condition and value of your toys before placing them in storage will help when you go back to your collection to sell it or for inspection and regular check-ups. Keeping an investory helps to know everything you have in your collection so you can look at your items you have and any documentation without bringing them out of storage and risking any damage.

Since damage to vintage items harms the value, keeping track of their value prior to putting them in storage will help to see how well you are taking care of them over time. This will also help you to know what you have in your collection without bringing them out of storage for any reason.

Avoid Direct Sunlight

One factor to look at when seeing where to store your vintage toys is to make sure to avoid direct sunlight on your collection. UV rays from sunlight damages toys over time as it causes yellowing on plastic and begins to degrade them, making them brittle and fragile. This makes the toys lower in value and makes them much easier to get damaged even with gentle handling.

When storing your toys, keeping them out of direct sunglight will help to keep the plastic clear or white and will keep them in good condition. It is also important to watch out for UV rays in LED lighting. Just because your collection is away from the window and untouched from direct sunlight doesn't mean it's left unharmed in this area just yet. However, if you want your collection on display still, there are UV-safe light bulbs that will make sure your collection is free from this issue.

Avoid Dust From Gathering

Another thing to consider when looking for the best place to store items is to see where items gather a lot of dust and where they do not. Sure, dust can be cleaned but it is also important to know the effects of dust on vintage items before deciding to store your collection in areas such as counters and shelves.

Dust builds up over time and scratches toys which causes the paint to fade and not appear as clearly as it once was. From this, the color often doesn't appear as bright as before and the toy lowers in value the more it shows wear. Along with this, dust also causes harm to toys by combining with moisture in the air and creating a layer of sticky grime on the outside of a toy, making it difficult to clean and more susceptible to damage. Keeping items regularly cleaned while on shelves or storing in display cases and bins to keep dust from gathering will help preserve the value of your vintage toys.

Keep Toys off the Ground

Although a lot of people keep their toy collections in an attic or basement, this actually isn't the best place to keep toys. One of those reasons is that, most of the time, these toys have to sit in boxes on the ground. In a basement, they are more likely to get water damage from flooding. While in an attic, excess moisture in the air such as humidity can cause damage. Especially if these toys are in cardboard boxes or if they remain in their original packaging, getting water damage can severly decrease the value of items or even ruin them and make them not worth anything at all.

Moisture leads to mold and mildew on toys that becomes very difficult to clean and, especially if the mold is inaccessable, can ruin their value. Rust on metal items can be permanent and harm the value of your vintage toys greatly. For paper items, water damage causes them to rot and deteriorate which often completely ruins them.

In garages, basements, and attics especially, pests can make their entrance and come to ruin your cherished stored away items. Although most pests can climb, keeping your toys off the floor will help to keep most pests away from damaging your toys. Keeping your toys off of the ground, even in a one story building, will help give you confidence that your toys won't get damaged.

Display Cases

A popular option a lot of collectors go with for displaying their vintage toys is a display case. These display cases are great for viewing a collection since they often have shelves with acrylic or glass on all sides to see items from every angle. Display cases allow a collector to organize and showcase their collection however they desire while still being able to view all of their items every day.

Most display cases are enclosed which helps keep toys from harm more so than an open shelf. When items are left on a shelf that is easily accessible, they are clear to view at all times which is often desired but are also open to a lot of possible damage. Display cases give a lot of the same benefits of viewing a collection without the wory of falling off a shelf or gathering a ton of dust. Some display cases are even UV resistant, helping to keep toys from the UV damage we mentioned earlier.

Display cases are also great for keeping loose toys from touching one another or leaning up against other things to get damaged. Sometimes when toys are placed in storage, they can be squeezed pretty tight together and crush or warp each other. In display cases, these items are able to stand freely without worrying about this kind of damage.

When displaying items in cases, however, toys might still be prone to some damage so proper cleaning here is very important as well as rotating items to keep one item from staying in the front all of the time, especially if the display case isn't UV protectant.

Climate Controlled Storage

Other collectors opt to put their vintage toys in climate controlled storage units, especially if they own a collection worth a lot of money. Climate controlled storage keeps items in a secure environment, away from external damage. Climate can realy affect toys such as any humidity and extreme hot or cold temperatures.

Moisture and fluctuating climates brings distress to the materials on vintage toys, causing them to undergo damage including odor, mold, mildew, and brittleness. These climate controlled storage units keep moisture out and keep a steady temperature to help collectibles thrive.

These types of storage also often make sure your vintage toys are freed from theft and damage from pests. You will be able to keep these items locked and in a secure place to keep their value safe and sound. Especially since a lot of collectors look at these toys as investments, placing them in climate controlled storage is the best thing to trust that they will not decrease in value.

Proper Packaging

One of the most important factors, no matter where you decide to store your vintage toys, is to propely pack them. Whether this is in a storage room in your house, in a storage unit, or in a spare closet, packing items properly will preserve their value for years to come and will keep them from damage.

An important thing to note is that original boxes with vintage toys increases their value. Keeping items within these boxes will help keep their value and will help to keep all items together so none go missing. Also, placing items into plastic bins with lids rather than cardboard boxes will help to keep any possible moisture from ruinining your toys. This will also keep any pests from lurking around and destroying boxes or figures.

Items in their original packaging will do best just placed into these totes with lightweight acid-free tissue paper or bubble wrap around them and in the gaps between toys to keep them from bumping against each other or falling over and crushing other toys. For loose figures and parts, keeping these in ziplock bags helps to not lose any pieces and will help them not scratch against each other when placed into bins. The ziplock bags also help items to not collect dust or grime as they would when sitting on a shelf.

Acrylic protectors help with this, too for bigger items such as items in their original boxes or even for loose figures. When sending valuable items in good condition to get graded, these grading companies send items back in acrylic for this reason. They help preserve the value and keep items from harm while still being able to view them.

Proper Organization

Next up, we will mention the importance of proper organization when it comes to preserving the value of vintage toys. Proper organization will help to know where each item is at within a collection. If you need to get just one small figure out of storage, rather than looking for a half hour, keeping an organized system will help you to find the item quickly. It will help to keep items from getting pushed around and broken while trying to locate a specific item since you will know exactly where to go rather than digging around.

Keeping a spreadsheet, paper documents, or both handy with detailed descriptions and pictures of the items within your collection will help you to know the location they are in as well as any recent updates on their condition from the last time you cleaned them, etc. Keeping organized inventory with any kind of update will help you to know the state of your collection and thus its value as well which will help you to note if you need to keep up with your collection more to preserve the value.

A great way to organize a big collection of vintage toys is to group together similar items such as vehicles with other vehicles and action figures with other action figures. However, it may be easier to do this whithin toy lines or franchises. For instance, if you have a collection split between Star Wars toys and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toys, keeping these franchises seperate but then organizing within each franchise helps to make items more accessible because you will be able to remember easier where they are located and they will all be in predictable spots.

Keep Items Clean

In order to preserve your vintage toys while in storage, proper cleaning is super important. Since vintage toys decrease in value from damage, your toys will most likely need routine cleaning to keep this value. However, cleaning too often can also cause harm to your toys if they are handled too frequently. When cleaning, handling items gently with caution of potential damage will give the best results. Any careless move, if not careful, can damage your items and make them less valuable than before.

Also, when handling, your fingers produce an oil that can damage items especially over time or for long periods of time. Using gloves to avoid smudging items or getting your finger’s oil on them will help when cleaning to avoid damage. Along with this, making sure your hands are freshly clean and dry without lotion or creams that will transfer over to your toys and damage them will help.

Different toys require different cleaning as well.Researching how to properly clean your vintage toys or contacting experts to ask what will give the best results will help you to preserve your toys' value. For instance, using a little bit of soapy water and a rag would potentially harm items made of cardboard like boxes or metal toys. On the other side, soapy water would help clean plastic toys such as action figures or some vehicles and playsets.

Insure Your Collection

Another thing that will help preserve the value of vintage toys is insuring them. Many vintage toys are incredibly valuable and are even seen as investments as they rise to high prices. Since these toys only get partially covered through homeowners policies, having collectors insurance will give security that your entire collection is insured and protected.

This insurance on your colelction is important in making sure your toys are protected against any theft, damage, or loss. Unfortunately, there have been times where people's collections get broken into even in a secure place and theft takes place. Along with this, water damage or unproper organization harms items and can cause you to loose them. When this happens, collectors insurance helps immensely with preserving the value of your vintage toys. It is better to be prepared and have items insured than to wish you had insurance when something bad happens to your collection.

Final Thoughts

Knowing how to store your vintage toys properly will help tremendously against any possible damage. Avoiding external damage, keeping items off the ground, packing them properly, cleaning them, and insuring them will all help a lot to keep the value of your vintage toys. Especially when it comes to items you have as investments, these are often very highly valued items and it is essential to keep their value.

Do You Have Old or Used Toys?

Don’t let your collection sit in storage gathering dust—turn it into cash! At Wheeljack’s Lab, we specialize in evaluating and buying vintage and used toys, from single standouts to entire collections.

Our friendly, expert team has decades of hands-on experience in collectible toys, so you can expect honest evaluations and a smooth process from start to finish. Ready to sell? Call us at 888-946-2895 and let’s get started.

About the Owner, Chris Ingledue

Chris is the founder and owner of Wheeljack’s Lab Pop Culture and Toy Shop. His vision has always been to reconnect collectors with the toys and pop culture that shaped their childhoods—sparking memories, nostalgia, and imagination along the way.

Each day in the “Lab” feels like Christmas year-round. From scouring the internet for the next great treasure—much like flipping through the Sears Catalog of years past—to eagerly awaiting the postman’s arrival like Santa himself, Chris lives and breathes the thrill of the hunt. Helping collectors around the world experience their own version of Christmas is what makes being a vintage toy buyer an absolute joy.