What effect will LED lights have if they shine on T206s?

[Blunder19]

looking into any possible long term damage to the cards if put in a display case with an LED light shining down on them from the top of the display case... any information is appreciated.

thanks

[David W]

I made nice photocopies on high quality, thicker, paper stock, for my collection in my office

That way I didn’t have to worry about fading

I’ve got some Goudey’s, lots of vintage Topps Hall of Famer’s displayed, and you really can’t tell they are copies

[MVSNYC]

I avoid any and all lights hitting cards.

[GasHouseGang]

A quick internet search turned up this answer related to using LEDs in a comic book room. Hope this helps:

CFL emit a lot of UV, whereas LED emit almost none...and UV is the main bogie as far as document damage.

Visible light also causes damage, but at a slower rate though, so, at museums for example, they make cases or display panels, etc, from a UV filtering material or add a film of UV protection, etc, and, limit lux levels when practical. (Comic book inks, etc, are susceptible to vis and UV damage)

If you have a light meter, you can try to keep the lighting ~ 50 lux or so for long term lighting, but measure during periods where sunlight might be present on the items as well. (Some use ~ 50 - 150 lux as their limit, depending upon the chemistries)

Light meters are not going to tell you what the UV exposure will be, unless you have a UV meter....but, CFL are bad for preservation. There are UV sleeves for full sized commercial tubes, for this purpose, but I have not heard of a CFL specific UV sleeve-like solution.

If the room is closed with the lights off when not in it admiring your collection, no exposure might be occurring (drawn curtains/dark when not in use, etc...), which reduces the cumulative impact of light. Light damage is cumulative and not reversible by recovery periods, so, conservation typically involves trying to limit vulnerable materials to less than 50,000 lux hours per year of exposure.

So if you limit the lighting to 100 lux, and, only illuminate your collection for 10 hours every weekend, that's 52 x 10 x 100 = 52,000 lux hrs of exposure, sort of your ball park limit typically. (You'd need a 2 week vacation from the collection...)

If the objects have light on them 7 days a week for 10 hrs a day, then you'd be at ~ 700 k lux hours, and things would be fading more rapidly (14 x faster), etc.

Cutting the level of illumination to 50 lux would double the cumulative exposure time that you could typically tolerate, raising it to 150 L would reduce the acceptable exposure time proportionally, etc.. For comic books, going over these limits would accelerate deterioration....as NO light is "good for them".

The darker you can make it when not viewing, the better. The more UV screens/films etc, you can protect them with, the better, etc. If it could be pitch black EXCEPT when looking at stuff, the lighting when looking can be brighter, and so forth...if the cumulative "looking time" is limited.

[Blunder19]

Thank you for that information.

[Snowman]

It depends on the light spectrum. uv and uv-adjacent blue light will cause more fading faster. Also, the some colors are more susceptible to fading than others. Reds and oranges will fade much faster than blues and greens for example.

Pro "card doctoring" tip - you can actually "bleach" a card's borders without using any chemicals and without removing it from its slab if you have a light box with the right light spectrum. You can also reverse toning/foxing by putting said card in a greenhouse full of plants. And no, I'm not joking.

[Rhotchkiss]

Jamie, you have nothing worth displaying.....

Other than sarcasm, I have nothing to add.

[cgjackson222]

They use LED lights in museums. I'd be more concerned with traditional artificial light fading or otherwise messing up memorabilia.

https://www.aam-us.org/2012/05/01/led-lighting/

"Unlike most other light sources used for exhibition or display, white LEDs emit no ultraviolet or infrared radiation. Ultraviolet radiation is of higher energy than visible light, so it is capable of inducing light damage at a greater rate. On the other end of the visible spectrum, LEDs radiate no infrared that can cause excessive heating and drying—a significant issue with furniture and composite structures like polychrome sculpture. Not all LED lamps are recommended for museum use, but of those that are, the LED lamp’s spectrum tends to match incandescent varieties so closely they render colors nearly identically to incandescent lamps. Thus an LED with the same color temperature as a traditional incandescent display lamp is usually a good match in color, a better choice for preservation over the long term and highly efficient."

[Cliff Bowman]

Originally Posted by Snowman

You can also reverse toning/foxing putting said card in a greenhouse full of plants. And no, I'm not joking.

I need to put my comic collection in a greenhouse for six months then.

[GasHouseGang]

Originally Posted by Cliff Bowman

I need to put my comic collection in a greenhouse for six months then.

I wonder how putting a card in a greenhouse would help get rid of foxing? And who figured this out the first time?

[tycobb]

Originally Posted by David W

I made nice photocopies on high quality, thicker, paper stock, for my collection in my office

That way I didn’t have to worry about fading

I’ve got some Goudey’s, lots of vintage Topps Hall of Famer’s displayed, and you really can’t tell they are copies

This is a awesome idea ! Something ive been thinking about lately too. David if okay with you id like to msg you some questions ?

[Snowman]

Originally Posted by Cliff Bowman

I need to put my comic collection in a greenhouse for six months then.

You would need to remove them from any slabs for it to work. It's a result of the photosynthesis process. It deoxidizes the paper as the plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen. Then as the oxygen releases and combines with the uv light from the sun, it reverses the toning of papers which was caused by oxidation due to the acidity of the paper stock. That's also why cards from specific sets tone more than others. The heavier the wood pulp content is in a card stock, the more acidic it will be, and the more it will tone over time.

[Snowman]

Originally Posted by GasHouseGang

I wonder how putting a card in a greenhouse would help get rid of foxing? And who figured this out the first time?

I don't know if I'm the first person to figure it out, but I don't know of anyone else that has ever done this or tried it. I came up with the idea on my own. However, I do know that in the early days of making paper, people used to stretch large scrolls and sheets out and lay them on the grass to whiten the paper for the same reasons. That's where I got the idea from.

[StraightRaceCards]

Originally Posted by cgjackson222

They use LED lights in museums. I'd be more concerned with traditional artificial light fading or otherwise messing up memorabilia.

https://www.aam-us.org/2012/05/01/led-lighting/

"Unlike most other light sources used for exhibition or display, white LEDs emit no ultraviolet or infrared radiation. Ultraviolet radiation is of higher energy than visible light, so it is capable of inducing light damage at a greater rate. On the other end of the visible spectrum, LEDs radiate no infrared that can cause excessive heating and drying—a significant issue with furniture and composite structures like polychrome sculpture. Not all LED lamps are recommended for museum use, but of those that are, the LED lamp’s spectrum tends to match incandescent varieties so closely they render colors nearly identically to incandescent lamps. Thus an LED with the same color temperature as a traditional incandescent display lamp is usually a good match in color, a better choice for preservation over the long term and highly efficient."

Agree here. I work in the lighting industry- museum/display lighting can be tricky.

A few simple things to consider if displaying cards:

1) minimizing all natural lighting exposure. This is my issue. My card room/office has so much natural light coming in through the windows, that I find it hard to justify putting in a full on card display unless I get blackout shades etc.

2) If you do light your display, make sure you use a quality LED lamp. I use a simple track system that works well and allows me to spot my displays intentionally.

3) CRI or “Color Rendering Index” is another good factor to consider. I would recommend looking for LED lamps that are 90+ CRI so the cards color renders well.

4) Color Temperature is also important, but also preferential. I prefer “warmer” color temps like 2700K or 3000K, but many museums prefer the cool 4000-5000K color temps.

Hope that helps. You should be fine with LED as long as you don’t have the lights on all the time like others have mentioned

[CJinPA]

Originally Posted by David W

I made nice photocopies on high quality, thicker, paper stock, for my collection in my office

That way I didn’t have to worry about fading

I’ve got some Goudey’s, lots of vintage Topps Hall of Famer’s displayed, and you really can’t tell they are copies

This is a great idea!! Weekend project, thank you!