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The Dynaco Tube Audio Forum

Dedicated to the restoration and preservation of all original Dynaco tube audio equipment - Customer support for Tubes4hifi VTA tube amp and preamp kits and all Dynakitparts.com products


5 posters

    How to store vacume tubes

    mantha3
    mantha3


    Posts : 303
    Join date : 2010-11-10

    How to store vacume tubes Empty How to store vacume tubes

    Post by mantha3 Tue Apr 12, 2011 3:56 pm

    I have some new and old tubes... Been having some fun tube rolling.

    So I have an extra quad of new KT88 tubes, Some 12AT7 tubes and 2 different Rect. tubes GZ34 and GZ33...

    I have these in a cool corner of my basement in a well padded box... the basement is kept dry.

    How do you store your tubes and why? Just curious if I'm missing something


    j beede
    j beede


    Posts : 473
    Join date : 2011-02-07
    Location : California

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    Post by j beede Tue Apr 12, 2011 8:46 pm

    In the freezer right next to my cache of Kodachrome 25 Smile Sounds like you need an extra pair of Mark IIIs to store your KT-88s in. Like any other soldered component I would keep them in a maintained environment to avoid solder reflow, corrosion or temperature cycling. I use a drawer in my music system stand. Neither basement nor u-store-it would be high on my list of preferred locations.
    mantha3
    mantha3


    Posts : 303
    Join date : 2010-11-10

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    Post by mantha3 Tue Apr 12, 2011 9:09 pm

    I'd gladly take those MIII's off your hands! I saw your threads on those. Nice work.

    I actually was thinking the freezer... I didn't see much on this on the net. Seems like a sound idea but I have not done this.. I thought the spot is dry and the temp constant. I have a chest freezer in the basement with room. I dun know.

    Seems like a crazzzy idea for some reason to box em up and freeze em. I have the tubes in the basement and that worked fine for a MN winter... Now with the warming the humidity is not cool....


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    Post by Guest Tue Apr 12, 2011 9:20 pm

    At the risk of stating the obvious, store tubes in the original packaging and put them in a drawer or something similar.
    j beede
    j beede


    Posts : 473
    Join date : 2011-02-07
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    Post by j beede Wed Apr 13, 2011 1:53 am

    mantha3 wrote:I'd gladly take those MIII's off your hands! I saw your threads on those. Nice work.

    I actually was thinking the freezer... I didn't see much on this on the net. Seems like a sound idea but I have not done this.. I thought the spot is dry and the temp constant. I have a chest freezer in the basement with room. I dun know.

    Seems like a crazzzy idea for some reason to box em up and freeze em. I have the tubes in the basement and that worked fine for a MN winter... Now with the warming the humidity is not cool....



    Restoring those Mark IIIs was fun and rewarding. I'd actually never heard Mark IIIs before I got mine running. Have you seen that several tube vendors are offering cryogenically treated tubes? Of course you'd need something a bit colder than a chest freezer!
    mantha3
    mantha3


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    Post by mantha3 Wed Apr 13, 2011 1:11 pm

    Captain Coconut wrote:

    Captain Coconut

    on Tue Apr 12, 2011 8:20 pmAt the risk of stating the obvious, store tubes in the original packaging and put them in a drawer or something similar.


    Ok, probably a pointless post.. I was just thinking I needed to get my tubes out of the basement (humidity) for the Summer. Box em up and put them in a closet on a shelf or something.

    I have seen the cryogenically treated tubes for sale. Prices are unreal! I don't see me buying em. I was wondering if these are just a creative way to dbl the charge for an otherwise expensive NOS tube. I dun know.
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    Post by Guest Wed Apr 13, 2011 2:37 pm

    Getting them out of a humid environment is probably not a bad idea. I live in a very humid climate and store my tubes in bubble wrap and in the box they came in. I just leave them on an unoccupied part of a shelf next to my LP's. No deleterious effects yet.

    As far as cryo'd tubes go, I have always been suspicious of tweaks that reputedly take upwards of 720 hours of burn-in to sound their best. However some swear by cryogenically treating almost anything. "It's my party and I'll cryo if I want to" as the song goes. Suspect
    kevco
    kevco


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    Join date : 2009-07-16
    Location : Aldan, PA, USA

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    Post by kevco Fri Apr 15, 2011 10:43 am

    Storing tubes in a freezer is not a good idea. Yes, the freezer is a low humidity zone, but what happens when the power goes out and that unused Thanksgiving supermarket freebie turkey decides to melt down onto your KT-88's while you're on vacation? Keep in their original boxes in a solid, crush-proof environment (I use an old trunk) and if your worried about moisture, add silica gel packets or even a chemical dehumidifier tub, available at hardware stores. And I have a quad of Electro-Harmonix EL-34's that were cryo'd that I paid $15 extra for the treatment. I have compared them to identical tubes that were not cryo'd, and there is a difference. The treated tubes have a more focused sound and their midrange and treble response is more liquid and warm. The cryo'd tubes sound more like SED El-34's, and less like EH. I'm very pleased with them and I have many types of power tubes at my disposal. Also, their burn in time was approx 40 hours until I stopped noticing changes in tone. 750 hours is probably at least half the viable life of a modern power tube.
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    Disles1


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    Location : Calgary, Alberta

    How to store vacume tubes Empty Storing my Tubes

    Post by Disles1 Thu Apr 21, 2011 6:38 pm

    I live in Calgary, Alberta and humidity is definitely not a problem Rolling Eyes so I keep my tubes in the original boxes (so I can remember what they are, which is a problem) within a computer desk compartment. That is a very good place for me since my wife can't open the drawer and take me to task about how much I've spent on my audio hobby.
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    Post by Guest Thu Apr 21, 2011 7:03 pm

    Disles1 wrote:I live in Calgary, Alberta and humidity is definitely not a problem Rolling Eyes so I keep my tubes in the original boxes (so I can remember what they are, which is a problem) within a computer desk compartment. That is a very good place for me since my wife can't open the drawer and take me to task about how much I've spent on my audio hobby.

    Humidity is not a problem in Alberta, but putting good hockey teams on the ice seems to be. Ooops, same problem in Ontario. I take that back! Embarassed
    frank
    frank


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    Location : Pacific Northwest

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    Post by frank Thu Apr 21, 2011 7:34 pm

    Go Canucks!!!
    mantha3
    mantha3


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    Post by mantha3 Thu Apr 21, 2011 8:12 pm

    Nice!

    Where do you store you tubes? Some place your wife won't find em!

    The 3 Prices we pay:
    1 - The price we paid for something
    2 - The price you told your wife you paid for something
    3 - The price you pay when you wife finds out how much you really paid for something

    Go Minn. Wild
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    Disles1


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    How to store vacume tubes Empty Price Paid

    Post by Disles1 Thu Apr 21, 2011 10:10 pm

    That last price is the costliest. affraid

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