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Found a stat about VHS tape failure rates that blew my mind
Was reading an old 1992 issue of Video Review magazine I found at a thrift store in Portland. There was this article about tape degradation. It said most standard VHS tapes start losing quality after about 10 to 15 years if stored in a basement or attic with temperature swings. I got curious. Looked up modern data online from a restoration forum. Turns out tapes stored in stable 70 degree rooms with low humidity can last 40 plus years easy. My buddy keeps his whole horror collection in a hot garage. I told him he is basically destroying them slowly. Feels like we all grew up thinking these things were indestructible. Anyone else find weird facts from old magazines that changed how you store your tapes?
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the_julia19d ago
That bit about "indestructible" is funny because I remember thinking the same thing about my dad's old Betamax tapes. He had this whole collection of 80s movies he recorded off cable. We actually threw them out a few years ago because the cases were literally sticky. Like the plastic had started to break down and get this weird tacky residue on everything. Never connected it to heat damage until now, but he kept them in a closet right next to the water heater. Makes total sense why they felt like they were melting.
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