The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I'm sure someone has asked this before, but is it dangerous to put a new clean blanks in an old blank cylinder box, not knowing if the previous box contained moldy cylinders. In other words, is there an actual mold that can spread destroying clean records, whether blank or pristine old ones, in a contaminated box even if the box looks clean???? James Manker

I heard that what was in the moldy cylinders can spread to the clean cylinders, I'm not really sure.edisonplayer.

Molds reproduce themselves by spores. So where there was mold, there are likely many spores left, that can regenerate mold whenever the appropriate conditions (humidity, temperature) are met.

This said, I believe it is relatively safe to keep cylinders where previously moldy cylinders were kept, only if you're relatively sure that the reproductive conditions are never met - that is basically if you live in a very dry environment.