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Has anybody tried sand bags for copper penny storage? They are cheap and strong, but I wonder if they will degrade over the years and turn into that crumbly, dusty plastic. They are expected do degrade eventually in the sun and they rate them for how long they last outdoors, but wondering if they are not outside? I am extracting pennies from my steel drums and packing them into manageable 40lbs sand bags so they can be moved more easily. The question is what to do with them after they are moved:

Pack the bags into the drums OR dump the pennies back into the drums. What I don't want is to end up with big drum of pennies mixed with decomposing bag pieces.

Thoughts?

Federal Reserve coin bags. Small price to pay for convenience and security.

I use the same cardboard boxes the bank gave the penny rolls to me in... Dump loose coppers in the box, duct tape the box closed, easy peasy.

For reference I paid $41 for 100, so .41 cents each. I nothing else, I will just use for moving and not storing.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/234933036342?var=534792499642

What are you paying for Federal Reserve coin bags? Are you talking the old cloth ones or plastic or ?
Too late on the boxes. I stored them for a while and eventually got sick of them and burned them.

5 gal pails stored on the slab of the house. Fine for me, especially since I'm not going to be moving them. I also have many unopened skunk boxes here and there.

horgad wrote:For reference I paid $41 for 100, so .41 cents each. I nothing else, I will just use for moving and not storing.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/234933036342?var=534792499642

What are you paying for Federal Reserve coin bags? Are you talking the old cloth ones or plastic or ?
Too late on the boxes. I stored them for a while and eventually got sick of them and burned them.

You might be able to find them on sale, but the smaller coin-lok bags can easily hold $50 face (they are rated for 25 lbs, but will easily hold 35 lbs, and the handles are rated for 100 lbs) and are $0.70 each ($35 for 50) on amazon right now.

https://www.amazon.com/Controltek-CoinL ... 01G4DHJW8/

I happen to have an order of these (less one that I used for a test) that I would be willing to sell for $16 + shipping (I would have to find them first!), but if you have Prime, with shipping costs you are really almost better off getting them directly from Amazon. There are other brands that might be cheaper, and ebay is another source.

These FED approved bags are essentially moistureproof, tear resistant, have a built-in handle that makes them relatively easy to move and stack. I like them and I put all my "clean" cents in them. They have a bunch of bar codes etc for banks that you don't care about - just ignore those features.

Their one short-coming is that they seal (which is good) but you can't unseal them and add, take, or substitute. Once sealed, you have to cut the bags open to get into them.

Thanks for the info on the Fed bags.

FWIW: My first attempt at storage before going to steel drums was 5 gallon pails, but I ran out of floor space so I started stacking the pails. Then the ones on the bottom started breaking after many months. Not a pretty sight!