Hi.

I'm wondering if any users here could help me. My son is extremely interested in IDE hard drives. He has a collection of over 260 of them in his room and in our garage. He has cataloged every single drive by make and serial number and is constantly adding more which involves complete reordering of entire stacks. He only collects IDE drives, not SATA, of which he has no interest in. Basically these are the only items he buys - thus storage has become a major problem.

I suggested moving some of them into the loft, an idea of which he is strongly opposed to. Is there some way to enable safe storage of them in an area at risk of damp? The problem is they need to be readily accessible so he can carry out regular reordering and surveying. The last time we moved any of them out of the garage he went absolutely ballistic and was in tears. I really cannot persuade him to curb buying any more for now, so sorting this storage issue is really quite urgent. I'm thinking some sort of storage bags that does not have a permanent seal and is moisture resistant. Many thanks.

You need drawers or shelves. You cannot just stack hard drives onto one another - electronics may become damaged
Also with such quantities I would suggest an inventory which supposed to make search of a particular HDD easier

And last
Obsessive hoarding instinct may be a sign of psychological disturbance

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correction
I meant obsessive collecting

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I'm no psychiatrist, but with respect this behaviour does sound a bit odd.

Regarding the drive storage, have you thought about CD racking?

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There was a popular program on ABC TV that showcased all sorts of items that many people wouldn't have thought were collectable:
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/collectors/segments/episodes/

I don't recall anyone collecting HDDs, though. Still, a hard drive museum doesn't sound like a psychological problem, unless you have 10 of the same model.

To the OP, I would suggest antistatic bags and silica gel. You may also like to visit your local computer shop and ask if they have the original HDD packaging materials. I know that Maxtor used to supply cardboard boxes with 20 (?) foam padded compartments for storing HDDs vertically.

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With only 260 drives I don't think there is any problem as yet. I know peeps with thousands of drives but I suppose they do work with them.
What I can see that is a bit odd is only ide and not sata. I mean most people like sata as well.
I wouldn't advise storing them in the loft. With only 260 there would be no problem but if that becomes 2600 then weight distribution might have to be considered. I would store them in an area with a solid reinforced floor using bespoke shelving/racking.

Yet if you look here
"He only collects IDE drives, not SATA, of which he has no interest in"
"The last time we moved any of them out of the garage he went absolutely ballistic and was in tears"

But it's no matter of the topic anyway

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I'm also intrigued as to what he has against SATA. Not enough little pins perhaps?

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( i dont know how to help )

Wow nice hobbie! A bit weird for sure
Sorry but HDD are not built to work for decades.
If you want to make them work as long as possible, you should put them in anti-electrostatic bags and silica gel.
You should perhaps think of professional storage room if this collection really matters to you.