You find a crate of old records at a yard sale on a sunny Saturday morning. The prices are great, the covers are gorgeous, and you carry the whole stack to the car. Then you run a few more errands before heading home, and the records sit on the back seat in the summer sun. By the time you get back, the car is hot, the vinyl is soft, and the damage may already be done.

Heat is one of the worst enemies of vintage records, and it does not take a dramatic accident to cause it. Vinyl is a plastic, and plastic softens when it gets warm. Once a record is warped, it is very hard to bring it back, and a warped record can skip, wobble or refuse to play cleanly.

What Heat Does to Vinyl

A record is a thin disc, and it has to stay perfectly flat for the needle to track the groove. When vinyl gets hot, it can soften and bend under its own weight or under the pressure of whatever is touching it. When it cools again, it stays in the new shape. The result can be a dish warp, where the record sags like a shallow bowl, or a wavy edge that rises and falls as it spins.

A closed car in the sun is a surprisingly harsh place. Temperatures inside a parked car can climb far above the outdoor temperature. Back windows, dashboards, trunks and rear shelves can be particularly rough, because they sit in direct sun. Even a short stop can be too long on a hot day.

Cardboard sleeves can suffer too. Heat and humidity can warp the jacket, loosen the glue on seams and leave ring wear and stains on the cover, which hurts the look and the value.

Shipping Is a Heat Problem Too

If you buy or sell records by mail, heat travels with the package. Boxes can sit in delivery trucks, on porches, in mailboxes and in warehouses where temperatures run high. A box that was perfectly safe when it left the shelf can arrive with a warped record inside.

Sellers and buyers have a few ways to lower the risk.

• Think about the season. Shipping in the hottest part of summer is riskier than shipping in cooler weather. Some sellers delay shipments or warn buyers about hot-weather delivery.
• Use proper packaging. Records need a sturdy mailer made for records, or a box with firm cardboard on both sides so the disc cannot flex. Pack the records snug but not crushed.
• Keep them on edge. Records packed upright, standing on their edges, are generally safer than records stacked flat with weight pressing on them.
• Do not leave a delivery sitting. If you are expecting records, try to bring the package inside soon after it arrives instead of leaving it on a hot porch.
• Insure valuable records. A rare record is worth the extra protection.

The Right Way to Store Records

Good storage is about keeping records cool, flat in shape, and under no strain. The standard advice from collectors is to store them upright, like books on a shelf, rather than in tall flat stacks. Records stacked flat put weight on the ones at the bottom, and that pressure can cause warping and ring wear on the covers over time.

That does not mean you should jam them into a shelf, either. Records should stand straight, with enough room to slide one out easily but not so much room that they lean. A leaning stack bends the discs. Use bookends or dividers to keep them upright when a shelf is only part full.

• Pick the right spot. Keep records away from windows, heaters, radiators, attics and garages. A cool, dry interior room is best.
• Choose good sleeves. Many collectors move the disc into a soft inner sleeve that is made of anti-static material, and put the whole record jacket in a clear outer sleeve to protect the cover from dust and scuffs.
• Handle by the edges. Fingerprints and oils can mark the grooves, so hold a record by its edge and label.
• Keep them clean. Dust and dirt in the grooves wear records and styluses.

Can You Fix a Warped Record?

This is where people get tempted to try tricks they find online, such as putting a record between glass plates or in an oven. It is better to be cautious. Heat can make the damage worse, and it can ruin a record that might otherwise have been playable. Mild warps sometimes still play well enough, and the right turntable setup can help, but there is no sure home fix. If a rare or valuable record is warped, ask an experienced dealer or a record restoration specialist before trying anything.

Older shellac records from the early era are different in another way. They tend to be brittle and can crack or shatter if dropped or pressed, so they need careful handling and support, and extra care in the heat.

A record collection can last for generations if it is kept cool, upright and out of the sun. Make a habit of taking the records inside first, and run the errands afterward.

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