Model Railroading > Storage of HO trains at cold temps

I've packed up a portion of my collection and I'm loading it in an enclosed uhaul trailer for a move this weekend.  I decided to move my trains ahead of my actual move because the movers damaged a few last time.  There will be cold temperatures on the 15+ hour journey and I was wondering about storage of the trains.  The temperature will get down to 12 degrees F, will that harm the locomotives?

I know these trains see some serious temperature fluctuations in transit from China but I wasn't sure about the cold.   They are boxed in their original boxes, plus wrapped in plastic and in 12x12x18 moving boxes.  Should I do anything else to protect them or are those temps ok?

-James 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/18/20 12:18 by JLW2K.

James,

I don't know about the temperature you quoted harming the locomotives. The only thought I have is, after you get the boxes inside at your destination, open only the tops of the boxes, don't remove anything, let them sit and warm up for a day before you handle anything. Let us know how you make out.

Agree with let them sit for a while. There's something about the humidity that would settle on the various plastic, cardboard...stuff. Not sure about wrapping in plastic though, I can see that both ways.

The hazard with below freezing is often because of water intrusion and then freezing, physically displacing what ever is around the moisture. Which suggests prevent the shipment from going from warm to humid to freezing multiple times.

Locomotives will be a bigger prblem than rolling stock, more becasue of the lubricants and such. Allow them to acclimate to the temperature of the new room for some time before operating them.

Sounds like good advise so far.  Remember, the bicycle/container ship/UPS van that got those models to you weren't climate controlled either! 

Rick Bacon
Windsor, CO

It's a good question.  I've always been paranoid about temperature extremes and also movers.  When ever I moved, I moved my trains myself almost always and I've tried to avoid extreme cold or heat.  My sister once put some of my trains in her garage during summer and I immediately put them back inside in a closet where the house was climate controlled.  But that's just me.

 

I work at a hospital and the Biomed people (the people that take care of our electronic equipment we use like cauteries, monitors, computers, EKG and ultrasound equipment) say it is not so much the heat and cold but the humidity that kills the equipment. I try to treat my models like my RR books and keep them in a warm (like above freezing but less than 100 degrees) dry (humidity less than 40%) place. So far, so good.   ×     ×   

Some years back brass from off shore had poor quailty gears that cracked dont know if some plastic diesels had the same problem with there gears but those are the only problems I have ever seen in person.   Dont worry about how or what to do with them or under what conditions you open them in as I have had them in my car brought them into a warm room after being in well below 32 degrees F with no problems.  Where I live if your car sits out all day the inside temp will be the same as outside.  

I've got quite a bit of brass, but luckily that will be in the backset of the vehicle at all times with me instead of in the trailer.  Thanks everyone!

Keep a good lock on the trailer while in transit.