Audio Tape Care & Maintenance

How Best To Protect Audio Tapes

Audio Tape Care & Maintenance

Store tapes at recommended temperatures and humidity. Store your tapes within 59 to 77 degrees F and 40% to 60% relative humidity. Because tape can expand or contract, stay away from sudden temperature changes, even within the recommended range. If your tapes are cold, i.e. from shipping in cold weather, the tension from a transcriber can cause harm to your tapes. Therefore, when you receive your tapes, whenever possible, give them 24 hours to adjust to climate changes before playing them. If condensation occurs, wipe off dew from the case and cassette shell or reel and allow the tape to dry naturally.

Keep tape evenly wound. The vibration and other handling from shipping can create uneven tape-to-reel contact. If a tape arrives “loose” the whole tape should be rewound before being played. Where possible, rewind at slower speeds. Be sure to rewind tapes completely after each use to maintain high performance.

Store standard size tapes upright. Stacking cassettes one on top of the other can warp their shells. Always store cassettes upright, on either their sides or ends.

Correct Labeling. Do not put new labels over old. Improperly placed labels can interfere with cassette loading, degrade the cassette alignment, or even peel off inside the recorder mechanism!
Rewind or forward tape every three years.You don't want tape layers to start sticking together. So "exercise" tapes at least once every three years.

Stay away from stray magnetic fields. Tapes get recorded by magnetic fields. They also get erased. So keep your tapes away from loudspeakers, electric motors and other magnetic sources -- even toys.