Garage or attic for storage

Both areas are not the best but, if I had to choose I would want next choice to be the easiest to get to which would be the garage for me. You could always add a wall a/c unit in the garage or dehumidifier.

Is there a delta in terms of what happens if a roof ever leaks?  (i.e., is the garage under it's own roof (as the attic is by definition), or is there living space above it that would cause you to notice a roof leak long before it gets to the trains in the garage below?).

-Dave

IMO I would pick the garage.  In the summer attic temperatures can reach over 140 degrees.   That would certainly reduce the life expectancies of any plastic item. A garage would stay mostly close to the ambient air temp.

Neither is ideal as mentioned, but I'd be most concerned about humidity.  I've got a number of trains that were very likely stored for many years in a humid location (probably a basement).  All required heavy rust removal measures to bring them back to life.  Another postwar Lionel set I own was more or less forgotten about in a SE Michigan attic for many decades before I purchased it last year.  I believe it was only remembered by the previous owner when she was having the attic insulated.  Other than some dry rotted wiring on the accessories, everything including the original boxes were in very good shape all things considered.  Michigan summers can be quite humid, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that everything was rust free.

If heat is a worry, then the garage should be fine as long as proper measures are taken to avoid damage due to humidity in the summertime.

Marty- the solar panels on the garage roof act as a giant heat-sink. They will absorb the solar heat and not radiate it into the attic. The exhaust fan will help keep the temps down and circulate fresh air into the space regularly.

I.ve down extremely well in a uncontrolled basement. Sarn warp around the boxes . Then, a large thick cut outdoor garbage bag taped over that. Then put in plastic containers. I’ve had stuff down there for 10 years. I left a window open one year. Which was really a issue. But, the trains didn’t get affected.

Marty, I recommend you keep your electronics (Z-4000’s) in the house with your locomotives. 

Cool dry basement for engines, rolling stock and transformers. Dry ventilated attic for empty boxes. 

I store train boxes and unused track in the attic under the layout.  And some trains are stored on shelves above the layout.  Much better place for trains than the garage in my opinion.  The garage is for car stuff.

Lehigh74 posted:

I store train boxes and unused track in the attic under the layout.  And some trains are stored on shelves above the layout.  Much better place for trains than the garage in my opinion.  The garage is for car stuff.

That's a beautiful looking attic layout, great job. Love the plywood on the ceiling and the bench work. I know you'd rather not have those roof struts but I don't find them offensive mixed in with all the other wood. Looks real cozy in there I would never leave. 

Every attic/basement is different and each can have issues (leaky roof, leaky pipes, basement floods, high humidity, etc) but I can say from experience my pre-war standard gauge trains and boxes have been stored in an attic since the 1940's and still look good. Very little plastic to speak of except the window film on the passenger cars but I would rather see them in dry heat than a damp basement.

Lehigh74 posted:

I store train boxes and unused track in the attic under the layout.  And some trains are stored on shelves above the layout.  Much better place for trains than the garage in my opinion.  The garage is for car stuff.

Not meaning to hijack this thread, but I would like to see some more pictures of this beautiful attic layout, please.

G-Man24 posted:

Lehigh74 posted:

I store train boxes and unused track in the attic under the layout.  And some trains are stored on shelves above the layout.  Much better place for trains than the garage in my opinion.  The garage is for car stuff.

That's a beautiful looking attic layout, great job. 

Every attic/basement is different and each can have issues (leaky roof, leaky pipes, basement floods, high humidity, etc) but I can say from experience my pre-war standard gauge trains and boxes have been stored in an attic since the 1940's and still look good. Very little plastic to speak of except the window film on these but I would rather see them in dry heat than a damp basement.

I was thinking the same thing. Beautiful layout

My garage had an attic, so my son and I installed an exhaust fan up there to maintain close to ambient temperatures.  I stored some of my train boxes there.  Later I stored later purchased Items' boxes in the basement where I had a dehumidifier.  My layout was down there too.  All survived in fine shape and were used to pack up all my engines and rolling stock when I sold them.

Dennis

I decided on making the attic a train room and built it for that purpose with AC and heat. The best part is it is only a train room with a small work bench and the door locks to keep it that way.

There would have been more room in the cellar but I really haven't finished all the space available yet in 24 years.

I have plenty of storage space behind the knee walls and under the layout.

I would pick garage since it's in the same level, easier to take out at put back when you need to, also easier on the body overall, than taking them up a flight of stairs. I would also have them up on styrofoam to keep them off the floor and place in totes( no bug, spiders & varmints).

This is my first house with an open joist basement ceiling but that turned out perfect for storing boxes with or without trains. 

I added 16" wooden straps below all of the joists and the joist bays absorbed scores of boxes.  Even the Atlas track and roadbed boxes fit easily.

Only problem is the 4 car and 5 car passenger boxes

I have stored my 027 1950's trains in the attic for over 25 years until i got back into the hobby about 8 years ago ,but even after all that time up there ,there was no damage at all & all the engines i had up there started up '& ran with no problem ,& here in New Jersey it can get pretty hot up there .

• The best place to store your trains temporarily is in my basement. The space is dry and climate controlled. Pick up and storage for free! 

The previous owner of our one-story, concrete-slab house in central Arkansas connected two ceiling vents to the existing furnace and central AC system. His purpose was to make the two-stall garage a recreation room - with a pool table, poker table, and a long dry bar with underneath cabinets along the back wall. I added wall-mounted shelves along three walls and used the under-counter cabinets for train storage -- mostly train sets.

I installed a Christmastime seasonal layout in the garage and updated it annually. The later versions of the layout were based on two 4x16 feet panels that were hinged along one edge to 12-inch wall-mounted shelves on the north and south walls. The south "shelf" contained MTH buildings as a Civic Center area (Police, Fire Station, City Hall, Water Works, etc.). The north "shelf" was a farmstead and some small industries. I pulled the two hinged panels down for the holiday season, then pushed them up and out of the way for most of the year. In later renditions of the layout, I added a T-shaped island between the two hinged panels and a "downtown" commercial district with a bump-and-go trolley line along the top surface of the dry bar; all joined by bridges.

With pre-built-in heating and AC, the trains never suffered any heat/cold/humidity damage.

I concur with others who suggested your GARAGE as a storage site.  Every time the garage door is lifted, the trains get a breath of fresh air.

Mike Mottler    LCCA 12394

RoyBoy posted:

 

Not meaning to hijack this thread, but I would like to see some more pictures of this beautiful attic layout, please.

OK.  I started a new thread.

https://ogrforum.com/...tic-layout#lastReply

I have never been a fan of putting trains in an attic. Too hot and humid in the summer and too cold in the winter. Basements are a little more stable but keep them off the lfoor.;

Cost permitting, perhaps you should consider a secure and climate controlled storage facility close to your home.

The attic should have a more stable temp than the garage imo. The shade of solar panels should work for you in the summer, the household heat helping in the winter by keeping a constant temp.  

The concrete with no ceiling makes our garage nearly as damp a basement too.

Fast temp changes are another enemy; in as with large temp swings(esp,fall/spring) the cooler than air metal gets yet another opportunity to collect condensate each time the air temp rises quickly. This happens in my garage via windows catching the morning sun. The air around the length of a light beam warms in seconds; so metal items near those beams see warm air and rust fast. 

I've had track stored in both places for decades (25-30ish years). They were really in about equal shape;   but the indoor "trapdoor" attic won by a few rust pox marks here and there on the garage track. The garage track was NOT near the sunny areas at all.

Stored in black garbage bags, with boxes or wood (2x4 scraps maybe 2ft worth). (a block of wood in the toolbox is an old machinist trick, it will help keep a steadier humidity, absorbing dampness quick, and releasing slowly, only as the air dries a lot and lets it... an old school  version of "dry pack" envelopes of silicon)

Which roof is newer might be a better question. 🤔

I don't like to freeze my electronics unless it's to reduce resistance or stop them overheating   Again, moisture is bad and condensate around freezing more likely.. Semi-cold is ok; 40s&50s fine, low humidity. Most substances like to be at about 40- 50° to last long it seems (?)

How about this, what do you have have stored elsewhere that can go in the attic or garage to then store the trains there.

Adriatic posted:

The attic should have a more stable temp than the garage imo. The shade of solar panels should work for you in the summer, the household heat helping in the winter by keeping a constant temp.  

The concrete with no ceiling makes our garage nearly as damp a basement too.

Fast temp changes are another enemy; in as with large temp swings(esp,fall/spring) the cooler than air metal gets yet another opportunity to collect condensate each time the air temp rises quickly. This happens in my garage via windows catching the morning sun. The air around the length of a light beam warms in seconds; so metal items near those beams see warm air and rust fast. 

I've had track stored in both places for decades (25-30ish years). They were really in about equal shape;   but the indoor "trapdoor" attic won by a few rust pox marks here and there on the garage track. The garage track was NOT near the sunny areas at all.

Stored in black garbage bags, with boxes or wood (2x4 scraps maybe 2ft worth). (a block of wood in the toolbox is an old machinist trick, it will help keep a steadier humidity, absorbing dampness quick, and releasing slowly, only as the air dries a lot and lets it... an old school  version of "dry pack" envelopes of silicon)

Which roof is newer might be a better question. 🤔

I don't like to freeze my electronics unless it's to reduce resistance or stop them overheating   Again, moisture is bad and condensate around freezing more likely.. Semi-cold is ok; 40s&50s fine, low humidity. Most substances like to be at about 40- 50° to last long it seems (?)

I myself agree with the attic also.

I'm guessing it’s a tossup. But, since I’m doing it... 

Attic or Garage for track, Z4000s and rolling stock? Locos staying in the house.

I live in central NJ. So we don’t really get extremes. 

Hi Marty R,

I had my layout in one of my 2 car garage for almost 25 years when I lived in Howell. I insulated the 2nd car garage outside wall as the builder left it with just wood studs. Also, changed the garage doors about 15 years into having the layout there. Never had an issue with anything there. No rust, trains ran fine and most of my trains were TMCC. The added plus was my utility room was connected in the rear to my garage not that the furnace really heated the garage but it was never raw in there.

Where in central NJ are you? I moved 2.5 years ago to Jackson, NJ about 5 miles from my train club now. Reason why there is no layout here except for the temporary garage floor layout, I am so close to the club and can go there anytime I want.