DVD's

DVD’s have been publicised as the end of all your worries as far as preserving your valuable videos etc. They will keep for over 100 years. Is that true? In theory yes, but in practice it may be different. DVD’s have no moving parts so that is a great advantage over videotapes however; they do require careful looking after.

They do not like heat and light. Keep your DVD in a black, firm fitting, light tight jacket. The best of them are under $2. Store away from heat – this is most important. Leave a DVD on the back shelf of your car on a hot sunny day and its 100 year life expectancy may well be reduced to a couple of hours. Do not touch the surface of the DVD Never put a gummed label on a DVD. Write the details with a felt pen. We have a dedicated four-colour unit ensuring safe printing on the surface of DVD’s.

Beware of the quality of blank DVD’s. Many are now very cheap, but so is their quality. DVD’s have been known to ‘peel’ i.e. their layers have come apart. We use only Professional grade proven blanks and these should be used to minimise the chances of failure.

For more advice, or to have us preserve those precious memories for you, please contact us for full details.

VIDEO TAPES

If you are going to record material you want to keep use the best quality tapes. They cost a little more. We stock and recommend “A Grade Professional” tapes. These cost around $7. Not only are they stronger and last longer they also record at a better quality. Do not start recording material on a tape immediately you put it in the camera/recorder. Allow 15 – 30 seconds of blank space.

The beginning of the tape is where most problems occur. Always record at the maximum speed you can. This is usually SP. The quality is not as good on the LP modes. ALWAYS have at least two copies of important tapes and have one stored in a different place. If you can get hold of a second VCR you can do this yourself. You will always lose some quality – how much depends on what you are using.

The safest way is to have it copied by a professional studio [hopefully ourselves!] that uses specialist equipment such as TBC’s and Correctors etc. That minimises loses and in some cases can even improve the appearance of the tape. The cost including A grade tape is under $20 There are only two places your tape should be – in the recorder or in the jacket. Never on the carpet! Dust is attracted to tapes left lying about on shelves and this causes damage very soon. If your tape is important do not use a cardboard jacket. Store it is a custom designed PVC jacket. These are under $2 – a good investment. Naturally you should always keep your video recorder in top condition.

Dirty heads can cause irreparable damage. Be most careful if you ever lend a tape to someone. I would never lend an important tape unless I had another copy. You would not lend the original – lend the copy. Store your video upright, fully rewound, with the spool containing the tape at the bottom. Do not store in extreme temperatures. Average room temperature is best. Be wary of wardrobes which can often be a little damp and draws not often used that contain clothes – we have had tapes that have been attacked by insects.

Best to use a PVC jacket. You should not store any tape close to magnetic materials such as TV or audio system speakers. Every year fast-forward and rewind the tape. This gives it access to the air and helps in preventing magnetic print through. And once more, ALWAYS have a backup tape or DVD of material you wish to keep and hand down to children etc