(Bloomington, MN) – June 27th, 2024 — In the midst of the road detours and submerged trees, Minnesotans continue to build community amidst the flooding. Sandbagging in Owatonna, St.Clair, and Waterville has built people closer together, with volunteer turnouts being much higher than expected. Over 9,000 sandbags have been filled by 150 volunteers and placed around Waterville’s shoreline since last Wednesday. The heavy rainfall has brought out a remarkable display of resilience and community spirit.
Local small businesses have also risen to the occasion, offering invaluable tips on navigating the impacts of flooding. With many families contending with water in their basements—a common storage space for cherished physical media like VHS tapes and photo albums—the importance of effective preservation strategies has never been clearer.
Chris Moen, the owner of Archiving Life Media in Bloomington, MN, brings over 25 years of expertise in digitizing and preserving physical media. His business has been instrumental in salvaging everything from grandma’s photo albums to fire-damaged VHS tapes, ensuring that precious memories survive beyond natural disasters.
The first step in protecting your physical media is keeping it a safe location. “Just making sure that people’s memories are tucked away in safe places, upper level of homes. In plastic bins that are sealed.” says Moen, “Media is best if stored in a cardboard box, up on the top shelf…a cardboard box actually allows it to just breathe, rather than a solid container that is completely sealed.”
As long as the media stays dry, it can last a long time. However, in a damp basement problems could arise. Moen continued, “Most of the time there’s a white chalkiness that shows up on it (VHS tapes), that needs to be captured right away or it will deteriorate…If we are able to clean off the white dust, we can transfer the tape and most of the time it turns out just a little bit less than what the original was.”
Looking for signs of water damage depends on what type of media you are looking at. For film that is stored in a metal tin, the smell of vinegar will signal that the film is eroding. For photos, looking for curled edges sticking together and/or water stains. In Chris’s experience, water damage is not the tricky part, it is the mold that eats away at the chemicals in films, photos and tapes.
Despite the challenges posed by water damage, Moen remains optimistic about restoration possibilities. “Even heavily damaged media can often be recovered professionally,” he reassures. “For instance, there was a family that had audio recordings in a flood.they had about 35 tapes, and everything from 6 inches down was damaged. We were able to recover all of the audio,it was quite a project, but we were able to recover that and the insurance company paid for it” (Moen).
For immediate response to water-soaked photos, Moen advises gently blotting with a dry towel and air-drying in a cool, dark environment to prevent further damage. This is because exposure to sunlight could bake the damage into the photos. Avoid sealing wet items in plastic, as it traps moisture and exacerbates mold growth.
Digitizing media can be one of the best solutions to preserving old media, which is what Chris’s business specializes in. He is very passionate about helping Minnesotans downsize, digitize and share their precious memories for generations to come.
For those interested in learning more about preservation workshops or seeking advice, Chris Moen at Archiving Life Media is available to assist. Residents are also encouraged to share their own preservation stories and tips via social media, underscoring the community’s commitment to protecting its memories.
The recent events in Minnesota, highlight the strength of community spirit in the face of adversity. By coming together and taking proactive measures, we not only preserve our cherished memories but also ensure a brighter future for generations to come.
For those interested in learning more about media preservation or seeking advice, Chris Moen at Archiving Life Media is available to assist. If you have other types of water damaged media in need of saving. Residents are also encouraged to share their own preservation stories and tips via social media, underscoring the community’s commitment to protecting its memories.
The recent events in Owatonna, St.Clair, and Waterville highlight the strength of community spirit in the face of adversity. By coming together and taking proactive measures, we not only preserve our cherished memories but also ensure a brighter future for generations to come.
About Archiving Life Media
Based in Bloomington MN, Chris and Michelle Moen have been helping clients preserve their precious memories through media transfer since 2011. Their commitment to providing the very best quality services has led them on this path to excellence and innovation. With their award-winning expertise and passion, customers can trust Archiving Life Media to keep their most cherished moments alive for years to come.
