Sealed Base Set Booster Box Protected from Humidity?

General
1

Hi all,

I bought a sealed box of base set unlimited on eBay back in 2009. I planned on using it to draft with friends (major nostalgia from my days playing in the weekly Pokemon League), but the longer it took to find a full draft pod, the more and more it appreciated in value. I realized that drafting was off the table the day I discovered it had hit $3,000.

I planned to hold onto it for the long term. I simply kept it in the original cardboard box it shipped in (along with a rubber-banded stack of energy cards that a friend of mine had donated towards the draft).

Unfortunately, 2 years ago I moved into a new rental house and stored the sealed box in the basement. It turned out the basement had some pretty major humidity issues. (This part of the basement is finished. No visible water but humid.) I mistakenly kept it down there for a bit over a year. I was shocked to discover that the rubber band around the energy cards had decayed, partially onto the shrinkwrap on the top of the box.

rubber band

Iā€™m guessing itā€™s not possible to safely remove this debris without tearing the shrinkwrap, and Iā€™m not sure Iā€™d be comfortable attempting anything unless I planned on opening it myself.

Iā€™m in MN so we have full seasons. It went from humid in the summer into fall, dry through the winter, and back to humid during the spring and summer before I moved it. It was humid enough in the basement to curl some foil magic cards that were completely exposed. Normal magic cards were exposed and also warped a tad, but once removed from the area, they seem to have bounced back. I have had the booster box out of the basement for over a year now.

My main question is to what extent would the shrinkwrap around the box protect the cards? I can see no holes/tears in the shrinkwrap. From what Iā€™ve read, shrinkwrap does offer some protection from moisture. I also imagine the cards in the booster packs being held ā€œtightā€ together would help against card curling/warping.

front

Iā€™m wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar and can offer some insight into how humidity would affect a sealed box?

I AM interested in selling it, but am looking to set expectations. Should I expect to get 50% of what a normal box is worth? More? Less? I would definitely fully disclose the condition.

Do you think this is a case when it might be better to just open the box myself and get cards individually rated? This would make the rubber band debris a non-issue and reveal all mysteries the box containsā€¦

Thanks a lot for your time!

2

If the outside is too damaged, just rip the box open and sell the packs individually.
No way should you expect 50% less than a normal box.

3

Whoa, that kind of red residue on the box wouldnā€™t lower it any more than a few percent max. Plus, why wouldnā€™t you just take rubbing alcohol to it? That would be safe.

Plus, Admiral is right. Youā€™d still get full value if need be. But I donā€™t even think it would come to that.

The integrity of the box seems good. You might see other signs of warping or misshapen cardboard on the box if it were truly bad.

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4

For the cards to be physically damaged as opposed to curled a bit but completely possible to flatten, there would be more visible damage on the exterior. There isnā€™t much moisture within the box. I agree with others better to sell packs than to hope for only 50% of value.

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5

That box is fineā€¦ the cards might have gained a few mg of weight from humidity that might make the packs seem hefty but nothing damage wise seems possible from non mold building humidity levels that would have to be over 70% or so for months on end. Its not like they were swimming

6

The only thing that humidity will affect is the plastic seal I.e. it will crinkle, Pokemon cards themselves are not affected by high humidity. Things like fireproof safes will damage Pokemon cards but as long as there is enough atmosphere for the card to ā€˜breatheā€™ nothing will happen to them: source I live in a climate where it is often 90+% humidity and I have never seen damage. But I frequently see the plastic seals crinkle.

7

Also what you describe sounds more like extreme heat rather than humidity.