4 Effective Ways to Shelve and Organize Vinyl Records

If you have a sizeable collection of old vinyl records, you should treasure these and organize them in a neat manner. Allocate space, set a budget, think long term, decide on a system and infuse some of your own personality when shelving and organizing your records.

Vinyl records are so valuable these days not only because of their monetary value but also because some records bring with them treasured memory from the past. Display your records in an organized manner so that they’re within reach and impress your guests at the same time.

Allocate a space

The first step to getting organized is to make the commitment to do so. Look for a room in your house or free up some space in your office or living room to house your collection of vinyl records. You might need to invest in a couple of shelves and cabinets so look for a spot that will be able to accommodate these. If you’d like to preserve your records in their vinyl sleeves, you should look for a space that will be free from smoke, heat, and moisture, which can damage your records and stain your vinyl sleeves. It is best to store your records at room temperature because a drastic change in temperature can ruin the quality of your records.

Set a budget

Depending on how much you’re willing to spend on your record collection, you might want to set a budget for your shelves and storage boxes. A good, sturdy shelf could cost hundreds while a simple functional one can come with a much cheaper price tag. However, it all rests on personal preferences and how much you can spare for your collection. Start hunting for a shelf early so that you can get the best bargain for your money. If you get lucky, you might even find a good shelf at a reasonable second-hand price.

Think long term

If you’ll be storing your records for a long period of time, it is best that you invest in heavy duty boxes that will preserve your records for extended periods. To achieve a homogenous look, look for boxes of the same design, build quality and materials. Depending on the size of your record collection, you could get one large box; however, getting a few smaller boxes is a better option as this will help you organize your collection according to genre. Besides being durable, quality boxes will help your collection look much better from an aesthetic point of view, especially if you intend to keep your collection in plain view.

Decide on a system

Once you’ve settled on your storage space and fixtures, it’s time to decide on a system for organizing your records, Some people choose to organize their records according to band names, in alphabetical order, while other people opt to arrange their collection according to genre and sub-genres. Choose a system that you’ll be comfortable using. If you have a record collection spanning a vast range of genres, it may be better toarrange them according to genre as it’ll be much easier for you to find something when the occasion arises.

Ultimately, you should be comfortable with the way you organize your vinyl record collection. Sometimes the sentimental value of these records far outweigh their monetary value so taking proper care of them is essential to preserving them.