Why shouldn't you use PVC sleeves for storing vinyl records?

For our FAQ containing all of your PVC sleeve questions, please head to the bottom of the page. We've got answers to everything, including whether paper or plastic sleeves are better, how can you tell if a record sleeve is made from PVC and how you know if your sleeves are PVC-free.

Many audiophiles nowadays will seldom use PVC sleeves to keep their vinyl collections safe, but why is that? They seem to be a perfectly clean, neat and efficient storage option. Well, that’s exactly what we will be looking at in this article. 

Firstly, PVC (or Polyvinyl Chloride) sleeves on records is a hotly contested debate and has been for an incredibly long time. PVC sleeves have been used to keep records clean and dust-free for decades, but collectors began noticing issues, issues like hazing and misting appearing on their records’ playing surfaces, or colours on picture sleeves seeming to bleed or fade.

There are dozens of articles and videos online right now that warn against the use of PVC as a means of record storage for a plethora of reasons, and many of them can be rather detrimental.

It only takes a quick visit to sites like Discogs to see articles titled “PVC Sleeves… A WARNING”, and “Keep away from PVC bags” – these articles written by collectors who have unfortunately suffered the consequences of favouring PVC over another material like polythene (and more often than not, this decision is made completely unwittingly).

It transpires that PVC sleeves and regular vinyl records have one key ingredient in common… PVC. It is this same-chemical reaction coupled with heat that over time can cause damage to a record’s surface (and to the PVC sleeve as well by proxy – but I think we would all agree that the record is the thing worth trying to preserve here).

So, for a bit of context, throughout the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s, companies would go to great lengths to educate their audiences on how to properly maintain and store their newly purchased records. Many labels would actually include written ‘record care’ instructions on the paper inner sleeves that their records were housed in.

On these inner sleeves, it wasn’t uncommon to see advice like “keep your records away from sunlight, away from any known heat source, and upright without any additional or unnecessary weight on top of them”. It was this kind of education that sparked a generation of music lovers into finding alternative storage solutions for their collections.

So where do PVC sleeves come into the equation here? Well, it’s all to do with how PVC reacts to other materials, as well as how it fares under warmer conditions. As we mentioned before, keeping a bare record with no other outer inside a PVC sleeve will cause hazing and distortion quickly as a result of the PVC in that sleeve reacting with the materials that make up the record. This issue can often be seen with picture discs, which were often released in just a PVC sleeve.

Even when there is an inner sleeve and a picture sleeve between the record and the PVC, higher than normal temperatures can cause the PVC sleeve’s internal plastics to distort and bleach through to the record. We have mentioned the word ‘hazing’ a few times in this article, and this is because hazing is the number one indicator that a record has suffered from PVC damage.

It's always very sad to have an exciting looking record collection come in to our office only to find that has been stored in PVC sleeves for decades. The record sleeves will often be entirely stuck to the PVC sleeves, with hazing on the records that causes a constant hissing and renders them unplayable.

PVC damage can also show itself in other forms, like mottling or other staining. The other unfortunate thing to consider here is that PVC damage cannot be removed from a record, not even with isopropyl alcohol.

The solution? Polythene. 

Polythene is still a plastic based product, however, does not react nearly as harshly to warmer conditions when compared to PVC. For one reason or another, PVC sleeves still remain on various websites as viable and effective means of storing your records – the reality is that this simply is not true. So, if you are looking for something to keep your collection safe, look towards polythene.

You can browse our Polythene record sleeves here.

If you are looking for a more environmentally sound solution, paper (or indeed card) might be the way to go. Paper and card sleeve options are more common with 7” records due to their size, but can still be incredibly effective at keeping dust and debris away from your playing surfaces. There are two main risks involved with paper, however. Firstly, it is absorbent and can therefore hold moisture which can turn into mould on your records. Secondly, it also creates a certain amount of its own dust. If this is what you go for, we'd advise anti-static lined paper sleeves.

The truth is, as records continue to make a comeback in this technology-based world we live in, there will always be more and more methods of storing and maintaining your records. So, whether  you are new to collecting or have been doing so for years – do your records a favour and stay away from PVC.