Got one of those transparent waterproof document wallets for Christmas and thought I would copy my paper charts into smaller chunks and keep the relevant set in the wallet for quick reference. Retrieved my charts still in the cardboard postal tube from the boat and took them home to find they have mildew spots all over them, but fortunately not bad enough to make them unreadable. Copied two charts into 8 x A3 sheets each at the same resolution as original with around 30 mm overlap between sheets and numbered them. Using a Portland plotter and divider are these copies good enough for fixing position from GPS or LOP for coastal cruising that I could leave the originals home? What is the best way to store charts on a boat? I keep one of those moisture absorbers in the head and haven't noticed any mould or condensation any where else on the boat. Thanks

normal photocopiers always reduce the copy slightly...not much. copy is about 98-99%.

not much in normal .

Don't use cardboard. It shouldn't be on a boat.

Get some kind of plastic tube, proper chart tubes are only $20 at whitworths.

save and collect those little silica gel packs that seem to come in everything you buy, chuck a few in the chart tube, keep a bunch in an airtight bag that you can put your phone in after you drop it in the water, make up bundles of them in small mesh bags and put in Nav table, book cupboards etc. swap them out every now and then.

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FreeRadical said..
Don't use cardboard. It shouldn't be on a boat.

Get some kind of plastic tube, proper chart tubes are only $20 at whitworths.

save and collect those little silica gel packs that seem to come in everything you buy, chuck a few in the chart tube, keep a bunch in an airtight bag that you can put your phone in after you drop it in the water, make up bundles of them in small mesh bags and put in Nav table, book cupboards etc. swap them out every now and then.

+1 . Especially the silica gel packs. I used plumbing pipe from the hardware store with appropriate caps either end.

I was told to always fold charts and store them flat.

Actually these days you may be right. Those charts I used a lot were laminated. Eg PPB . Those not so much not laminated ,rolled and put in tube which lay flat. Mind you I don't know how they kept their charts clean in the old sailing ships. By the time I had plotted courses , taken cock hat fixes and running fixes, plotted course made good and rubbed it all out for the next race to the same destination four or five times they ended up a mess and had to be replaced anyway.

Thanks all for your advice, makes sense that the cardboard would be the problem, once it's damp it would take a long time to dry. I don't really have anywhere to keep the charts flat and safe so the PVC pipe idea might be best. Will also get hold of some of those silica packs.

I made one out of 100mm DWV pipe, with screw caps glued on, but its way too big.
90mm or smaller is more sensible & lighter, with glued on screw caps the charts stay bone dry.
cheers

Um, Bluemoon, if you glue the end caps on how do you take the charts out of the tube to use them

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Bruski068 said..
Um, Bluemoon, if you glue the end caps on how do you take the charts out of the tube to use them

I never look at the dam things anyway, so not a problem!

falling overboard laughing my guts out Bluemoon, thanks I needed that, plumbing tape wrapped around the thread should work just as well I'd guess

no need for thread tape, wont work on a course thread like that anyway,
cheers