VHS/VCR tapes have passed their prime in the audio-video timeline. Are you still holding on to the nostalgia or just have been too busy to transfer your home videos over to DVD? Here are six reasons to convert your VHS tapes to DVD before it is too late.
1. Mold
Very few families would suspect that what looks like a piece of plastic could be a breeding ground for mold. Spots with white powder or dust could destroy your cherished memories and videos. A touch of mold could be cleaned off from VHS tapes, but if left alone, with time, it becomes heavy white coating on your magnetic tape. If that happens, you will not find a video transfer service lab that would be willing to run your tapes through their expensive VHS to DVD conversion equipment.
2. Tape Warping and Shrinkage
Extreme temperature changes over time can cause serious damage and warping to the magnetic ribbon in the video tapes. Warping or shrinkage cause image distortion and static noise. Beyond a point, the tape ribbon is too warped to run smoothly in the tape player.
3.Tape Sticking
Along with extreme temperature changes air quality can be a major factor in your VHS memories' shelf lives! Humidity can be the kiss of death for your recorded childhood memories, wedding vows, causing the tape in VHS housing to stick together. Over the years, we have received a couple of hockey pucks that were once loose reel of tape now stuck together.
4. Housing Cracks or Housing Mechanism Jams
If you had children or were a young child in the VHS era, you might remember the beating your old VHS tapes have taken over the years. They have been dropped, thrown, and stepped on - OK, your family home videos probably didn't receive the same treatment as the kids' favorite Disney movies. Still, simply watching, rewatching, and rewinding puts wear and tear on the housing case of your VHS tapes. It's not indestructible. A cracked case could jam the housing mechanism, causing it to jam in the player.
5. Tape Snaps off from Housing
Over the years, the multiple rewinding takes a toll on the tape and its housing case! There is a chance that the fragile tape could detach from the housing making it impossible to rewind and watch your favorite family memories. Fortunately, this one is actually easily reparable. Most video transfer lab has knowledgeable technician that has the fine tools to unscrew the housing, re-attach the tape the mechanism and screw it back again. Once repaired, transfer it to DVD or digital formats that cannot decay immediately.
6. Torn or Shredded Tape Ribbon
VHS tapes are fragile and with temperature changes, humidity, and wear and tear the tape can tear. Needless to say, once your video tape is torn it is beyond the point of repair and your recorded memories have "gone with the wind".
Even though your VHS has no expiration date printed on it, you can see how it definitely has a shelf life. What is that shelf life? 10 years? 15 years? VHS tapes stopped being used in the 90s. This is the year 2013, which means your tapes are likely to be 15-20 years old. The best time to transfer your tapes? Yesterday. Don't wait any longer, your kids and their kids are counting on you to safe their family home movies before it is too late
First time transferring VHS tapes to DVD? You can find tape-transfer how-to videos at http://www.playitagainvideo.tv/.
Maurice Sheinfeld has been transferring VHS tapes to DVD at a video transfer lab in Newton, MA since 1986
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