Can dvd/cd media be damaged if stored in a cake box?

Question

I'm wondering if i can damage my dvd media if I store them in a larger cake box (like 50, 100 peices). If somebody has any personal experience with this i would be very grateful.

Answer 1

Best to store vertically in individual cases.

Some estimates for CD/ DVD life go from 30 to 200 years.

Storing on a hard drive is a poor option. A disk crash, malware and accidental erasures can destroy the data. Storing on a hard drive allows you immediate access to all your files.

For storing on a CD/DVD I recommend you:
1) Use a quality brand. I like Verbatin best, then HP and TDK.
2) Do no use rewritable disks (RW) or dual layer (DL) , their life is much less. Rewritable disks are affected by light, so they also have a limited number of reads-a number that’s still uncertain.
3) Handle the CD/DVD as little as possible and only by outer edge or center hole.
4) Verify that the data has been transferred to the disk and is readable.
5) Make a second backup copy.
6) Place each CD in a case.
7) Store disks vertically
8) Store in a dark area, avoid extremes in temperature and humidity.
9) DVD+R is superior to DVD-R
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Care and Handling of CDs and DVDs -A Guide for Librarians and Archivists
http://www.foray.com/CDandDVDCareandHandlingGuide.pdf

Do:
1. Handle discs by the outer edge or the center hole.
2. Use a non-solvent-based felt-tip permanent marker to mark the label side of the disc.
3. Keep dirt or other foreign matter from the disc.
4. Store discs upright (book style) in plastic cases specified for CDs and DVDs.
5. Return discs to storage cases immediately after use.
6. Leave discs in their packaging (or cases) to minimize the effects of environmental changes.
7. Open a recordable disc package only when you are ready to record data on that disc.
8. Store discs in a cool, dry, dark environment in which the air is clean.
9. Remove dirt, foreign material, fingerprints, smudges, and liquids by wiping with a clean cotton fabric in a straight line from the center of the disc toward the outer edge.
10. Use CD/DVD-cleaning detergent, isopropyl alcohol, or methanol to remove stubborn dirt or material.
11. Check the disc surface before recording.

Do not:
1. Touch the surface of the disc.
2. Bend the disc.
3. Use adhesive labels.
4. Store discs horizontally for a long time (years).
5. Open a recordable optical disc package if you are not ready to record.
6. Expose discs to extreme heat or high humidity.
7. Expose discs to extremely rapid temperature or humidity changes.
8. Expose recordable discs to prolonged sunlight or other sources of ultraviolet light.
9. Write or mark in the data area of the disc (the area the laser “reads”).
10. Clean by wiping in a direction going around the disc.

For CDs especially do not:
1. Scratch the label side of the disc.
2. Use a pen, pencil, or fine-tip marker to write on the disc.
3. Write on the disc with markers that contain solvents.
4. Try to peel off or reposition a label.

Among the digital media, prerecorded and write-once optical discs are more stable than digital magnetic tape. Neither optical discs nor magnetic tape, however, is as stable as microfilm or paper. With proper care, microfilm and non-acidic paper can last for centuries, while magnetic tape lasts only a few decades (Van Bogart 1995). Just as film types can vary in years of usefulness, one disc type can also last longer than another. Temperature and humidity conditions can markedly affect the useful life of a disc; extreme environmental factors can render discs useless in as little as a few days.

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Per:
http://www.gcn.com/print/23_5/25166-1.html?topic=news

General industry guidelines now estimate office-burned copies of CDs and DVDs could remain readable for 100 to 200 years.

Most industry estimates place the life span of professionally produced optical disks somewhere between 20 and 100 years. But the weakness of the ROM disks stems largely from their aluminum reflective layer, Byers said.

Rewritable CDs and DVDs have a shorter life span of about 25 years, so Byers said he does not recommend them for archiving. A rewritable disk’s metal-alloy data layer is less stable than that in write-once disks. And rewritable disks are affected by light, so they also have a limited number of reads-a number that’s still uncertain.
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How To Choose CD/DVD Archival Media
http://adterrasperaspera.com/blog/2006/10/30/how-to-choose-cddvd-archival-media/

Answer 2

They should be stored in individual covers, standing up. The pressure might harm them. They're not indestructible. Buy a tower.

Answer 3

What are you going to store your cake in?