When displaying your epic LEGO set collection, there are many hazards you must consider. One of those hazards is dust. While dust will not damage your LEGO sets, it certainly doesn’t look nice at all; and once the dust has settled, it can be pretty hard to clean.
So, how can you display your LEGO sets while minimizing the amount of dust accumulation? Luckily, there are some options for you.
The key word I want to emphasize before moving on is “minimize”. You’re probably not going to completely prevent dust accumulation, but there are certainly measures you can take to prevent the quick buildup of dust.
1. Displaying Your LEGO Sets in a Closet
Dust is in the air, on the ground, on your furniture, on various other surfaces, and it gets kicked up by movement. When the dust is kicked up, it finds its way to your LEGO sets. Keep in mind, it’s not just you kicking up the dust either. Your spouse, kids, pets, and roommates all contribute as well. So, it makes sense that if you display your LEGO sets in a room where there isn’t much movement, the dust buildup will be minimized. The closet is good example of room that is not traversed nearly as much as the other rooms throughout the rest of your home.
Closets don’t experience much traffic and they are also usually not exposed to as much air from the outside (when your windows are open, dust can get in from outside), so they make for a great place to display your LEGO set collection.
2. Displaying your LEGO Sets in a Cabinet
If you don’t have the space in your closet, another good option could be a storage cabinet. Storage cabinets are typically used to store clothes, tools, and numerous miscellaneous items; however, they can work as a great way to display your collectables.
Much like your closet, cabinets do a pretty good job shielding the contents stored inside from dust travelling through the air.
When you want your collection to visible, all you need to do is open the cabinet doors, and your collection is there on display for everyone to see. When you no longer need to them be visible, just close the doors,
Most storage cabinets can be made from wood, metal, or plastic. Also, storage cabinets come in a variety of sizes—some will be shorter than you and others will be taller than you. It’s all about what you prefer.
3. Display Cases
If you don’t like the idea of your LEGO sets being hidden away in a closet or storage cabinet, but you still want to protect your sets from dust, then you may want to go with something like a glass display case.
Glass display cases allow you to have the best of both worlds. Your LEGO sets will be visible to you, your family, and your friends; and you won’t need to worry about excessive dust build up.
4. Acrylic Display Cases for Individual LEGO Sets
We’ve covered large display cases, but what if you just want to encapsulate one set in a display case of its own? In this case, you may want to look into smaller acrylic display cases. For certain LEGO lines like Technic, you can find acrylic display cases made for specific sets. You can even find acrylic cases for your minifigures.
Feel free to check out our article all about displaying Technic sets here.
5. A Display Room
If you have a room in your home that you don’t need for anything else, this can be a great place to display your LEGO sets. You can use whatever shelves or tables you like in your display room. As long as the room is not traversed very often, the windows remain closed, and you keep the door shut, dust accumulation should be slow.
6. Combining Your Options
If you really want to go the extra mile in your fight against dust, you can combine some of the options I have mentioned above. For example, you can have your LEGO sets displayed in storage cabinets within a display room or closet.
You Will Never Stop Dust Completely
One of the hard truths we need to come to terms with as collectors of action figures, Funko Pops, LEGO, etc. is that if you want to put your collectables on display, they will get dusty. Unless, you have your LEGO sets displayed in an air-tight container, you won’t be able to completely prevent dust from building up overtime.
Basically, you will eventually need to clean dust off of your sets. You’ll need to find the tools that work best for you. For many people, air cans will be adequate, but sometimes the dust settles in crevices and you will need to use a paint brush or tooth brush to clean the dust off. Some people even use water to clean their sets.
Dust-Off Disposable Compressed Gas Duster, 10 oz Cans, 6 Pack (Amazon)
Eventually, you will need to clean off your sets, but taking measures to reduce dust build-up will make it so that you have to clean your sets far less often.
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