Prepare, Pack And Store Your Pyrex Collection For Months Or Years

If you're a Pyrex lover, you know how easily a collection can take over your home. You find a piece at a rummage sale and another at a yard sale. Then, you have a friend decide to downsize her own collection and give you a pile of Pyrex dishes to work with. Many people have a hard time letting go of some of the Pyrex pieces because you just never know when you'll need it again, or it becomes special to you in some way.

If your Pyrex collection is outgrowing your kitchen, it's time to select some pieces and put them away in storage for a later date. Here's how to prepare, pack and store your Pyrex glassware for months, or years.

Clean the Pyrex

Before you pack it up for a while, your Pyrex must be cleaned. You know those black scuff marks that show up on the bottom and sides of the dishes from sliding them in and out of the hot oven. Instead of ignoring those scuffs, you can remove them with a bit of Bar Keeper's Friend. Just sprinkle a bit of the powder onto a wet cloth and wipe the black scuffs away. The only thing you shouldn't use the Bar Keeper's Friend on is the gold detail work on some Pyrex designs.

Once clean, let the glassware dry completely.

Pack it Up

Now to pack it up. You'll need boxes, bubble wrap, tape, plastic bags, newspaper and a box cutter.

You can stack multiple pieces of Pyrex inside of each other. The trick to doing this safely is layering cardboard between each piece and securing the pieces together with bubble wrap. So, you get a large bowl, and cut a piece of cardboard to lay inside. Press another bowl inside to press the cardboard down. Then, another layer of cardboard and another bowl. Then, slide the stack into a plastic bag and tape the bag so that it holds the bowls together tightly. Now, wrap the entire unit in two or three layers of bubble wrap.

Place the unit in a box that is a few inches larger on each side. Fill the bottom with crumbled newspaper and place the unit on top of it. Crumble more newspaper to shove down in the sides and fill the top. Tape the box closed and label what's inside.

Store the Pyrex

Storing the Pyrex collection for months or years takes some planning. You don't want the collection to be exposed to freezing temperatures, so find a place that is cool, dry and out of the sun. If you don't have a place around your home to store it safely, consider leasing a small heated storage unit for this, such as from Discount Storage, and other precious items you've run out of room for in your home.