Howdo I keep a WWII navy uniform clean?

I was very fortunate enough to have my great Uncle give me his Seaman Navy Blue Uniform several years ago. It literally has been sitting in my closet for the past 10 years.

How should I keep it in pristine condition? For being over 60 years old it is in quite good shape. I am worried about mold or anything like that forming on it. It seems that some stuff has molded on it already. Would wrapping it in that plastic wrapping that people get to keep suits/dresses clean be a good idea? Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Aaron

 

you know what? besides having it "dry cleaned" to start with (which will stop all the "growths"), this might be a good example of a time to use one of those As Seen On TV storage bags. You know the ones I'm talking about, where a vacuum cleaner is used to remove the air from the bag?

Goto:

https://www.spacebag.com/12/Default.aspx

Drop in a mothball or something like it, and suck the air out of the bag. That should almost make the uniform "ageless". Just a thought.

 

If you are in a humid climate sealed plastic may not be a good idea. The mothball would be great and in a "red wood" drawer or box would also be good. If you can keep it breathing with the fresh mothball that will keep it many years. You could hang it in a suit cover that is not air tight as well with a mothball or two in a pocket. Keep it out of direct sun if possible.

 

Thank you all for the good idea, I will have to do some research on what will work the best. It is in my closet away from sun light. Actually, now that I think of it, we hang damprid throughout all our closets in the house. Moisture Control, Odor Control & Healthier Indoor Air | DampRid It seems to do the trick, but obviously don't want to take any chances with the uniform, so as mentioned above will look into everyone's suggestions. Also, I live about a mile from the beach in Southern California so the weather can be an issue in terms of being dry but fortunately not much moisture whatsoever.

 

I wash my navy uniforms at low temperature and let them dry in the sun. I also use Febreze to control odors. I would not dry clean it . They will mix it up with others itmes and it might be fragilized. You lay however use a steam pistol at home which is also very useful if you want to avoid putting in a washing machine or for parts that should be dry cleaned only.

 

"Skipper" may have a point, if you live in a large area you may not have access to smaller dry cleaning shops. Here in Billings MT., every "One Hour" type shop has its own machine setup and you can simply request that your items be cleaned separate, at a moderate "extra" charge. I don't know how that works in Hermosa Beach CA..