Question to those of you who collect coins

I heard today that zinc, which is used in the newer pennies can be hazardous,


the report stated "Zinc, a major component of mid-1982-and-later US cents, is toxic in large quantities"


Now, it didn't go into detail as to how it is hazardous, like by inhaling the fumes or from swallowing.

So this got me thinking, i have about 20 dollars worth of the new pennies (the one with the shield on the back), stored in a locker about 20 feet from my bed. And this got me wondering, is this talking about swallowing the things, or breathing them? i've also got about 15 dollars rolled up of various wheat pennies, along with "penny" looking coins from other countries that contains, god only knows what, materiel's.


Is they anyone here that has heard similar accounts or any metallurgist that knows about zinc?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc_toxicity

I don't think that handling coins is a particularly risky activity. I would be more worried about getting too much from dietary supplement pills.

The zinc pennies are plated in copper, effectively sealing off the zinc. That said, zinc is generally only toxic if ingested in much larger quantities than you would get from handling pennies. Off topic, but pennies are a big nuisance I wish we would do away with. Most people have big containers full of pennies they just threw in from change.

I miss the dollar gold coins - those are zinc brass, btw. I used to get full $25 rolls of them at the local bank and leave small piles of gold for restaurant tips, fun stuff..

StarHalo said:

I miss the dollar gold coins -

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Australian one dollar coin is 92% copper 6% aluminium 2% nickel.



Two Dollar coin is also 92% copper 6% aluminium 2% nickel.

Do a Google search on toxic coins.

Before retiring I worked in a diagnostic lab for animals. Over many years there was just one case of zinc poisoning due to ingestion of pennies. I still remember, because it was so unusual, receiving from the necropsy veterinarian a bunch of partly dissolved pennies, found in the belly of a dog. My tests of the dog's blood, liver, and those pennies verified high levels of zinc, and the probable cause of death.

Geoff

There is a lot of good information available about zinc, pennies (and other topics) on wikipedia in surprisingly well written acticles.

I will go along with JTR on his comment though, there are far too many types of coins in use.

In the US, we could get along just fine with only the 5 and 25 cent coins for normal use, and the size and shape are easy to associate with their value. I love that the $1 is a paper bill, no matter the cost of producing it, it is worth it.

I never thought about this much until spending some time in Germany and dealing with the euro cents system. I really enjoy my business travel in Europe, the people, the food, and that (most countries ) will accept one currency. That being said, there are a LOT of coin types, and it is a pain. 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 cents, and then 1 and 2 euro coins. It is great mathematically, but for visitors and daily use, it is like carrying a brick in your pocket. I also have to goof around digging through and reading each coin to figure out how to pay for things, slowing down the line.

If you have a business in Europe, PLEASE consider to just give Americans change in 5 cent, 20 cent, 1 euro coins, and paper bills. You will be doing us a big favor and we will be able to pay for things faster.

oh yeah... definitely get rid of the penny! If not for the fact that it is nearly literally worthless, apparently it's also nearly deadly!!

I've used euros, and sort of liked the rational choice of coin values, but it really is too many coins. I say just use nominal values of 1 and 5 instead of 1, 2, and 5. The engineer in me wants to use 1 and 3.162 (i.e. square root of 10), but I can see that it might be less popular than the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin. Too bad.

Having grown up with the Eisenhower dollar coin and the 50 cent coin, I rather like the 1 and 2 euro coins, as well as the pound coin and Loonies. Maybe I just like currency with some heft?

Steve K said:

oh yeah... definitely get rid of the penny! If not for the fact that it is nearly literally worthless, apparently it's also nearly deadly!!

I've used euros, and sort of liked the rational choice of coin values, but it really is too many coins. I say just use nominal values of 1 and 5 instead of 1, 2, and 5. The engineer in me wants to use 1 and 3.162 (i.e. square root of 10), but I can see that it might be less popular than the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin. Too bad.

Having grown up with the Eisenhower dollar coin and the 50 cent coin, I rather like the 1 and 2 euro coins, as well as the pound coin and Loonies. Maybe I just like currency with some heft?

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Stick to silver quarters lol. I've got a three left from my dad's once large collection (a little over 500). I dunno where the rest are, but i have this sinking gut feeling that one of my less....versed family members brought it to a coin counter or bank a few years ago and...disposed of them. Ounce for ounce, I'm pretty sure they threw out at least 10 times what the minted quarters were worth. FML FML, FML, for real. threw away what i estimate to be about $6000 worth of silver and copper. Again I say FML.

*note to collectors* NEVER keep your coins in cigar boxes or glass jars, the ignorant fools (family as they may be) might just try to get a quick buck. Jeez, even pawning them would've pulled in more profit. GAH. Okay, done now. Is it okay to branch off to bill collections as well? I have a 10$ silver note i'd like to show off

Just for fun, I am testing the idea of using ONLY the quarter and nickel for paying, and receiving change. Pennies I just refuse or put into the donation jar, and when offered dimes, I ask the clerk to convert them to 2 nickels.

No one seems to mind, and I have been surprised at how fast it is cleaning up my spare change pile. If you are so inclined, give it a try and post how it works out for you.

HarryN said:

when offered dimes, I ask the clerk to convert them to 2 nickels.
I have been surprised at how fast it is cleaning up my spare change pile.

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How does having two coins instead of one help you clean up?

Norm

Instead of using 4 coin types; 1, 5, 10 (which is smaller) and 25, I just use the nickel (5 cent) and quarter (25 cent). With just 2 types of coins instead of 4 (or more if you count the odd ball ones we make), and a clear "size to value" relationship, it is just faster to use and "grab some" from the change box.

It isn't life changing or anything, but for me just a little more convenient. It is also an interesting experiment to see how people react when I explain what I am doing.

Where I plan to really use this concept in the future, is when I go to Europe again next year. They have 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 cent, and then 1 and 2 euro coins. If I can just use the 5 and 20 cent, and 1 euro, which are also increased size = increased value, that will be much easier. We will see how easy it is to just get change in those denominations though, especially with my poor German pronunciation.

Try it for a month and see what you think. It is about the cheapest experiment there is.

Harry

I would not consider a clad penny to be nearly old enough to be considered a collectable coin.

HarryN said:

Instead of using 4 coin types; 1, 5, 10 (which is smaller) and 25, I just use the nickel (5 cent) and quarter (25 cent).

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Understood Harry, be interesting to see how it works for you.

Norm

Norm said:

Understood Harry, be interesting to see how it works for you.

Norm

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Hi Norm, I already passed the 30 day mark for the experiment. I like it so much I am now just using these two coins (5, 25) and don't see any reason to go back.

Flying Turtle said:

Before retiring I worked in a diagnostic lab for animals. Over many years there was just one case of zinc poisoning due to ingestion of pennies. I still remember, because it was so unusual, receiving from the necropsy veterinarian a bunch of partly dissolved pennies, found in the belly of a dog. My tests of the dog's blood, liver, and those pennies verified high levels of zinc, and the probable cause of death.

Geoff

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It is this reason that people should not throw pennies (or any coins, really) at animals at the zoo or any amusement parks.