3 ms·

Honestly I hope not, we have polymer notes in Canada and they tear horribly. I have lost bills just pulling them out of my wallet, most tellers will not take th

Honestly I hope not, we have polymer notes in Canada and they tear horribly. I have lost bills just pulling them out of my wallet, most tellers will not take them unless you mend them first. U.S. bills are excellent, and I would encourage them to continue printing them as-is.

Aelinsaar 11y ago
That's my impression too, and I've always been impressed at the longevity of US banknotes. Unless they actually start to rot, or are torn apart, they are shockingly tough.
protomyth 11y ago
Darnit, I was hoping the polymer notes would have a much longer life. Is the Canadian notes the same types as the Australian or New Zealand ones?
- microcolonel 11y ago
  I'm sure there are excellent polymers they could use. The one they do use gets brittle with temperature changes: really bad in Canada. The material tears effortlessly once a tear has started. Honestly, I think it's just a matter of it being amorphous rather than fibrous. If they make fibrous bills, they will likely circulate much longer.
  - kuschku 11y ago
    The new polymer-fibrous Euro bills are really awesome. They survive far more wear and tear than dollar notes or old Euro bills. (Which is why small notes were switched first)
    - protomyth 11y ago
      > (Which is why small notes were switched first) That's good planning although I still wish the $1 coin would catch on. Its good to hear at least one attempt at material advance works. Is it cheaper over the long run than the dollar notes?
      - kuschku 11y ago
        Well, the Eurozone never had 1€ or 2€ bills, and already is doing test runs regarding switching 5€ to coins[1]. But yes, Polymer notes survive about 4 times longer (2 years instead of half a year for the 5€ bill) than paper notes. Now you might think 6 months would be very short for bills, but 5€ bills are the most circulated bills in the western world. ________________________ [1] The design of the 5€ coins that you can currently get in Germany (they’re legal tender): http://img-9gag-fun.9cache.com/photo/aBrmYAZ_700b_v1.jpg http://img-9gag-fun.9cache.com/photo/aBrmYAZ_700b_v1.jpg
  - protomyth 11y ago
    Its really hard for product designers to get how problematic temperatures are in Canada and the upper plain states. It comes up a lot when dealing with poor people and vehicles. You need to keep it running in -20F / -29C to 100F / 38C. Heck, I remember one winter (89?) where the temp went from 60F to -20F in one day. That was problematic.
21 11y ago
We also have polymer money here, but my experience is vastly different. The notes are basically impossible to tear by hand. At most you can "stretch" them around the point you are trying to make a rip at. We are talking about around 1 minute of effort (and your fingers will hurt a little after). This video shows some serious abuse of an $100 canadian polymer bill (especially around 1:30) : https://youtu.be/y5WWKldu9IA?t=90 https://youtu.be/y5WWKldu9IA?t=90
timthorn 11y ago
The Bank of England has a very good reputation for reimbursing people with damaged notes: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/Pages/damaged_banknotes.aspx http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/Pages/damaged_bankn...
- vermontdevil 11y ago
  US as well http://www.moneyfactory.gov/submitaclaim.html http://www.moneyfactory.gov/submitaclaim.html
auxym 11y ago
Honestly I've never seen a teared polymer bill yet, whereas the paper did tear up after being folded over and over. You do have to be careful to keep them away from heat though (driers, space heaters etc), they shrivel up.

Aelinsaar 11y ago

That's my impression too, and I've always been impressed at the longevity of US banknotes. Unless they actually start to rot, or are torn apart, they are shockingly tough.

protomyth 11y ago

Darnit, I was hoping the polymer notes would have a much longer life. Is the Canadian notes the same types as the Australian or New Zealand ones?

microcolonel 11y ago
I'm sure there are excellent polymers they could use. The one they do use gets brittle with temperature changes: really bad in Canada. The material tears effortlessly once a tear has started. Honestly, I think it's just a matter of it being amorphous rather than fibrous. If they make fibrous bills, they will likely circulate much longer.
- kuschku 11y ago
  The new polymer-fibrous Euro bills are really awesome. They survive far more wear and tear than dollar notes or old Euro bills. (Which is why small notes were switched first)
  - protomyth 11y ago
    > (Which is why small notes were switched first) That's good planning although I still wish the $1 coin would catch on. Its good to hear at least one attempt at material advance works. Is it cheaper over the long run than the dollar notes?
    - kuschku 11y ago
      Well, the Eurozone never had 1€ or 2€ bills, and already is doing test runs regarding switching 5€ to coins[1]. But yes, Polymer notes survive about 4 times longer (2 years instead of half a year for the 5€ bill) than paper notes. Now you might think 6 months would be very short for bills, but 5€ bills are the most circulated bills in the western world. ________________________ [1] The design of the 5€ coins that you can currently get in Germany (they’re legal tender): http://img-9gag-fun.9cache.com/photo/aBrmYAZ_700b_v1.jpg http://img-9gag-fun.9cache.com/photo/aBrmYAZ_700b_v1.jpg
- protomyth 11y ago
  Its really hard for product designers to get how problematic temperatures are in Canada and the upper plain states. It comes up a lot when dealing with poor people and vehicles. You need to keep it running in -20F / -29C to 100F / 38C. Heck, I remember one winter (89?) where the temp went from 60F to -20F in one day. That was problematic.

21 11y ago

We also have polymer money here, but my experience is vastly different. The notes are basically impossible to tear by hand. At most you can "stretch" them around the point you are trying to make a rip at. We are talking about around 1 minute of effort (and your fingers will hurt a little after). This video shows some serious abuse of an $100 canadian polymer bill (especially around 1:30) : https://youtu.be/y5WWKldu9IA?t=90 https://youtu.be/y5WWKldu9IA?t=90

timthorn 11y ago

The Bank of England has a very good reputation for reimbursing people with damaged notes: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/Pages/damaged_banknotes.aspx http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/Pages/damaged_bankn...

vermontdevil 11y ago
US as well http://www.moneyfactory.gov/submitaclaim.html http://www.moneyfactory.gov/submitaclaim.html

auxym 11y ago

Honestly I've never seen a teared polymer bill yet, whereas the paper did tear up after being folded over and over. You do have to be careful to keep them away from heat though (driers, space heaters etc), they shrivel up.