Will my sets lose value?

p8nt4lyfe · 2014-01-10T00:50:26.000Z

I open and display many of my Lego sets (Modular Buildings, UCS Ships). Most of these sets have been built and displayed for just over a year. I'm worrying that keeping them built for a prolonged period of time might damage their clutch power and make them much looser, thus reducing their value in the long term. I recently picked up a 10179 that was never broken down and just thrown in a bin in one piece for about 5 years. I spent a month breaking it down and rebuilding it, and most of it (Plates, large bricks) were still snug while building, but a lot of smaller 1 and 2-stud pieces would fall off if I held the set upside down and shook :( I'm only concerned because I don't want some of my favorite sets (Imperial Shuttle, Fire Brigade) to suffer a similar fate. Has anyone on here experienced a loss of clutch power? If so, do you have any tips/tricks that you use to maintain the bricks quality over the years? Is there an optimal amount of time that you should display before those wonderful little bricks start to stretch? I'm very close to breaking a bunch of my sets down, but don't want to destroy my awesome display shelves...help!