I have been an archivist/librarian for
a very, very long time. I have
dealt with donors who, with great pride and fanfare, bring in boxes of books
that have been stored in attics, basements and barns, and it shows. Rats nests (yes, they do make them!),
birds’ nests, poop, mold, dead critters, smoke and soot – you name it, and
you’ll find books damaged by them.
But what if you love to stroll through
used book shops or vintage shops, and can’t resist a gorgeous book? Perhaps a vintage 1930’s edition of Pride
and Prejudice to grace your coffee table? How can you be sure that what
you’re buying won’t come home with unwanted guests?
The most important thing to remember
about books is that they are made out of materials that are, for the most part,
hygroscopic, meaning that the materials will shrink and expand when exposed to
moisture. Books are like sponges,
and your job will be to control how much exposure your collection will bear. Materials used in book binding are also
mostly organic, which means that your books are naturally tasty treats for a
variety of bugs and creatures.
Curb your buying impulses until you’ve
given the book a good look. Rely
on your nose, your eyes and your sense of touch. Books in good condition should
not be dank smelling. When
touched, they should not leave sticky, slimy, colored, or webby residues on
your hands, all of which are signs of potentially active mold. Leather bindings, when touched, should
not deposit a red powdery substance on your hands (or worse yet, your clothes!)
– that red powder is called “red rot,” and is a sign that the binding has begun
to degrade. Lastly, the text
block, the paper that makes up all the pages of the book, should have no
holes. Holes are the evidence of
bookworms and other unwanted guests.
If you simply can’t resist a book, and
you discover a problem, or if your current collection suffers from damage, you
can try to address those problems at home. Here are some techniques you can try:
· Mold residue on a dry
book.
DO NOT TRY TO CLEAN AN ACTIVE
GROWTH OF MOLD. Active mold (soft and fuzzy!)
requires professional assistance.
If the book is suffering from mold residue, first isolate the book from
the rest of your collection. If
you have a vacuum with a HEPA filter, remove any attachments, and cover the
nozzle with two or three knee-hi’s secured with a rubber band. DO NOT use a vacuum without a HEPA
filter. Doing so will just spread
the residue throughout your home.
Vacuum on the lowest setting possible to remove as much of the powdery
residue as possible. Once you are
finished vacuuming, immediately dispose of the vacuum bag. DO NOT reuse that bag! You may also use a very soft, wide
brush, like one used for watercolors, to gently brush away residue. Please do this outside in order to
prevent contamination.
· Preventing mold on wet books. Keep in mind
that mold will grow in temperatures above 700 and in relative humidity above 60% for
more than 48 hours. If you can
treat a wet book in that 48 hour window, do so. Take the wet books, and stand them up next to one another,
very loosely, with spines alternating against fore-edges (the part of the cover
you use to open and close the book).
You can use bookends loosely positioned to prevent the books from
toppling over. Drop the
temperature of the space you are using as much as you possibly can to deter
mold growth. Use dehumidifiers and
air conditioners if available. Use
fans to circulate air, but don’t point the fans directly at the books. Doing so will cause the books to dry
too quickly, resulting in warped bindings. The books will be dry when they are warm to the touch. Once the books are dry, place each one
flat, and lay a heavy object on top of each one in order to flatten paper and
bindings. Please remember than
some warping may remain. If a book
with glossy pages, such as those used in art books, gets wet, you MUST
interleave each page of the book with absorbent, white paper while the book is
still wet. As the absorbent paper
becomes wet, remove it, and replace with a dry sheet. Continue to do this until the pages are almost entirely dry,
then stand the book up as indicated above, and complete the drying
process. If you do not interleave,
the pages will stick irreversibly together.
· Freezing wet books. While there
are sources that recommend the use of your home freezer for the temporary
storage of water damaged books until help is at hand, I personally
hesitate to do so. First, the
freezers used by conservators are not designed for food storage – they are set
at a lower relative humidity and temperature than those designed for home use. And secondly, if you want the freezing
to be effective, you cannot open the freezer door once the books have been
stored – and are you going to toss the ice cream in favor of the books? But if you are desperate, then by all
means toss the Haagen Daz and the leftovers, and store your precious ones until
treatment is at hand. Wrap each
book individually in freezer paper to prevent books from sticking to one
another. Store multiple books
spine down in a waterproof container.
Store individual books spine down in a freezer bag.
· Insect infestations. If you are in
a shop, and pick up a book in which lurks a living, breathing bug, leave the
shop. If you are a tidy
housekeeper, living in a home with central heat and air conditioning, then the
likelihood of a major infestation of bugs is small. Regular dusting of book collections, limiting exposure of
books to changes in temperate and humidity, and keeping food out of the gutters
of books will help prevent bug problems.
However, if you experience a significant infestation, call your
exterminator, and seek the help of a professional conservator.
To find a
conservator, go to the Resource Center of the
American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works.
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