7 under $17

Building repairs and renovations can be extremely expensive. One of the great things to remember is that preservation is as much about preparedness, as it is about prevention; a little bit will go a long way.

This is especially true with building conditions, environmental monitoring and even collection care. I took a trip to a local hardware store armed with the NEDCC preservation leaflets to see what jumped out as frugal DIY moves for an archive – my aim was small things with a big impact. This list does not attempt to be exhaustive – rather, I tried to focus on seven separate but related issues covering disaster planning, everyday maintenance and monitoring; I also redirect to some great resources. Here are my seven under seventeen-dollar findings:

1. Controlling Ultraviolet light is important to any library – whether it’s a special or general collection. The NEDCC has a great sectionon UV coverage and protecting collections from light damage; while the supplier I photographed wasn’t on the NEDCC site, you get the point – they’re are out there (and inexpensive). An added bonus? If you have a pretty window treatment you’re loath to cover, you’ll barely notice the film.

2. Heritage Preservation offers lots of tools and resources for disaster preparedness. Not surprisingly, a typical disaster kit might include: plastic sheeting to protect collections/equipment from water, tape, rubber boots, a flashlight, a camera and a list of who-to-call (more about this later). If you were to check out the NPS Conserve O Gram for September 2000 “Safe Techniques for Archival Surveying and Assessment" you’d see washable shoes or Tyvek booties as well as disposable suits mentioned (actually, the whole ‘kit’ is pretty cool to have on hand).

3. Recording the data of the temperature and relative humidity near your collections is important. There are some wonderful loggers which will help with data collection and record the temperature/humidity regularly (but they are pricey). The easiest option is to keep a log book next to your thermohygrometer and record the date, relative humidity and temperature (and where your thermostat is set) – you may want to do this several times a day so you can get a good idea of the conditions in your collection area. Monitoring temperature isn’t just for the ‘someday’ scenario – but allows you to know the best place you have for storage of some photographic materials (like ambrotypes, daguerreotypes and tintypes).

 

4. Building/collections security is an oft-forgotten piece of the preservation plan (maybe because no one really likes to think about it). Sadly, theft can be (and is) a problem. While internal building security is key (especially during open hours) buildings housing collections could sometimes use a window or door lock (or two). The NEDCC has a great leaflet on security.

 5. Small fans –if you do have a water-related emergency, its good to have a few fans on hand for drying damaged collection materials (for more information on how to handle wet collections materials, please see the Syracuse University Library site ‘Disaster Recovery Manual’) – in general fans speed up the drying process and inhibit mold growth. General air circulation is always a plus too.  

 

6. There are varying degrees of what ‘needs’ to be done to ensure a more-protected collection; the NEDCC (I know, them again – they seriously are the go-to place for resources though) has a fabulous check-list of priority actions. In addition to monitoring temperature and humidity (see above), they also suggest some no-brainers like lowering your winter thermostat setting (books like it cool), weather-stripping and caulking windows and doors and making sure ‘open’ areas are protected from the elements.

7. Bricks make excellent weights (when paper-covered) for doing minor book repairs – they also make handy book ends (more on this in a later post). And at $ .44 each – how can you go wrong?