The E-Sylum:  Volume 11, Number 9, March 2, 2008, Article 12

ON THE USE OF DEACIDIFICATION SPRAYS

Regarding Dave Kellogg's query about the Krylon "Make it
Acid-Free" spray, Anne E. Bentley of the Massachusetts
Historical Society writes: "In the 25 years I served as
paper conservator here, we made up our own 'deacidification
spray' for use on water-soluble inks.   Various types
of base salts were dissolved in alcohol solvents and
sprayed onto the surface of papers to saturate. Once
dried, the salts remained and neutralized most of the acids
present in the paper and if the paper was stored in archival
conditions (proper folders within archival boxes, etc.)
this was generally good to hold it in stasis for
approximately 20-25 years.

"There are several things to be very, very careful of if
Applying a solution to paper:  the inks must be tested
before spraying with anything, even water.  I suspect the
solvent in the Krylon is toluene or methanol (carcinogenic
as well as flammable) and might just dissolve some inks...
or at least make them bleed.

"I also saw the results of over-zealous application of the
spray by inexperienced users.  In too great a quantity,
the base salts acted like an acid, causing the manuscript
to have a gritty, crystalline surface that stained and
bleached out the whole document and rendered it brittle
beyond belief.

"I think that in general, the absolute best thing you can
do to protect your papers is to simply store them in the
best archival folders and boxes you can find, being careful
to avoid metal paper clips and staples (they rust in humid
climates) and especially rubber bands (desiccated rubber on
paper is nasty to chip away).  SOLINET (Southeastern Library
Network) has a good essay on basic archival library storage
available online at: environspecs.pdf

"If you have a very valuable document, it's worth taking to
a paper conservator for treatment.  The American Institute
for Conservation of Historic & Artistic Works has a great
website to help you locate what you need in your geographic
area: American Institute for Conservation of Historic & Artistic Works.

"For archival storage solutions, there are several businesses
with online catalogs:  University Products
archivalsuppliers.com;

Gaylord Brothers
www.gaylord.com;

and Demco among them
www.demco.com/."

Anne adds: "Please pass my compliments to Dick Johnson for
his elegant exposition on medal striking.  His description is
so clear that I could picture the whole process vividly as I
read it.  If he wrote guides to computer programs, we'd all
be experts!"

 QUERY: KRYLON MAKE IT ACID-FREE SPRAY OPINIONS SOUGHT
 esylum_v11n08a28.html

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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