Mildewy magazines

[50Fraud]

Others among you must have huge collections of stinking old mildewy magazines.

I have heard that libraries have conservation means to kill and deodorize mildew -- vacuuming in a bell jar, or something.

I know about latex paint, and bleach, which may help under the eaves but not in the library.

Anybody here know the details of saving these old treasures?

[Unkl Ian]

Put them in bright sunshine.The UV will kill the mildew.

[Nads]

An old magazine that doesn't smell midewy is like a bat without a cave, a Sonny without a Cher, a Skid Row without Sebastian Bach singing.

[Satinblack]

[ QUOTE ]
An old magazine that doesn't smell midewy is like a bat without a cave, a Sonny without a Cher, a Skid Row without Sebastian Bach singing.

[/ QUOTE ]

LOLOLOL http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[50Fraud]

True, but I have enough mildewy magazines to stink like a cave full of bats AND skid row guys. No music to be heard.

I'll try the sunlight. Nothing about vacuum or chemicals?

[modernbeat]

DON'T DO IT!

The UV light in the sunshine will destroy the acid filled pulpy pages of old magazines. They'll suntan faster than Nads!

If you've got rampant growth you'll never be able to fix it for less than just buying good copies of the books. If you've got a little bit, but the pages aren't completely stuck together you can do one of two things - done them both, they both work.

High tech method: Buy a dehumidifier. Put it in a closet and place the books or magazines in racks above it. SLOWLY dry out the materials. Don't get them too hot - that also damages the paper.

Low tech: Stick the magazines in a FROST FREE freezer or a refridgerator that tends to make your lettuce wilt.

Dehumidifying will kill off any mold and mildue that is currently living. Then, page by page brush off the residue. Do it well away from where the books will be stored - you don't want those spores activating again! Try a vacum cleaner with a Hepa filter if you've got one.

Pages stuck together? This sucks. First use a humidifier to unstick the pages, then place blotter paper between the pages and dehumidify the book. For cheap magazines I'd skip buying expensive blotter paper and use blank newsprint.

There are all sorts of conservation methods used to preserve and restore old paper. Unfortunately, it's usually not worth it for old magazines. The time it takes to do it is better spend replacing them. Try to keep them in good shape to begin with.

[Upchuck]

sounds like a guy wanting to save his old autobuff collection! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I just hang mine on a coat hanger to dry if they are a bit damp but make sure the pages aren't stuck together or it'll dry that way

[sodbuster]

I was told to seperate the pages with newsprint and then put them in the freezer and that would take away the smell. Is it bad that I kinda like the smell? Just like the 50's bro.

Chris Nelson
Kansas

[65Luck]

Keep the relative humidity below 50% and store them in non-acidic containers. Keeping relative humidity below 50% keeps mildew and molds from growing.

Don't store them in cardboard boxes. Regular old cardboard has acids and stuff in it which will leach into the paper and slowly eat away at the magazine. As mentioned above the paper already has acids in it, might as well not add to the problem.

If you have any particular issues you want to save a comic book shop can set you up with acid free boxes, backing sheets and poly bags.

[HOTRODPRIMER]

[ QUOTE ]
sounds like a guy wanting to save his old autobuff collection! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

Man, I haven't heard of that magazine in years!HRP

[four-thirteen]

microwave for 30 seconds on high

some one told me this, but i haven't had the guts to try it on anything yet. seems like it might work, or also might destroy it completely. i have a pretty good pile of car crafts and hot rods from about 1953 to 1970, and some of them have a very obvious odor to them. i'd like to find a cheap and easy way to fix them. David

[oldandkrusty]

I'd be real hesitant to microwaving the magazines. All mags have metal staples and we know how microwaves just love metal things. While it is exciting to watch the lightning strikes going on inside your microwave oven, it won't take long before you KO the thing for good. And that will piss off your wife for sure. If you haven't got one of those, think of not having popcorn and warming up pizza! Bad, very bad.

[50Fraud]

Thank you all for these useful suggestions.

I have a very large collection of magazines and books (started in 1951) that got a sudden epidemic of mildew about three years ago. I lost hundreds of magazines to the worst of it, but there are still thousands left. I can't bring myself to just toss them. No, I don't want to give them away either.

They've been in a dehumidified room now for more than a year, and the smell is no longer that noticeable until I take one elsewhere in the house and open it.

Maybe I should just treat the most treasured ones to vacuuming and stuff, and plan on the library remaining mildly smelly forever??

[DrJ]

I learned the hard way not to buy magazines already in those plastic envelopes. Not without taking them out and snifing them.
I think being closed up in them seals in moisture and accelerates the mildew. Just leaving them out open seems to make it subside at least.

I was in Borders a while back and opened a new book and was hit with that familiar odor. I turned the book over to an employee telling his blank face that it could infect the rest of the books on the shelf and he walked off with it.
It was back on the shelf next time I went in. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

[Digger_Dave]

Like modernbeat says; it's a long process.

Due to a flood a couple of years ago I had a huge number of old car magazines and books that got totally soaked. I actually posted a plea for help here on the HAMB.

I contacted our local library to ask what could be done.

The biggest problem was "glossy" magazines and books; as soon as they start to dry, the pages start to "weld" together. The restoration department at the library indicated that by filling large tubs with water, (preferably distilled) and adding a couple of drops of chlorine (bleach; VERY LITTLE!) and resoaking the books and mags until you can start the drying process. Unfortunatly this trick will destroy the bindings of most books. The chlorine will kill the fungi.

You then follow what modernbeat recommends.

You will need to decide on what is "rare" and deserves the time and effort, and what will have to go. The "paper between the pages" does work; but it takes a long time. And make sure the news print is an acid free type. I tried to speed the process by putting the "sandwich" (book with paper between the pages) between a couple of pieces of steel plate and "squezing" the whole thing in a 5 ton press. Limited sucess.

I lost a large part of my collection simply because there wasn't enough hours in the day to restore stuff.