Care & Handling
Books can be safely shelved on their tail end or their spine, but they should never be shelved this way.
What is on their fore-edge?
Sometimes mistaken for mold, this reddish, speckled appearance is caused by impurities in paper, and is not generally cause for concern.
What is foxing?
One of the two environmental conditions that promote mold growth.
What are high temperature and high relative humidity?
Along with temperature, we monitor this environmental condition in our collection storage areas
What is relative humidity?
This type of emergency is the most common threat to PUL's collections.
What is a water emergency?
Books with loose pages or multiple components should be secured using cloth tape or this cinching cloth band -- never a rubber band!
What is a grip-tite?
"Red rot" is a term for when this bookbinding material becomes dry and powdery.
What is leather?
When handling items that may be moldy, it's important to wear PPE -- this type of equipment.
What is personal protective equipment?
This term describes the temperature at which water in the air begins to condense on surfaces.
What is the dew point?
This team of PUL staff includes one member who is "on-call" at all times in case of a collections emergency.
Who are the Collections Emergency Response Team?
One of the types of material you should wear nitrile gloves when handling.
What are photographs and photographic negatives, or metal objects?
You can get into a sticky situation using this material to try to do your own book repairs -- always send damaged items to Preservation & Conservation!
What is tape?
This is a common technique for causing active mold to become dormant.
What is freezing (or desiccants)?
At temperatures above this value, the rate of natural aging increases.
What is 75 degrees?
Wet books and magazines with this type of paper must be frozen as soon as possible to prevent irreversible blocking of the pages.
What is clay-coated paper?
Don't use this writing implement to take notes when working with rare or special collections.
What is a pen? (Pencil only please!)
One of the most common types of "inherent vice" seen in library collections, this condition affecting books limits the options for repair -- only send these items to conservation if they have circulated.
What is brittle paper?
PUL uses a holistic approach to pest management that prioritizes prevention of infestations in order to minimize the use of chemical pesticides. This approach is known as IPM -- this kind of pest management.
What is Integrated Pest Management?
Relative humidity above this value can result in mold, metal corrosion, and dye bleed in vulnerable collections.
What is 65%?
After a water emergency, wet collections can begin to grow mold after this many hours.
What is 48-72 hours?
When removing a book from a shelf, hold it by the center of the spine with your fingers extending onto both boards. Never pull it by this area at the top of the spine.
What is the headcap?
Just like the part of a door with the same name, this area where the case of a book joins the textblock can become loose over time -- and tightening it can prevent further damage from occurring.
What is the hinge?
This is the name of the fine powdery refuse that can sometimes be a sign of an active pest infestation. HINT: it rhymes with "brass"
What is frass?
This four letter acronym is defined as "a measure of organic material's life expectancy based on the cumulative effects of changes in environment."
What is the TWPI (time-weighted preservation index)?
This is the simplest technique for drying wet books.
What is air drying?