Musty books

You may be interested in the trickle-down effect of our practices:  the
following is a sidebar extracted from the 12/26/93 (p. C3) issue of the
York (Pa.) Sunday News, accompanying an article on used bookstores in
York and Adams counties:

    What To Do for your Musty Books

    Here's what to do for books that smell musty:

    Insert used dryer fabric-softener sheets every few pages in the
    books, said Gwyn Irwin, co-owner of First Capitol Antiquarian Book &
    Paper.

    After the fabric-softener sheets have gone through the dryer a few
    times, the oiliness is gone from the sheets but the smell remains to
    freshen the book, she said.

    Also, if a book becomes damp, immediately put it in a plastic bag
    and put it in the freezer, said Richard McIlnay of McIlnay's Books.

    The moisture will form into ice crystals, which can be brushed away,
    he said.

Start saving those fabric-softeners, folks.  Now, if I do 1 laundry
every 2 days for a year, and I have X musty books each on average of Y
pages... --pg

Peter Graham
Rutgers University Libraries
169 College Ave.
New Brunswick,
NJ 08903
908-932-5908
fax 908-932-5888

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 7:49
                 Distributed: Saturday, January 8, 1994
                        Message Id: cdl-7-49-003
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