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Encapsulation
ENCAPSULATION - IT IS NOT JUST FOR HISTORIC ITEMS
Encapsulation is a good, reversible method of protecting many things you want to preserve – documents, birth certificates, awards, newspaper articles and more.
Before you encapsulate your document, deacidify it using Wei T’o or other similar spray, Archivist’s Cocktail,* or by bathing in distilled water. Otherwise, any inherent chemicals may continue to decompose the item. DO NOT SUBMERSE ANY DOCUMENT THAT HAS WRITING IN INK. Always test in an inconspicuous corner before treating the entire document.
To encapsulate your document, place it between two sheets of transparent polyester, polyethylene or polypropylene film that are larger than the document. In other words, make a sandwich. Allow space for air to surround the document and seal the sheets with Double-Coated Film Tape.
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Microwave Wheat Starch
Paste |
Loyal Librarian’s Cocktail
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Make your own archival wheat paste in minutes using wheat starch, distilled water, and a microwave oven. To make paste, use one tablespoon of wheat starch and five tablespoons of distilled water.
- Empty wheat starch into microwave-save bowl, add distilled water.
- Place in microwave and heat on high setting for 25-30 seconds.
- Remove and stir thoroughly.
- Microwave again on high setting for another 25-30 seconds.
- Remove and stir again.
- Repeat steps 2 through 5 for another 2 to 3 minutes (varies with power of microwave unit).
- Let paste stand for 2-3 minutes to cool and thicken.
- Strain.
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The Rev. Christopher Kelly, Historiographer of San Joaquin, submits the following recipe for preserving newspaper clippings from yellowing or becoming brittle:
- Take 1 quart of club soda (Canada Dry) and 1 Milk of Magnesia tablet.
- Crush tablet, mix with soda; store overnight in refrigerator.
- Use a brush or spray bottle to soak clippings thoroughly.
- Dry over a screen away from light. Then place in plastic envelopes after the clippings are completely dry.
(This recipe was provided to The Family Place by the late A.J. Simmonds, Archivist, Utah State University.)
Jeanne English of Preservation Source in Salt Lake City,
(www.preservationsourse.com) prefers to bathe newspaper clippings in distilled water for to acidify.
At a seminar sponsored by The Family Place she emphasized that the water will not weaken fibers, but will strengthen them. Dry on
a flat surface. |
THERE ARE FOUR ENEMIES IN PRESERVATION OF BOTH DOCUMENTS AND TEXTILES:
- Temperature. Keep materials at cool, even temperatures, i.e., inside closets.
- Light. Keep materials in dark conditions.
- Humidity. Provide dry conditions.
- Acidity. Deacidify to prevent destruction from within.
THE FAMILY
PLACE
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"Where Memories Live"
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