Tuesday, 1 November 2016

7 Guidelines On Book Restoration And Maintenance

By Kathleen Mitchell


Ordinary wear and tear damages books over time. Others are damaged by accidental encounter with water, fire, acid, etc. Book restoration ensures that books are once more in usable condition. For the rare collection, it ensures that books are used many years after. Here are tips that will keep your collection usable and clean regardless of size or materials used.

What kind of repair needs to be done? Damage on books depends on its features and the element that caused this damage. In some, it is the pages that are torn while others have detached spine. You may just need a few pins or stitches to restore one book while another may require glue and tape. In some cases, delicate pages may require reinforcement before gluing. Identifying helps you to prepare for the task.

Collect the tools you need for repair. The tools depend on the kind of work that needs to be done. The most common materials used are a tape, scissors, glue and thread. The glue should be the kind used to bind papers. The thread ties the pages in smaller clusters before gluing them. A rubber band may also be effective in place of the thread. Set up a spacious and well lit work station to facilitate your work.

Individual pages are first repaired followed by signatures and later spine. With this approach, you will pay attention to torn pages and individual signatures before moving to bind the entire spine. A number of signatures are held together by waxed thread. The knot tied should be tight to ensure that it does not fall off as you bind them into a spine.

Cut and apply the binder tape. The tape should be the length of your spine. The tape is applied holding the spine and another attached to the cover. The sticky surface will be attached to the inner spine section of the cover and the inner cover. Enough pressure must be applied to ensure that the tape holds. A bone folder or Teflon may be used to hold the tape into place.

Use a clear tape to hold the outer cover while still allowing the text printed on it to remain legible. Ensure that you apply pressure to keep the tape in place. When holding the cover, leave a mobility allowance between the gutter and spine. Press thoroughly to remove any bubbles from the glued area. Bubbles weaken the bond.

After a reasonable time, remove the bone folder or Teflon used to apply pressure. The cover attached should be strong enough to sustain the weight of the book when held upside down. Additional mending like reinforcing the spine and mending corners are done at this stage. This prepares it for general use.

Basements should be avoided because most of them are dump leading to damage on the paper. Store books upright on shelves to ensure that no area bears unnecessary weight. Instead of folding pages as you read, utilize bookmarks. Further, do not bend it as you read. Air tight storage or wrapping in plastic makes books odorous. Instead, keep them in a dry place and cover them with a piece of cloth.




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