Replies

1. 
   JohnWW | Oct 20, 2004 07:49pm | #1

   Shellac is the classic treatment for drawer interiors, stable, nonreactive, and odor free once cured.

   John W.

1. 
   keith1947 | Oct 20, 2004 10:00pm | #2

            Hello JohnW

           Thanks for the info, but do you know if cured shellac is acid and lignin (missed from first specification) free.   These papers will be used for archive type records.

   regards    Teabag

1. 
   Alan | Oct 21, 2004 02:37am | #4

   tea bag,

   Epoxy!  Even though I'm getting to be a broken record about the advantages and attributes of epoxy...read on!

   I would mix up a fairly thin batch of straight epoxy, no fillers or extenders, and roller it on all the interior wood.  I'd also put epoxy on as much of the exterior as possible--without ruining the finish, of course.  Two or three coats would be ample.

   Once it's dried and cured epoxy is inert and non-reactive.  It's often used in archival storage of valuable photographs and negatives.  Photographic materials, like your wifes papers, have to be kept away from any sources of acid.

   WEST Systems is the great guru of epoxy/wood products and information for the entire civilized world.  IIRC they have a very good web site that is full of the kind of information you need.  They also sell the stuff, of course, and their products are invariably the best that can be found.

   Alan

1. 
   keith1947 | Oct 22, 2004 10:41am | #5

   Hello Alan

           Thanks, this sounds like the ideal solution, I will do search on web site .

                                        thanks again, regards

                                              Teabag.

1. 
   RickL | Oct 22, 2004 11:08pm | #7

   Have you tried looking at sources that sell archival type materia like special bags for putting paper items in. They might have technical info to go along with product descriptions.  I've seen a few catalogs  that specialize in archival storage products.

2. 
   Jamie_Buxton | Oct 22, 2004 10:43pm | #6

   Lignin-free???    Lignin and cellulose are the two fundamental building blocks of woody plants.    Lumber contains lignin, and I suspect most paper contains it.

1. 
   corners | Oct 23, 2004 05:47am | #8

   Good quality papers meant for long life are made of lignin free processed pulp often called "Alpha Pulp" or they are made of cotton.

2. 
   WayneL5 | Oct 21, 2004 12:25am | #3

   You might be best off with a metal cabinet.

   You could faux paint it to look like wood.

3. 
   peters | Oct 23, 2004 10:40am | #9

   I'm the woodshop supervisor at the Getty Museum, and here's the real scoop. No wood products are acid free, period. Some epoxies are safe to use in proximity to art objects, and others aren't. We have never tested West System epoxies, and so I can't say if they are safe or not. We assume that all materials are suspect unless our lab has checked them out and found that they don't offgas anything such as acid vapors, formaldehyde, or other detrimental substances (it's a long list). We have so far not found any wood coating or finish which will render wood safe to use. You have a couple of options: put the paper into an archival storage box, preferably air tight, and store that in any type of drawer you wish to construct; or, alternatively, make the interior of the cabinet and the drawers from some inert material, such as aluminum or acrylic, or even plastic laminate, which is a surprisingly effective vapor barrier. Make the outside of the cabinet in a wood and style of your choice, as long as you make sure that there is no avenue of exposure from the air chamber inside the archival part of the cabinet to any wood on the outside. We refer to construction of this type as a micro-climate case. If I haven't scared you off, or if you need more info, feel free to e-mail me with any questions.

1. 
   Jamie_Buxton | Oct 23, 2004 06:33pm | #10

   Would zip-lock bags, and their bigger cousins space-bags, be appropriate air-tight storage?

1. 
   peters | Oct 23, 2004 07:30pm | #11

   Maybe. Again, this is something we haven't tested. You would have to find out what plastic is used to make the bags. Some plastics work, and some offgas, so it's not an automatic yes or no. It would certainly be the easiest solution by far. I can ask at the Museum on Monday, and get back to you.

2. 
   keith1947 | Oct 23, 2004 11:17pm | #13

   Hello Peter

      Thanks for your information, I am heading towards sealing papers in archive bags then storing in drawers. I was hoping to constuct music sheet type drawer front that would allow easy selection but this is getting complicated. I was involved in the refitting of the exhibition rooms at the BODLEIAN library OXFORD, some years ago and I think the display cases were metal (painted/enamelled) .we built light boxes to fit inside  cases and these had to be from FORMALDAHYDE free mdf.  As some of the books are over 400 years old I wonder where they got all their Acid -free paper.

                                   thanks for your offer of further research but I think I will manage with all the input so far received.

                                             regards Teabag 

   Edited 10/23/2004 4:19 pm ET by tea bag

1. 
   WayneL5 | Oct 24, 2004 05:04am | #15

   Four hundred year old paper is acid free.  Paper with acid in it is a modern product.

4. 
   robkelly | Oct 23, 2004 10:43pm | #12

   For the last ten years I have been storing hand written documents from 1848 in an unfinished drawer made of scrap wood. The unprotected documents (2 pages) rest directly on the bottom of the drawer. The bottom is made of cherry, the sides are lacewood, and the ends are poplar. The drawer has a false front,made from cherry finished with Watco and wax.

   There has been no degradation to the paper that I can see after 10 years. As a practicing chemist for a # of years (now retired) I can think of no reason why dry untreated wood should attack paper, acid free or not. My experience bears this out. Many of our literary treasures were stored in wood drawers for decades, such as the Cotton Vitellius A 10, and are still in perfect shape. The true enemies of paper are sunlight, moisture and insects.

1. 
   keith1947 | Oct 23, 2004 11:32pm | #14

   Hello Rob

             I think you are probably right about the storage from years ago (dry light-free etc) but when senior management (the wife) says acid-free etc, she wants acid-free not a history lesson or the suggestion that the heating might dry out the papers.

                                     Thanks  Teabag 

1. 
   robkelly | Oct 25, 2004 12:00am | #17

   The only solution to irrationality is acquiescence. Make the drawer of unfinished poplar, beech or maple, then line it with glass  using epoxy to hold it in place. Easy to do, no possibility of imaginary vapors or chemicals, you are a hero, and senior management may come across with a benefit which has not been part of the pay package for a long, long time.

5. 
   JohnWW | Oct 24, 2004 09:02pm | #16

   Archival papers are supposed to be lignin and acid free but the requirements for a storage container are different from those of paper.  I think you may be confusing the qualities needed for paper with the qualities of the storage container. 

   Lignin for instance is a component of all woods, and can end up in the paper depending how the pulp is processed, but it isn't a component of any wood finish.

   John W.