Mold on books

Mold and other microorganisms are the the fundament of biological
turnover in nature. Any organic matter--and many inorganic too--can be
decomposed if the humidity is high enough. In general it is therefore
not advisable to use fungicides on museum objects as they sooner or
later are prone to the same degradation as anything else. The fungicide
will then act as an extra carbon source. The only reliable way to treat
biological turnover is to lower the RH to below 65%. However, take care
of cold spots and too low ventilation as a RH at this level is very near
to the critical limit.

Jens Glastrup
Biochemist
The National Museum of Denmark
Dept. of Conservation
Brede
DK 2800  Denmark

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 8:34
                 Distributed: Monday, November 7, 1994
                        Message Id: cdl-8-34-005
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