Dust cloths

Tom Brown <tomb [at] hawaii__edu>

>Our building manager asked me if there are any recommended treated
>cleaning cloths that can be used for wiping books.

There are 3 commercially available dust cloths appropriate for use
in libraries and archives.  They don't leave a residue behind, are
lint free, and yet the cloths attract and hold dust.

    1.  One Wipe Dust Cloth by Guardsman (the furniture polish
        makers) is a yellow flannel chemically treated cloth. It can
        be hand washed in cold water and a small amount of mild
        detergent (such as LUX) up to 10 times. By then it will have
        lost its enhanced dust-holding properties. The manufacturer
        claims 20 washes but I've not found that to be the case in
        over 20 years of use. Cost about $3.50 each. These cloths
        can be purchased in most hardware stores and food markets as
        well as most of the library and archival catalogues.

    2.  Stretch 'n Dust by Johnson & Johnson Advanced Materials, New
        Brunswick, N.J., is a disposable chemically treated cloth,
        yellow with light orange dots. The cloth was developed by
        Chicopee Products which was recently purchased by J&J. To
        increase the dust-holding capacity, one gently stretches the
        cloth prior to use. It comes in packages of 20 cloths,
        23"x24", #0414, 20 packages to the case, $126/case. This
        works out to around $.32 each. I suggest calling
        1-800-835-2449 for the nearest distributor.

    3.  There is a third cloth recently available--Dust Bunny, a
        Tyvek and nylon cloth that has a slight electrostatic charge
        with no chemical treatment. They are about 16" square and
        white. They can be washed in a washing machine with a mild
        detergent and seem to last forever. However they currently
        cost about $5 each. Dust Bunny is available from Light
        Impressions, University Products and Gaylord.

Both One Wipe and Stretch 'n Dust  have been okayed for use in
libraries and archives by  L.C. and the National Archives.  Neither
leave a residue on books, boxes or shelves.  However after prolonged
use the user's hands feel sticky since some of the chemical comes
off on one's hands and then  dust adheres to the fingers.

Stretch 'n Dust is more economical for large scale dusting projects.
And since they are disposable  they would be a better choice for use
in environments where mold might be present.   However I like to use
Dust Bunny in our book repair shop and in the  archives because they
are softer and one's hands stay cleaner.

Michaelle Biddle
Wesleyan University Library
Middletown, CT

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 10:43
                Distributed: Thursday, October 31, 1996
                       Message Id: cdl-10-43-008
                                  ***