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RE: [padg] humidity in book returns



Hi Patricia,

 

Our temperature is moderated by the breeze off of the bay and the river, but we make up for it by having higher humidity than Richmond.  I generally try to avoid anything involving the bookdrop, because it can be destructive in many ways.  Ours is connected to a closet on an exterior wall of the 24-hour study room, so it gets some AC.  I imagine that moisture is condensing in ours whenever the door is opened, because the HVAC in our building doesn’t dehumidify (and I have measured 70% RH in another part of the building).  The relative humidity might be lower in the freestanding kind, since the temperature is higher. That can’t be reassuring, though.

 

I think Peter is right to suggest sticking a datalogger in there to gather hard statistics. Unfortunately, silica gel won’t last long with constant exposure to the outdoors.  Outdoor bookdrops are just bad news.  Is there another book drop connected to a climate-controlled area of the building? If you can’t eliminate the bookdrop altogether, you might be able to get it installed in a better place. Could you put one inside the Commons or some other building that is open all night? I realize that it would mean transporting books outdoors, but the duration of exposure would be brief compared to what you have now. People might even view it as a public service if indoor book drops are added to places that are open when the library is closed.

 

I wish there were a magic dehumidifying bullet. It would be great for all of those summer power outages.  Aaah, an off-the-grid dehumidifier that drains to the landscape drip irrigation system...

 

Valinda Carroll

Preservation Manager

Harvey Library

Hampton University

 

 

 


From: Patricia E. Selinger [mailto:patricia.selinger@xxxxxxx]
Sent: Tuesday, July 10, 2007 10:06 AM
To: PADG
Subject: [padg] humidity in book returns

 

Hello everyone,
I received this request this morning and would like to know if you have any solutions.  Do you think silica gel would work?  The problem, of course, is that the book return is opened periodically and reintroduces more humidity.  Obviously we are in the dog days of summer here.

I appreciate your suggestions.

Patricia

-------- Original Message --------
Request for JBC Facilities Services

Priority: urgent

Location: 1st floor; exterior book return
Details: A unique problem has arisen in the last few days due to the high heat and humidity we are currently experiencing. The humidity is extremely high inside the exterior book return bin. I have noticed that the covers of paperback books are curling and I fear that our materials will suffer damage as a result of prolonged (overnight) exposure to such conditions. Please get us something we can keep in the bin to absorb the excess humidity. Thank you


-- 
Patricia Palmer Selinger
Head, Preservation Department
Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries
Box 842033
Richmond, VA  23284-20233
 
phone: 804.828.8679 (*NEW)
fax: 804.828.0151
patricia.selinger@xxxxxxx
 

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