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Holly
May I suggest that if you plan to remove the robes from display and place in storage, that you look at freezing them for pest eradication. Here at the Australian War Memorial we have been operating a successful Freezer Program for about 20 years. As a result we have never had a pest problem in our textile storage areas.
You need a freezer that drops to -20 degrees Celsius, a normal chest freezer should do this, but not the freezers attached to fridges. Place the items into a sound plastic bag and remove as much air as possible from around the object. We use a vacuum cleaner to do this, but some items are placed into boxes first to prevent them from being squashed. Then seal tightly, we use a heat sealer, but good self adhesive tape will do the job. Place the items into the freezer, do not fill the freezer more than 1/3 full, to ensure the temperature drops as quickly as possible. Keep the items in the freezer for a minimum of 48 hours, remove and thaw inside the still sealed bags. Open and vacuum the items to ensure any dead eggs, lava or adult insect are removed, as these are food for further re-infestations. This process should kill all stages of the life-cycle of the insects you are having problems with.
Sarah Clayton
Senior Textile Conservator Australian War Memorial PO Box 345 Canberra ACT 2601 Australia phone: +61 2 62434420 fax: +61 2 62417998 sarah.clayton@xxxxxxxxxx www.awm.gov.au >>> "T. Rose Holdcraft" <tholdcr@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> 7/06/2007 11:17 pm >>> Date: Wed, 6 Jun 2007 17:18:39 -0700 From: "Holly Chase" <Holly.Chase@xxxxxxxxxxxx> To: <pestlist@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> Greetings all ! My name is Holly Chase and I am the Museum Coordinator (and collections manager/registrar) for a small, private Chinese art museum located in Southern California. I hope that you can help me with some concerns regarding a possible silverfish/moth infestation. Last week I had found a large, healthy silverfish crawling on the fabric of one of our display cases that currently houses 17th -19th Century silk dragon robes. In a few weeks, we are scheduled to install several 18-20th century scroll paintings, which are very vulnerable to silverfish, in that same case. What?s more, about 3 weeks ago I had found in a nearby case two dead web clothing moths. I have since installed a moth pheromone lure in one case and a few silverfish food baits in sticky traps in the other. As of yet, I have not found other signs of infestation- yet I am still not fully convinced that we are safe. Furthermore, at the end of this month the silk robes will be taken down from display and placed into storage where we have several delicate Chinese scroll paintings housed. I am clearly worried about the possibility of an infestation and moving infested artworks into a new area. I had contacted one paper conservator who advised against fumigating the robes explaining that fumigation tends to leave a chemical residue on fabrics. Instead, she suggested finding an ?anoxia treatment chamber? but didn?t know of anyone in the area who has one. Do any of you know of places in Southern California that have anoxia treatment chambers? I would also like to know if you have any textile conservators in the area whom you could recommend. I am thinking that we may have to hire a conservator to come out to supervise the treatment. I am also worried that we need to treat the tall display cases before we install any new exhibitions. Unfortunately, these cases are built into the walls of our gallery and cannot be removed. They are not air tight either as there are gaps between the sheets of glass. Do you have any advice as to how we should treat the cases? Is this something that a conservator should and could oversee? Does finding one silverfish and a few dead moths justify treating all the artwork and cases in that gallery? Any assistance or advice you can send me would be greatly appreciated. I am sincerely in a bit of a panic for having found these pests and want to make sure we act as quickly as possible. Sincerely, Holly Chase Holly C. Chase Museum Coordinator (collections manager/registrar) Phone: (310) 222-9219 Email: holly.chase@xxxxxxxxxxxx or hollycchase@xxxxxxxxx |