Help Preserve the Collections of North Carolina State University

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Help Preserve the Collections of North Carolina
State University

• A Preservation Tutorial for Library Staff
• Parts of this tutorial are taken from web sites
  at the University of Kansas, Northwestern
  University, and Michigan State University.

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• INTRODUCTION
• The North Carolina State University Libraries
  has a rich and varied collection of paper based
  materials. As a premier research institution,
  NCSU Libraries is committed to ready access of
  these materials for todays researchers, but also
  access for the scholars of tomorrow. The
  following slides are simple rules that will help
  you play a part in preserving our collection for
  future generations.

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"Another 'dry-damaged' book. Why can't our
patrons keep the books wet?"
Cartoon by Stephen Porsche (http//www.provenance.
ca/1995-2000backissues/vol2no2/humour/humour1.htm)

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Basic TerminologyParts of a Book
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Care and Handling ____________ Guidelines
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• Keep food and drinks away from library materials.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Stack and store books properly. Even if storage
  is temporary, materials are at risk of damage
  stacked this high.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• When stacking books at your desk, stack the
  largest books on the bottom and smaller books on
  top.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Please do not use post-it notes on library
  materials. The adhesive on these notes can peel
  off some printing and over time can also tear
  weak paper.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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Be careful using paperclips on books, which can
damage weak paper and mark text blocks over time.
Acid-free paper bookmarks are the best solution
to mark pages.
Images courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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• Copy or scan books with care. Do not force them
  flat on the copier. Use the book edge copying
  feature if the copier has one. Heavy pressure
  can cause spines to break and pages to fall out.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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Shelving and Transporting _________________ Guidel
ines
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• Do not try to remove too many books from a shelf,
  take only as many as you can carry safely.
  Dropping books can cause damage.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Do not pull books from the shelf using the head
  cap. This can easily damage the binding.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Instead, push back the books on either side of
  the book you want, then remove your book.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Do not overreach to retrieve a book from a high
  shelf.
• Use a stool or ladder.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Properly use bookends in the stacks to keep
  volumes standing straight.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Do not over pack shelving or improperly shelve
  books.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Keep books standing straight on the shelves.
  Allowing books to lean will damage their
  bindings.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Do not stack books on their fore edges. This
  will cause the text blocks to tear out of their
  bindings.

Images courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• If books are too tall for their assigned
  shelving, either adjust the shelving or shelve
  volumes on their spines.

Image courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Do not overfill book trucks. This makes them
  difficult to move and more likely to tip over.

Image courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Do not make book trucks top-heavy by only using
  the top shelf.

Image courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Be careful not to bang into things with your book
  truck.

Image courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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RECOGNIZING PROBLEMS
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• Collections Conservation
• The Preservation Department needs your help in
  recognizing items that need repair, reformatting,
  or replacement! In the conservation lab, our
  decision-making is use based.
• We ask that you bring us only materials that are
  currently being used either through circulation,
  or used at photocopiers or in the reading areas.

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• The following slides show some examples of
  damaged materials that need to be sent to the
  Conservation Lab. Some questions to ask
• What will happen if this book is placed in a back
  pack?
• Will any pages be lost if this book is checked
  out again?
• What will happen if someone flattens this on a
  photocopier?

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Torn pages are easy to fix and much easier than
fixing a lost page! The faster this comes to the
conservation lab the better!
Images courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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Loose pages in a book like this are easy to lose
forever.
Image courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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• Brittle Paper!
• Most paper made from 1850-1980 will deteriorate
  over time, becoming weak and brittle until it
  literally cracks out of the book.

Image courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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This is a brittle book that will be damaged with
each use. Large portions of this book can be
lost by just pulling it off of the shelf!
Image courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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A cover that has completely come away from the
text block no longer provides protection.
Images courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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Torn spines are an indication of more damage to
come! The earlier we fix this damage, the less
expensive it will be.
Image courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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Tears on the inside of the cover will get worse
even without use! Send these items to repair
before there is damage to the text block.
Image courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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• Split glue is quite common on adhesive bound
  books. Send these items to the conservation lab
  for repair or rebinding before we lose chunks
  of the text!

Image courtesy of the University of Kansas
Libraries Preservation Department
http//www2.lib.ku.edu/preservation/CareHandling/i
ndex.htm
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• Wet books can become moldy or the pages can stick
  together in less than 48 hours. Get wet books to
  the Preservation Department QUICKLY!

Image courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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Marking labels are crucial for our patrons to
find books! If you see a loose label, please send
the book to Preservation for repair.
Image courtesy of the Michigan State University
Libraries Access and Preservation Divisions
http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns/index.htm
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Thank you for taking time to learn ways you can
help preserve the collections at North Carolina
State University. To learn more, please
contact the Preservation Department or visit our
website at http//www.lib.ncsu.edu/preservatio
n/
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On-Line Tutorials University of Kansas Libraries
Preservation Department http//www2.lib.ku.edu/pre
servation/CareHandling/index.htm Michigan State
University Libraries Access and Preservation
Divisions http//www.lib.msu.edu/apd/idbookreturns
/index.htm Harvard University Library Weissman
Preservation Center http//preserve.harvard.edu/re
sources/preservation.html Northwestern University
Library http//staffweb.library.northwestern.edu/p
reservation/chlm/index.html