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MU Libraries > Library Staff > Committees > Preservation > Selectors' Guide

Selector Guidelines for Accepting Gift Materials

Problem	Indications of Problem	Considerations
Insect infestation Insects, such as cockroaches, booklice, silverfish, and a variety of beetles (generally referred to as "bookworms"), are attracted to organic substances in book materials: wood pulp, paper sizing, glue, paste, the starch found in cloth coverings, and leather.	Insects alive or dead. In addition to the actual creatures, traces of their presence are visible as holes, tunnels, shredded paper, and similar effects. The smaller varieties can be imported into the library and not be noticed. Boxes used to carry books into the library can also contain live cockroaches.
Mold and Mildew (fungus) To put it simply, mold and mildew eat books. Books are a wonderful source of nutrition through cellulose, starch adhesives and the starches in sizing. Conditions that encourage mold growth (high humidity and warm temperatures) can, in themselves, accelerate the aging process and embrittle paper. Mold can stain pages and weaken paper. Mold spores can sit dormant, invisible to the human eye, until the ideal conditions (high temperature/high relative humidity) presents itself. Once active, mold spores multiple and spread quickly.	Discoloring of the pages and a pungent smell like that found in damp basements. If water damage (stained pages and warped covers) is obvious, make sure to check the item for mold by sight and smell.	We do not accept known moldy books into the collection. If the item is extremely rare/valuable place the book in a plastic zipper bag (bags provided by Physical Processing). The funds may be found to send the book to a Conservator for mold removal. Keep in mind that this is an expensive process. Some people are allergic to mold. There are certain types of mold that are hazardous to all human beings.
Water Damage Water damaged books provide the perfect mold growing environment. Even if mold isn’t present, water damage causes staining of the pages and warping of the book block and covers.		Some water damaged books will need to be rebound due to warping. Even with binding the book will never be the same. There is nothing Physical Processing can do about excessive staining.
Biological Matter In the past Acquisitions has received entire collections that were contaminated with dead insects, animal urine/excrement, food or beverages.	Anything that smells of decay will be removed from the collection. Items with dead insects, food or drink should be bagged for evaluation by the Physical Processing Unit.
Brittle Brittleness is a result of acidification, accelerated by high humidity and by ultraviolet (UV) light.	Paper is brown and weak/crumbling. If you suspect paper is brittle but aren’t sure, do this simple test. Go to page 99 (or the last page if the book isn’t 99 pages long) and fold the bottom corner. In essence, fold the corner three times: back, forth, back. Take the corner between thumb and forefinger and pull with a firm measured pressure. If the corner comes off, the book is considered brittle. If you wish a demonstration of this method, please contact a Physical Processing staff member.	Embrittled books that are falling apart are not recommended for the collection. However, if the item is of sufficient value a phase box can be obtained to protect the item. The cost of a phase box is $ 12.00 and up. Deacidification can be done by a Conservator and is extremely costly. This process is not recommended for items unless the value justifies the expense.
Pages/Pictures Missing Pages are missing or damaged.		It takes time and money to replace pages. If enough pages are missing, the book will need to be rebound after the replacement pages are obtained.
Damaged Binding/Sewing The book block is compromised beyond repair in-house.		The item will need to be bound. If binding isn’t possible, a phase box will be ordered.