The best way to store paper documents

[azyeoman]

What is the best way to store paper documents?  Is there a way to store them in a folder for viewing?  I understand that it is essential to keep paper with acid away from documents. 

Thanks in advance. 

[Rusty Greaves]

azyeoman, 

 

Here is a link to a 2003 appendix by the US National Park Service with a thorough treatment of issues involved in paper curation. The information is still relevant. 

 

https://www.nps.gov/museum/publications/mhi/appendix j.pdf

 

Cheers, 

 

Rusty

 

Edited November 4, 2022 by Rusty Greaves

[graham]

👍

[TJLA]

I spent this past year purchasing storage systems used by museums for archival purposes to include paper, documents, maps etc after finding that some documents were turning yellow from the boxes they were stored in. (Cardboard boxes emit gases which is why everything from photos, clothes, books and paper turns yellow).

 

Highly recommend starting at: https://www.gaylord.com/c/Preservation

 

You will want to read up on what buffered and unbuffered storage materials and how you want to store it. 

 

Learn about P.A.T. and other specs when figuring out what kinds of archival materials you need:

 

https://www.gaylord.com/resources/gaylord-archival-specifications

 

There are other companies that offer similar materials at lower cost, I'm not endorsing them specifically but it helps to understand the world of how to properly store materials. These are the systems that the US government, state governments, libraries and museums use. Don't guess or go to other sources to figure it out, go to the main source where they buy. If you're in the US, call these folks and tell them what you're trying to do, they are helpful and will guide you.

 

My eyes glazed over a bit at all the options when I first started, but now that I understand, I now have individual storage systems for everything I collect. It's made a world of difference in peace of mind knowing I've slowed down deterioration and that it will be safe for decades.

[ostprussenmann_new]

Great topic.  I use acid free newspaper envelopes with backing.  I store the ones that I don’t display in airtight containers with dehumidifier packet I. Them.  I have 400+ documents; some over 200 years old.  Nothing happen to mine.  Have some real nice ones in frames also.

[The Prussian]

Hello!

In Germany I order the stuff for my photos and documents here:

https://archivbox.com/en/?nbnet=0

Please browse the site, you´ll find a lot informations and the articles are not too expensive (if you don´t give a toss about the shipping costs...)

It's not the prettiest system, but it's quite cheap, it's acid-free, and it does the job.

With the transparencies (no matter if for documents or two or four divided), there is a separating foil in the middle, so that you can insert two photos without the backs touching each other.

Edited November 5, 2022 by The Prussian