I recently started collecting old comics to fill gaps in my childhood collections for the first time. I notice that unlike my own collection, the vast majority of second-hand comics I receive have a musty smell to it. I guess such a smell is inevitable for old comics (these are from the nineties) as they will not always have been stored in optimum conditions. My questions are one; are there any realistic ways to remove or dampen these smells, and prevent them from further deteriorating in this way? And secondly, if these comics are stored with my own collection that does not smell, will this mustiness spread to them as well? Will it make a difference if they are all individually bagged? Thank you for any assistance!
>>1567574speaking as a layman, maybe chuck some silica packets in with the comics to suck up moisture in the airMaybe it could reduce the spread of it
>>1567574>smell is inevitable for old comics (these are from the nineties)lol 90s. Old.No, it's not inevitable for 25 to 35 year old comics. It is due to bad storage. It is a strong warning to regularly check them for mould.>will this mustiness spread to them as well?No guarantee but increased likelihood. The odour is usually due to moulds. Moulds are fungi, fungi spread by spores. Spores are everywhere but an infested comic is a spore source which can inoculate more comics.Musty comics might have higher moisture content. You don't want physical contact to spread moisture as moisture encourages mould>Will it make a difference if they are all individually bagged?Bagging will highly reduce likelihood of spore transfer. Plastic bags for your existing comics are fine if they are already fine.Do not sleeve musty comics in plastic. That traps moisture.Wash and dry your hands (before and after handling) to avoid cross contamination.>realistic ways to remove or dampen these smellsDry and air the comics. Ideally, you'd place archival paper between each pair of pages, use drier sheets (to absorb moisture). Practically, put a sheet of paper (to stop spores falling down) on a wire rack or shelf, a single layer of comics on the paper, then repeat with another rack so air can flow. Once they're dry you can stack them with a sheet of paper between each issue in an open environment to help dissipate the smell. Once they stop smelling, you can sleeve them in plastic.Too dry paper will crack, but too wet will encourage the lignin in wood pulp paper to more rapidly acidify. The acid will then attack more lignin. Cycling through humidity levels also causes paper fibres to expand and contract which weakens the paper. Ideally, store at a constant relative humidity 30 to 50% and constant temperature, the colder the better. But you want to read them right? So room temp, around 50% RH, in cardboard boxes.
