The best way to look after your photographs and treasures after a flood event.
# Need Help Salvaging Water Damaged Photos
Treasured items damaged in the floods?
Have you had your treasured photographs, books and paper heirlooms damaged in the floods/downpour? Need help salvaging water damaged photos, here is everything you need to know.
Don’t panic they may be salvageable! Don’t throw your damaged treasures out!
Firstly, people are more important than material things so please always make sure you are safe before you retrieve anything to be salvaged.
Take a breath, and make a plan.
The State Library of Queensland, in collaboration with the Queensland Museum, have put together some excellent fact sheets and a little series of videos to help you conserve you precious items. I’ll link the website below.
If you’re not able to clean/wash your items yet but have recovered them, place them in the freezer to buy yourself some time…the best way to look after them is to place them with a piece of baking paper between each item and then wrap and seal in plastic and place in the freezer until you are ready to restore them.
Click the ‘ Salvaging a Water Damaged Collection’ button below for more information, fact sheets and videos from the State Library of Queensland.
Steps to conserve your damaged items.
Set up a salvage area
Recover your items
Wash your damaged items carefully with cold water to remove dirt and contaminates.
Make sure you don’t touch the image on photographs when washing and remember paper items will be very fragile when wet. Use a plastic support like a chopping board to reduce handling damage. When handling books remember to properly support the spine.
Air drying the items – place the items flat on an absorbent material, this material will need to be replaced throughout the drying process. Photographs should be placed image side up, remember not to touch the surface.
You can hang photographs to dry if you don’t have a flat surface available.
Wet books can be stood up and gently fanned out if there is enough support in the spine to do so. Otherwise lay flat with a piece of absorbent material inside the front and back cover and then a piece between every ten pages. When almost dry place fewer interleaves and place a weight on top to flatten. You may use a fan or humidifier to help with airflow and increase drying time.
**Avoid using heaters or hairdryers**
I do hope this information is helpful. Show us how you’ve managed to conserve your treasures, we’d love to know what worked for you.
Want to contact me or needing help with anything…please reach out.