(Stamps) Water damage
 

Water Damage:
I recently had a sump pump failure leading to a flooded basement. Some
of my stamps in a plastic set of drawers that became buoyant because
of the bottom drawer being similar to a tub making it tip over.
Thousands of stamps in DK cards or glassiness were soaked.
I was advice by the insurance adjuster to freeze them in a home
freezer to save then from becoming moldy. That was done the following
day. The DK cardsare lost because of the glue holding them together
and the glassiness dries crumbled.
The stamps are mostly canceled and of course any mint are now unused.
I have researched this freezing business on the net. It is used mostly
to save books and documents but not in a home freezer since -10
degrees is required.
I can defrost and press them but I’m not sure if a home freezer will
stop the mildew and I'. concerned that they might all end up with a
musty smell?
Is there anyone out there who had experience with this kind of
problem?

Ben

(Stamps) Water damage
 

Water Damage:
I recently had a sump pump failure leading to a flooded basement. Some
of my stamps in a plastic set of drawers that became buoyant because
of the bottom drawer being similar to a tub making it tip over.
Thousands of stamps in DK cards or glassiness were soaked.
I was advice by the insurance adjuster to freeze them in a home
freezer to save then from becoming moldy. That was done the following
day. The DK cardsare lost because of the glue holding them together
and the glassiness dries crumbled.
The stamps are mostly canceled and of course any mint are now unused.
I have researched this freezing business on the net. It is used mostly
to save books and documents but not in a home freezer since -10
degrees is required.
I can defrost and press them but I’m not sure if a home freezer will
stop the mildew and I'. concerned that they might all end up with a
musty smell?
Is there anyone out there who had experience with this kind of
problem?

Ben

Hmmm... not exactly, but there should be no problem regarding the
'home freezer' as most decent ones will reach -18 degrees, even in
the summer months.

I am not at all sure about freezing wet stamps. Water will expand on
freezing, which could damage the structure of the paper. Also this
would make them extremely fragile while frozen, and some may 'snap'
if moved or flexed!

I know it would be a long job, but I would try to dry them using
something like a photographic 'print drier' - a common piece of
kit used by photographers who processed their own photos in
the days of 35mm film!

David.

(Stamps) Water damage
 

On Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:21:28 +0100, "David French"
wrote:

Water Damage:
I recently had a sump pump failure leading to a flooded basement. Some
of my stamps in a plastic set of drawers that became buoyant because
of the bottom drawer being similar to a tub making it tip over.
Thousands of stamps in DK cards or glassiness were soaked.
I was advice by the insurance adjuster to freeze them in a home
freezer to save then from becoming moldy. That was done the following
day. The DK cardsare lost because of the glue holding them together
and the glassiness dries crumbled.
The stamps are mostly canceled and of course any mint are now unused.
I have researched this freezing business on the net. It is used mostly
to save books and documents but not in a home freezer since -10
degrees is required.
I can defrost and press them but I’m not sure if a home freezer will
stop the mildew and I'. concerned that they might all end up with a
musty smell?
Is there anyone out there who had experience with this kind of
problem?

Ben

Hmmm... not exactly, but there should be no problem regarding the
'home freezer' as most decent ones will reach -18 degrees, even in
the summer months.

I am not at all sure about freezing wet stamps. Water will expand on
freezing, which could damage the structure of the paper. Also this
would make them extremely fragile while frozen, and some may 'snap'
if moved or flexed!

I know it would be a long job, but I would try to dry them using
something like a photographic 'print drier' - a common piece of
kit used by photographers who processed their own photos in
the days of 35mm film!

Why not simply soak them in a bit of hot water and a small amount of
anti-grease dish detergent, followed by 2 separate rinses. I have
seen some musty, mildewy stuff come rather clean this way, without any
effect on the color or density of the stamps.

The mints - yes - they will be gum trashed, but some stamps are better
off without gum anyway. To me, an unused copy in great condition is
better than a MNH copy with crackling gum.

I guess maybe it comes down to how long they were in said water and
what damage was done.

(Stamps) Water damage
 

On Apr 18, 4:02 pm, wrote:
On Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:21:28 +0100, "David French"



wrote:
Water Damage:
I recently had a sump pump failure leading to a flooded basement. Some
of my stamps in a plastic set of drawers that became buoyant because
of the bottom drawer being similar to a tub making it tip over.
Thousands of stamps in DK cards or glassiness were soaked.
I was advice by the insurance adjuster to freeze them in a home
freezer to save then from becoming moldy. That was done the following
day. The DK cardsare lost because of the glue holding them together
and the glassiness dries crumbled.
The stamps are mostly canceled and of course any mint are now unused.
I have researched this freezing business on the net. It is used mostly
to save books and documents but not in a home freezer since -10
degrees is required.
I can defrost and press them but I’m not sure if a home freezer will
stop the mildew and I'. concerned that they might all end up with a
musty smell?
Is there anyone out there who had experience with this kind of
problem?

Ben

Hmmm... not exactly, but there should be no problem regarding the
'home freezer' as most decent ones will reach -18 degrees, even in
the summer months.

I am not at all sure about freezing wet stamps. Water will expand on
freezing, which could damage the structure of the paper. Also this
would make them extremely fragile while frozen, and some may 'snap'
if moved or flexed!

I know it would be a long job, but I would try to dry them using
something like a photographic 'print drier' - a common piece of
kit used by photographers who processed their own photos in
the days of 35mm film!

Why not simply soak them in a bit of hot water and a small amount of
anti-grease dish detergent, followed by 2 separate rinses. I have
seen some musty, mildewy stuff come rather clean this way, without any
effect on the color or density of the stamps.

The mints - yes - they will be gum trashed, but some stamps are better
off without gum anyway. To me, an unused copy in great condition is
better than a MNH copy with crackling gum.

I guess maybe it comes down to how long they were in said water and
what damage was done.

Just to clarify some companies specialize in the recovery rare books
and documents and they use a freeze method. This site calls for
-15F.

http://theepicenter.com/tow05166.html

(Stamps) Water damage
 

On Fri, 18 Apr 2008 13:16:14 -0700 (PDT), Ben
wrote:

On Apr 18, 4:02 pm, wrote:
On Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:21:28 +0100, "David French"



wrote:
Water Damage:
I recently had a sump pump failure leading to a flooded basement. Some
of my stamps in a plastic set of drawers that became buoyant because
of the bottom drawer being similar to a tub making it tip over.
Thousands of stamps in DK cards or glassiness were soaked.
I was advice by the insurance adjuster to freeze them in a home
freezer to save then from becoming moldy. That was done the following
day. The DK cardsare lost because of the glue holding them together
and the glassiness dries crumbled.
The stamps are mostly canceled and of course any mint are now unused.
I have researched this freezing business on the net. It is used mostly
to save books and documents but not in a home freezer since -10
degrees is required.
I can defrost and press them but I’m not sure if a home freezer will
stop the mildew and I'. concerned that they might all end up with a
musty smell?
Is there anyone out there who had experience with this kind of
problem?

Ben

Hmmm... not exactly, but there should be no problem regarding the
'home freezer' as most decent ones will reach -18 degrees, even in
the summer months.

I am not at all sure about freezing wet stamps. Water will expand on
freezing, which could damage the structure of the paper. Also this
would make them extremely fragile while frozen, and some may 'snap'
if moved or flexed!

I know it would be a long job, but I would try to dry them using
something like a photographic 'print drier' - a common piece of
kit used by photographers who processed their own photos in
the days of 35mm film!

Why not simply soak them in a bit of hot water and a small amount of
anti-grease dish detergent, followed by 2 separate rinses. I have
seen some musty, mildewy stuff come rather clean this way, without any
effect on the color or density of the stamps.

The mints - yes - they will be gum trashed, but some stamps are better
off without gum anyway. To me, an unused copy in great condition is
better than a MNH copy with crackling gum.

I guess maybe it comes down to how long they were in said water and
what damage was done.

Just to clarify some companies specialize in the recovery rare books
and documents and they use a freeze method. This site calls for
-15F.

http://theepicenter.com/tow05166.html

And on the same web site page:

"Silt or toxic chemicals on the pages, however, requires that the book
be washed, and this can get tricky. The problem is that wet paper is
surprisingly fragile, and great care has to be taken or you'll shred
the book trying to save it. Immerse the book in a tub of clean water
and gently riffle the pages. Do not scrub, do not apply any more
pressure than you have to. The idea is just to rinse the pages. When
done, do not press the book together to get excess water out. Just
hold is gently by the spine until the water stops flowing out, then
freeze sooner than immediately. (These books will take a LONG time to
dry.) I don't recommend this procedure unless it's absolutely
necessary, and even then you might consider whether or not your time
and trouble aren't worth enough to just let the damn thing go and get
a new copy. Your call."

*****

Unless you have a collection of Basel Doves, France Vermilions or
Brazil bulls-eyes, you can get a lot of crap off if done quickly in
water.

BTW, if there's toxic waste on them, I get my insurance person on the
phone instead of trying to fix them. I may lose body parts from the
process...

(Stamps) Water damage
 

On Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:56:30 -0700, Ben wrote:

Water Damage:
have researched this freezing business on the net. It is used mostly to
save books and documents but not in a home freezer since -10 degrees is
required.

As this is an international group, and because the United States is
rather backward, I think we all need to be very careful in
differentiating Fahrenheit and Celsius temperatures. There is a great
difference between -10 degrees in the two scales (unlike, say, -40
degrees.) Home freezers can reach -10 C, but *not* -10 F, AFAIK.

--
Joshua McGee ‹(•¿•)›
APS, ATA, ISWSC, AFDCS, MBPC, MCC, BPS
Pasadena, California, USA
http://www.mcgees.org/stamp-offers/

(Stamps) Water damage
 

On Sat, 19 Apr 2008 09:47:14 -0700, Sir F. A. Rien
wrote:

Joshua McGee found these unused words:

As this is an international group, and because the United States is
rather backward,

Poor boy ... won't they let you drive on the left?

Yes, if you're passing.

(Stamps) Water damage
 

On Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:56:30 -0700, Ben wrote:

Water Damage:
have researched this freezing business on the net. It is used mostly to
save books and documents but not in a home freezer since -10 degrees is
required.

As this is an international group, and because the United States is
rather backward, I think we all need to be very careful in
differentiating Fahrenheit and Celsius temperatures. There is a great
difference between -10 degrees in the two scales (unlike, say, -40
degrees.) Home freezers can reach -10 C, but *not* -10 F, AFAIK.


Ah, the good old magic -40 degrees, where C and F agree (-40C = -40F).
The place where pure Alcohol and Mercury 'freeze' solid, if I remember
my physics!

-10F is roughly -23.3C, so a 'good' A-rated freezer would probably go
that low, with the booster switched on.

I would still be very wary of freezing wet stamps. What would you do
with them to clean off any mold and restore them to collectable condition
without permanent damage?

David.

(Stamps) Water damage
 

On Sat, 19 Apr 2008 12:31:16 -0700, Sir F. A. Rien
wrote:

found these unused words:

On Sat, 19 Apr 2008 09:47:14 -0700, Sir F. A. Rien
wrote:

Joshua McGee found these unused words:

As this is an international group, and because the United States is
rather backward,

Poor boy ... won't they let you drive on the left?

Yes, if you're passing.

How do you pass, going backwards?

I don't know about you, but I have to pass another car on the left
side when driving.