Water damage may occur in homes through a variety of means including a burst pipe, a roof leak, fire sprinklers going off, torrential rains entering through the windows, and natural flooding. Water can be a destructive if not removed immediately since it can cause significant damages to different type of materials and items inside the home. One particular area in the home where water damage can have the most significant effect is the home library.
Effects of Water on Books and Unbound Materials
Water is absorbed by paper at different rates. The difference in rates depends on the age, condition, and the composition of the paper material. Some understanding of this water absorption of paper is important to essentially plan a successful document restoration and mold remediation of books with water damage. By understanding the process of water absorption, one can calculate beforehand the approximate amount of water which will have to be removed during the drying process and thus, providing helpful information in selecting the best drying method for the different types of books. Understanding the paper-water absorption process will also give the knowledge on the length of time each type of document material can be soaked in water before serious and irreversible water damage occurs.
Water damage to bound books usually takes place within one to four hours after they have been soaked in water. The greatest effect of water on bound books is the swelling of the pages and the book bindings because of the amount of water that is absorbed by the material. Since the paper inside the book and the cardboard cores of the book binding have a greater absorption capacity that the covering materials and the spine, the paper will expand or swell so much that it will cause the spine to bend or assume a concave shape which will cause the pages of the book to become partially or completely detached from the book binding. A book that has water damage should be handled carefully. How to handle the salvage process of books should be decided based on the amount of water absorbed by the pages and not by the relative humidity of the area. Water moisture meters can be used to measure water absorbed by books. If the water content is less than 7%, then the book is considered dry. Any reading higher than 7% is considered wet and has water damage.
In general, books, manuscripts and documents that were produced before 1840 will absorb water to an average of 80% their original weight. Some of these documents may even absorb as much as 200% their original weight. This is because of the high amounts of proteinaceous compounds that were used in making paper during those days. This means that the older and more valuable books will have the greatest amount of water damage when soaked. Modern books on the other hand, will absorb water at an average of 60% of their original weight.
When starting the drying process for books, compute the amount of water to be removed by using the percentage of water they can absorbed and multiplying it to the original weight of the book. For example, if a book's (modern book) average original weight is 4 pounds, then the average amount of water to be removed is 2.4 pounds. So if the home library has around 500 books with water damage, then the drying method should be able to handle the drying of 2000 pounds of paper material and extraction of 1200 pounds of water.
Whenever flooding, a pipe bursting, a roof leaking, or any sort of water damage happens at home, the things that usually take the biggest hit are books and documents. It would be considered less of a property loss if they were insignificant, but the papers usually kept at home include important stuff like birth certificates, land titles, house blueprints, school work, and business records.
What are homeowners to do if water damages these important books and documents?
Forget all home remedies and do-it-yourself tricks. Water-damaged documents as crucial as birth certificates and land titles should be handed over to a water damage restoration service. Once the water damage has been controlled, homeowners should contact professionals immediately.
Water damage restoration services are generally able to arrive at an emergency within 30 minutes, a response considered fast by industry standards. However, as quick as they may reach your doorstep, there are still a lot of things that homeowners can do within that half hour. Don't leave books and documents floating in the water to take in more damage. Here is a step-by-step checklist of what homeowners can do at home before handing over books and documents for water damage restoration.
1. Act quickly and gather those books and documents The most important things for successful water damage restoration are quick response and immediate action. The quicker the items are salvaged from the water and the lesser the time they spend wet, the better the end results of their restoration. The instant the water damage happens, get on your feet and start collecting all the books and documents. Protect all those that remain dry and keep them away from anything else that may have gotten wet.
2. Clean off mud and debris Consider yourself lucky if the water that damaged your books and documents was clean and fresh. Unfortunately, water damage happens with all types of water including toilet water, muddy water, and contaminated water. If your books and documents have been damaged by any water other than clean water, you may have to clean and rinse them off before sending them off for water damage restoration. Use a clean dry cloth to wipe off any caked mud. If the book or the paper is strong enough, gently rinse them in clean water. Remember to be very careful as wet books and documents are very fragile items.
3. Pack water-damaged books and documents Wet books and documents can be placed in medium-duty cardboard boxes. Line the boxes and the books with freezer paper or unprinted newsprint. This will strengthen the box and prevent the books from sticking to one another. Remember to place the books spine down and pack them in the box in one single layer only. Don't stack the cardboard boxes on top of each other as this can cause more damage and cost more money for their water damage restoration.
4. Freeze books and documents If you have a no-frost blast freezer at home, consider freezing water-damaged books and documents. This will stop the damaging effects of the water and will contribute to better end results of water damage restoration. Freezing is one of the techniques professionals use in drying wet books and documents.
Both Leo Nov & Isolde Werry are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Leo Nov has sinced written about articles on various topics from Home, Education and Site Promotion. Leo Nov is an editorial staff member of RestorationSOS.com, a leading service provider for water damage cleanups. To learn more about