Document drying is one of the most prevalent scenarios after a water disaster like floods or heavy rainfalls. In fact, it is also among the most difficult things to do in restoring already smeared and water devastated papers and microfilms. But,learning the science of document drying will make the task far easier and better, and may even restore the state of the document completely. And if one also knows the art of doing so, it will even make the task at hand fun-filled.



The science part of document drying is the know-how, while the art part is the ability to turn the task into a better one. Here are the ways on how to get the best results when doing document drying after a horrible water disaster:

1. Segregate documents according to the used paper/s. The types of paper used in a document will matter so much when drying, which is why it is also important to group these papers in classification to avoid more difficulties during the process of drying it back to normal.

2. Identify the process of document drying needed for every type of paper damaged by water. Smeared and drenched ordinary papers, parchments, and cardboards can be easily restored by sealing these in a box and freezing. As soon as everything is back into its ordinary appearance, you can start drying it in the open air. Documents that are bounded and based on fabrics are never to be sun dried or you risk these papers to retain the dried moisture appearance on these as a souvenir. Other paper types also have their own procedures to restore original shapes and states. It is just a matter of providing the most appropriate drying procedure.

3. Use the document drying process properly to ensure best results. Steps in drying documents will basically involve sealing the same paper type in a box and freezing it up, then blowing dry or leaving them to dry in the open air. There are some that can already be dried under the hot dry sky like those that are not colored.

4. Store these documents in proper places; if possible provide water proof containers for documents. Everything has its own place under the sun. Documents are supposed to be placed inside cool, cozy containers or cabinets and at a height unlikely to be reached by flood or rising waters.

The art part of this process will only name one rule: Keep all pertinent documents and possessions in appropriate, cozy, and water resistant containers to keep these from drying every so often.

Now that the proper and most accurate procedures in document drying every document type is already identified, it is expected that there will be less occasions where losing important documents is involved. To keep from continually re-storing every document one has, it is a must also to keep these pertinent documents sealed and in their respective places. As much as possible, a water proof container should be invested on. If not, right before a water or flood occurs, ensure that all important documents are already secured in water resistant places.