This is a message from the Museumpests List. To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. ----------------------------------------------------------- I can vouch for this – many of my museum’s collections storage areas are carpeted (a situation I inherited rather than chose). Despite having desperately low RH in the building most of the winter, we still often see silverfish in the carpeted rooms – a moldy microclimate under the carpets, I’m guessing.
Dee Dee A. Stubbs-Lee, MA, CAPC Conservator The New Brunswick Museum Saint John, New Brunswick Canada E2K 1E5 tel: (506) 643-2341 www.nbm-mnb.ca From: ad...@museumpests.net [mailto:ad...@museumpests.net] On Behalf Of Margaret Geiss-Mooney Sent: Thursday, May 24, 2012 1:12 AM To: pestlist@museumpests.net Subject: RE: [pestlist] Floor covering in Directors Office This is a message from the Museumpests List. To post to this list send it as an email to pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net> To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. ----------------------------------------------------------- Good evening, PestList’lers – I also point out that a large expanse of any floor covering made from a natural fibre, whether sisal or wool, cotton, jute, etc., will also absorb and hold a lot more moisture out of the environment where it is installed than a floor covering made from one of the synthetic fibres (i.e. acrylic, nylon, etc.). So if your floors do not have a vapor barrier properly installed, the floor covering will act like a giant sponge, sucking up moisture from the floor/ground. If your building does not have the relative humidity controlled, the natural fibre floor covering will make it even more complicated to control. Mould/mildew spores will love it and flourish with abandon….ugh…especially on the side in direct contact with the floor and away from the light (mould/mildew is considered a ‘pest’, right?). Any finish applied to a floor covering, whether fire retardant or stain repellency, will be rubbed off as the floor covering is walked on/have stuff dragged across it. Meaning it would have to be reapplied periodically. So the carrier fluid would be contaminating the space again, whether water (raising the RH in the environment) or some other fluid which would off-gas in to the space as it dries. Feel free to contact me off-list if you need further clarification. Regards, Meg . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___________ Margaret E. Geiss-Mooney Textile/Costume Conservator & Collections Management Consultant Professional Associate - AIC 707-763-8694 mgmoo...@moonware.net<mailto:mgmoo...@moonware.net> I am writing about the choice of floor covering requested by the Director's Office at our art museum. They are interested in installing either Sisal or Wool sisal in the Directors office. There will also be two or three accessioned paintings exhibited in this space as well. I am concerned about the tastiness of both of these choices (sisal and wool sisal) to potential critters. The Director's office is in a different corridor than the art collections however I am concerned about creating a potentially amiable environment for pests in general within the museum. What do people think? Should I continue to advocate for synthetic flooring options which have heretofore not been of interest unfortunately? I do not believe that they will be using a foam pad under the rug which is a good thing to avoid any potential off-gassing of the foam. I am also concerned that a fire retardant applied to the sisal may be necessary from a safety point of view. I will off course follow-up with an exam of the MSDS sheet of the fire retardant. But basically my question has to do with whether or not a large expanse of sisal is of concern to nearby collections on display. I don't want to be a PEST! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To send an email to the list, send your msg to pestlist@museumpests.Net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.Net> To unsubscribe from this list send an email to pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net> and in the subject put: "unsubscribe" - no quotes please. You are receiving the Pestlist emails in standard mode. To change to the DIGEST mode send an email to imail...@museumpests.net<mailto:imail...@museumpests.net> with this command in the body: set mode digest pestlist Any problems email l...@collectionpests.com<mailto:l...@collectionpests.com> or l...@zaks.com<mailto:l...@zaks.com> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To send an email to the list, send your msg to pestlist@museumpests.Net To unsubscribe from this list send an email to pestlist@museumpests.net and in the subject put: "unsubscribe" - no quotes please. You are receiving the Pestlist emails in standard mode. To change to the DIGEST mode send an email to imail...@museumpests.net with this command in the body: set mode digest pestlist Any problems email l...@collectionpests.com or l...@zaks.com
