This is a message from the Museumpests List. To post to this list send it as an email to [email protected] To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. ----------------------------------------------------------- I hope that this will be of assistance to the List.
Re: freezing of African sculpture and artifacts for the killing of webbing clothes moths: The project entailed treating approximately 200+ wooden figures, masks, and other objects, many or which have attachments of cloth (including wool), untanned animal hides, leather thongs and wrappings, sacrificial and other organic materials, and various metals inlaid or imbedded into the wood. Equipment and supplies: Pre-Freezing: 1. Inexpensive hollow-core door from Home Depot to use as a work table if you need one, http://www.homedepot.com/p/JELD-WEN-36-in-x-80-in-Birch-Unfinished-Slab-Door-34277/202036198?N=c5ieZ1z0z58eZ1z0wimy#.UY073r_FNQk, placed upon: 2. Two saw horses (pick the ones best for you...adjustable height means less bending) http://www.homedepot.com/p/Stanley-32-In-Adjustable-Folding-Sawhorses-Twin-Pack-060622R/100626317#.UY09H7_FNQk . 3. Rolls of 36" wide acid free tissue paper, available from University Products http://www.universityproducts.com/cart.php?m=product_list&c=933 4. Large rolls of masking tape from Home Depot http://www.homedepot.com/p/Stanley-32-In-Adjustable-Folding-Sawhorses-Twin-Pack-060622R/100626317#.UY09H7_FNQk 5. Waterproof marking pens (Sharpies) from Staples http://www.staples.com/Sharpie-Chisel-Tip-Permanent-Marker-Black-Each/product_463755 6. Regular ball point pen or fine tipped marker. 7. Stringed paper tags from Staples. These are for stands/bases that don't already have catalog/accession numbers on them so that you can easily mate the object to its base after freezing. Size depends on how long your catalog #s are. http://www.staples.com/Avery-White-Marking-Tags-1-3-32-inch-x-3-4-inch/product_469858 8. Polyethylene bags and/or tubes. What you need depends on the sizes of your objects. •Ziploc freezer bags come in a variety of sizes, and suffice for smaller items. •We also used clear poly bags on a roll in 18" x 24" ( http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-7569/Bags-On-A-Roll/18-x-24-4-Mil-Bags-On-A-Roll)and 24" x 36" ( http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-12372/Bags-On-A-Roll/24-x-36-4-Mil-Bags-on-a-Roll) . These tear off the roll easily, but need to be heat-sealed or taped at the open end. The bags are easily unrolled directly from the box they are shipped in. •For larger objects we used 48" wide poly tubing on rolls . You can make bags as long as you need, but the tubing needs to be heat sealed or taped at both ends.This was was most easily unrolled on top of the workbench. A dispenser (rack) was unstable on the workbench, and wasn't needed. 9. Double-sided tape. Most adhesives don't adhere well to polyethylene. We used a 3M tape that not only sticks, but is rated to withstand temperatures much lower than the -20 to -40 C that we anticipated. http://www.uline.com/Product/ProductDetail.aspx?modelnumber=S-10024&FromOrderHistory=Y 10. Sharp utility knife for cutting poly tube to size. 11. Sharp scissors. 12. Heat Sealer. The larger (longer) the better for sealing wider bags, but prices soar for the longest. We opted for a 25" unit from Omnipak. It worked flawlessly, and sealed all but the largest poly tubes. http://www.omnipak.com/long-hand-sealer.html#.UY1oM7_FNQk The Freezer: 1. Polar Leasing rents 8' x 20' walk-in freezers. The freezer comes on a flatbed truck. It needs a reasonably level surface to operate properly, so shims might be needed. We had asphalt roofing shingles from Home Depot standing by but they were not needed. http://www.polarleasing.com/freezers.aspx 2. The unit needs 208-230v, 4 wire, single phase, and draws 27 Amps. It has no power cord of its own, and needs to be hard-wired. The closer to 230v the better (colder). A local licensed electrician quickly made a 35' extension cord using the proper plug for a 4-wire, 14-30 receptacle. Your receptacle might be different. CAVEAT!!: Insist that Polar sends you a working unit. After wiring the freezer, the electrician could not start it up. A fan manifold on top of the freezer had rusted off and needed a replacement, and a fan motor inside had fallen off. Parts were overnighted, and the freezer was repaired. It ran flawlessly thereafter, but we lost two days. 3. Data monitoring: Temperature and Relative Humidity were monitored carefully. •Two USB data loggers from Measurement Computing (Temperature: -35 to +80 °C range, ±0.1 °C repeatability, ±0.3 °C accuracy) were placed at two heights inside the freezer, one at 6' and the other at 2'. The units are easily programmable from your computer, and you can set the time interval between measurements and other variables. The software is Windows based, but our Macs worked well using Parallels, and the data/graphs can be saved in Excel. http://www.mccdaq.com/usb-data-acquisition/USB-502-PLUS.aspx 4. For real-time temperature monitoring, a wireless thermo-hygrometer sensor and monitor was used (temp. resolution +/- 0.1 C). This transmitted data from the freezer to the indoors. An audible alarm was set to go off if the temperature rose to -20 C. http://www.testequipmentdepot.com/general/temperature/wireless/emr963hg.htm 5. Fiberglass table. In order to increase horizontal area within the freezer for placement of objects, an 8' long x 30" wide folding banquet fiberglass table was ordered from Costco and delivered. http://www.costco.com/Alera-Folding-Banquet-Table-96%22-x-30%22-Platinum-ALE-65601.product.11150839.html 6. A strong padlock from Home Depot with a long shackle to lock the door handle on the freezer. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Master-Lock-Steel-1-Universal-Pin-Laminated-Padlock-1UPLJ/100021161?N=yw#.UY1tAr_FNQk The Process: Objects were separated from their mounts/bases. All objects (masks, figures, sacred paraphernalia) had previously been numbered upon their acquisition, but many bases had not. This is where the stringed labels were used, and after freezing it was a simple task reuniting objects and bases. Objects were wrapped in tissue paper and secured with masking tape. Their catalog numbers were written on the tape or paper with a permanent marker. Each paper-wrapped object was sealed in a polyethylene bag. Most bags were able to be sealed with the heat sealer. Those that couldn't were sealed by tightly folding the edge of the poly several times and sealing with the 3M double-sided tape. Each piece was then wrapped in a second poly bag and sealed. The catalog number was again written on the outside. The freezer was already cooled to below -30 C when the items were placed inside, both on the floor and on the fiberglass table. During the loading phase, the data loggers showed transient increases in freezer temperatures when the door was opened. The freezer was quite efficient, however, in quickly returning to its lowest temps. After the data loggers and wireless sensors were set, the freezer door handle was locked with the padlock. Each day the unit was quickly checked a without any change in temp. Although five to seven days at -30 C would have been sufficient to kill pests, the freezing was continued for two weeks. This allowed adequate time to treat the exhibition and storage areas. All items were removed from the freezer before it was unplugged. After defrosting, there were several areas where condensation had pooled on the freezer's floor. This would not have affected the heat-sealed poly bags, but it is not known if water would have seeped through the folded/taped closures on the largest bags had they been left inside. It may be wise to place all tape-closed items above floor level in case of an unexpected defrost. There was no detectable damage to any object from the entire process of dismounting, wrapping, double bagging, transporting, freezing,defrosting, unpacking, and remounting. One of the biggest concerns had been related to the unequal temperature-related expansion/contraction of the materials on metal-containing objects, but there seems to have been no adverse effect. In the year since freezing, there has been no evidence of any recurrence of pests. Neil Carey Amherst, MA 413-253-0064 On Fri, May 10, 2013 at 5:37 AM, <[email protected]> wrote: > This is a message from the Museumpests List. > To post to this list send it as an email to [email protected] > To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. > ----------------------------------------------------------- > Dr. Carey - > > In Israel, I had a shipping container (the kind you see on ships and > trucks at docks) capable of reaching similar temperatures dropped in a > secure parking lot for freezing almost 30,000 books infested with > bookworms. For delivery and pick-up after we had finished, the thing cost > only $600/month. > > It would be helpful for the readers to know the name of the "nationwide > company", so others could avail themselves of this approach if the need > ever arises. It would also be helpful if you included the exact product > names and manufacturers of your monitoring devices. > > Thank you for this important and practical information. > > Thomas A. Parker, PhD > President, Entomologist > Pest Control Services, Inc. > 469 Mimosa Circle > Kennett Square, PA 19348 > 610-444-2277 Office > 610-444-2615 Fax > 610-348-9890 Cell > -----Original Message----- > From: Neil Carey <[email protected]> > To: pestlist <[email protected]> > Sent: Fri, May 10, 2013 5:04 am > Subject: Re: [pestlist] ID & freezer question > > This is a message from the Museumpests List. > To post to this list send it as an email to [email protected] > To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. > ----------------------------------------------------------- > Annie, > > Last August we discovered a webbing clothes moth infestation in the > African collection. With over 200 objects a lab freezer was out of the > question, though a used Revco or Fisher Scientific freezer would be perfect > for small groups of items needing treatment. > > I had an 8' x 20' walk-in freezer delivered from a nationwide company. > They dropped it off in the driveway. I needed to provide 230 volts. It took > a week to wrap, double bag and heat seal all items. Meanwhile, the freezer > was getting cold in the hot, humid Amherst summer. > > Although only rated down to -20 C, the temps actually ran around -33 C. > During 12 hour defrosts, the temps rose to only about -23C. I placed 2 > inexpensive USB data recorders in the freezer, plus a wireless Temp/RH > monitor with an alarm set for -20. I've attached a graph below. > > The objects were frozen for about 2 weeks, much longer than needed. > > This setup would be perfect for immediate and occasional needs for large > collections. For frequent usage, purchase makes more sense than rental. > > Neil Carey > > > > > On Thu, May 9, 2013 at 6:28 PM, Jeffrey Tucker <[email protected]>wrote: > >> This is a message from the Museumpests List. >> To post to this list send it as an email to [email protected] >> To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. >> ----------------------------------------------------------- >> Annie, >> I believe that the image jonesh3.jpg may be a dealated formosan termite >> swarmer. A clearer view of the wing remnents could clarify. If this was >> captured recently it more or less coincides with formosan swarming in New >> Orleans. >> >> *Jeffrey Tucker, BCE* >> Entomology Associates, Inc. >> P.O. Box 70375 >> Houston, Texas 77270 >> Phone: 713.681.9004 >> [email protected] >> >> *Shipping:(FedEX, UPS)* >> 2020 North Loop West >> Ste. 115 >> Houston, Texas 77018 >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> On May 9, 2013, at 3:43 PM, "Peterson, Elizabeth A" <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >> This is a message from the Museumpests List. >> To post to this list send it as an email to [email protected] >> To unsubscribe please look at the footer of this email. >> ----------------------------------------------------------- >> Hello pest list,**** >> ** ** >> I have attached four images: three of which I believe are different >> phases of the odd beetle, but am looking for some confirmation of that. I >> had thought that all the larvae I was finding were carpet beetle larvae, >> but now am rethinking that as I find what I think are odd beetle adults. >> But it seems as though they both raise similar concerns in relation to >> library collections.**** >> ** ** >> I don’t have a clue of what the thing pictured in the image titled >> jonesh3 is, can anyone ID it?**** >> ** ** >> I’m also putting a query out there about a freezer. I’d like to get a >> freezer for our institution that will be used for incoming gifts and >> possibly as a mechanism for treating a large collection in the process of >> moving it to a new space. I’ve found a mini walk-in room that’s in our >> budget, but it automatically defrosts, raising the air temperature to about >> -15C every 6 hours. The company has told me that items stored in it only >> warm up about 2 or 3 degrees during the defrost (from -20C) but this still >> makes me concerned about its pest killing abilities. Am I right to be >> concerned about that, or will it be effective in treating collections >> materials for pests? **** >> ** ** >> Thanks,**** >> ** ** >> Annie Peterson**** >> ** ** >> Annie Peterson**** >> Preservation Librarian**** >> Howard-Tilton Memorial Library**** >> Tulane University**** >> 504 865 5641**** >> ** ** >> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- >> To send an email to the list, send your msg to [email protected] >> >> To unsubscribe from this list send an email to [email protected] >> 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 [email protected] with this command in the body: >> >> set mode digest pestlist >> >> Any problems email [email protected] or [email protected] <odd.jpg> >> <odd1.jpg><odd2.jpg><jonesh3.jpg> >> >> >> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- >> To send an email to the list, send your msg to [email protected] >> >> To unsubscribe from this list send an email to [email protected] >> 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 [email protected] with this command in the body: >> >> set mode digest pestlist >> >> Any problems email [email protected] or [email protected] >> > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > To send an email to the list, send your msg to [email protected] > > To unsubscribe from this list send an email to [email protected] 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 [email protected] with this command in the body: > > set mode digest pestlist > > Any problems email [email protected] or [email protected] > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > To send an email to the list, send your msg to [email protected] > > To unsubscribe from this list send an email to [email protected] 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 [email protected] with this command in the body: > > set mode digest pestlist > > Any problems email [email protected] or [email protected] > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To send an email to the list, send your msg to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this list send an email to [email protected] 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 [email protected] with this command in the body: set mode digest pestlist Any problems email [email protected] or [email protected]
