Ending The Chapter Of Silverfish Damage To Books In Long-Term Storage
There are many things that can harm books while they're in long-term storage, but the most heart-wrenching destruction occurs when silverfish bugs invade your stash. These bugs love dark spaces and eat the glue used in book bindings, so long-term book storage provides the perfect habitat for them. To avoid the damage silverfish can do to your books, follow these two tips.
Paper vs. Plastic
Keeping silverfish from essentially eating your books starts with packing them the right way. However, this is more challenging than it would seem. Plastic bins are great for this task, because it keeps the bugs from accessing the books. Unfortunately, plastic containers can cause moisture to condense inside, which may lead to mold and water damage. You can still use plastic bins, but you'll need to stick some type of desiccate inside the containers to help control the moisture.
You don't really have a moisture issue with cardboard boxes. Unfortunately, silverfish love cardboard, and it's all but inevitable you'll suffer an invasion if you pack your stash in them. There are a couple of things you can do to repel or at least slow them down. One option is to place mothballs or cedar shaving in the boxes. Silverfish are repelled by the scent. Another option is to cut up strips of corrugated cardboard, put poison on them, and place them on the top, bottom, and along the sides of the books. This will kill the bugs if they manage to get inside.
Prepare the Room
The type of storage room you get can also help combat a silverfish invasion. These bugs like humid areas. Excessive humidity is not good for your books anyway, so it's best to get a climate-controlled and heated self-storage unit that keeps the space as dry as possible. Make sure you choose a facility that's clean and regularly exterminates, as this can go a long way towards preventing an infestation.
The other thing you want to do is dust the area where you're storing your books with diatomaceous earth. This is a type of dust that's poisonous to silverfish, because it dehydrates them fairly quickly. The earth is most effective when it's dry, which is another reason why getting a humidity-controlled unit can be helpful.
It's essential that you check on your books every few months to make sure they're doing okay in storage. Be prepared to replace the desiccate material if you're storing the books in plastic containers, remove dead silverfish, and reapply the layer of diatomaceous earth when you do.
For more tips on protecting books in long-term storage, contact a storage facility.
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