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Removal of foxing

Started by 40sJohn,

16 posts in this topic

divad

divad

Posted
Posted

The accurately identified foxing along the top edge of this book is not possible to remove. Foxing is a stain of biological origin, and is impregnated in the fibers of the paper. The light soiling along the bottom edge, however, is easily removed. Light soiling is simply dirt sitting on the surface. Dry cleaning books is an art in itself, and takes quite a bit of skill.

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Ze-man

Ze-man

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Is it possible to remove foxing from a book or light soiling? Is it possible to remove such without it being a "restored" grade? Where could I look to find methods of cleaning up this back cover?

 

Batman171B.jpg

 

 

It is possible to lessen, or even remove foxing(the spotting at the top of your book) from paper fibers depending on the severity and condition of the paper itself, but it will always garner a restored label since it involves various forms of wet washing.

 

But there are numerous threads dedicated to dry cleaning a comic on this forum(the dirt/soil/ink all over the rest of your book). Try out your luck with the search function at the top of the page and use key words such as "wonderbread " and the obvious "dry clean"

 

For the most part, it is not all that difficult to dry clean a cover, just lots of practice.. BUT... because you can cause greater damage by doing it improperly there is always the risk factor in attempting to do so. Be careful and always remember to work away to the outer edge..no back and forth.

 

And also remember that some do not like dry cleaned covers since only the white areas are normally erased, or worst case scenario inks AND cover gloss are removed during the process if too much elbow grease is used.

 

Ze-

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PovertyRow

PovertyRow

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:bump:

 

Even at this later date the jury is still out on the cause of foxing: mineral (as in iron/copper etc) or organic (as in mold).

 

Without knowing the true cause it will be difficult to make a truly lasting remedy.

 

This reminds me of the Russian experiments on the preservation of newsprint a few decades ago. It seemingly worked for a few years and the older newspapers were white and pristine. But a few years after that they began yellowing worse than their untreated counterparts as well as a reversion to their former acidic levels. .

 

Similar is the VPD (Vapor Phase Deacidification) sheets of paper you would put in your comic book to neutralize the acids and also impart an alkaline buffer. These were highly touted and sold. But like the Russian experiment, staining and discoloration and a reversion to their former acidic levels.

 

I do wish to stress my respect for the Microchamber paper. It is a different thing from VPD paper.

 

Such is the world of acidic paper.

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PovertyRow

PovertyRow

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Peroxide. small small small amount at the end of a little paint brush. dab it and let it air dry. Should lessen it

 

Peroxide will act as a bleach. In the old days paper restorers would saturateb a block of plaster with peroxide and put the paper in a sealed chamber with the block. It was never more than a temporary remedy. :(

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