I was offered a new collection... Maybe the "Mildew Pedigree"? 0

[Brock]

I wasn't sure where to post this, but would appreciate any advice... I was offered a small collection over the weekend - maybe 600 or 700 books. They seem to span about 1980 to 1995 with a few outliers.

The problem is they were poorly stored - mostly with no bags, in cardboard boxes in a storage locker. About 1/4 have water damage, and come are rather pungent in odour - a number have mildew, and a few treasury editions appear to have some spots of black mold. Generally, the books (aside from any odour issues) are about 3.0 to 5.0 but there are a few reach 9.4 or so.

These are mostly core Marvel and DC titles (Batman, Detective, Action, Superman, Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, Incredible Hulk, Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man and X-Men). There are about 150 Canadian price variants in the mix.

Overall, I'm inclined to pass on this - just too much stuff that I'd have to throw away, and too many questions about how much mildew there is... Every bad book is a threat to the seller's reputation.

Having said that, there are a few good books... the best ones are pictured here, but there are another 20-30 books that might sell in the $10-$15 range - if they are clean enough.

Anyone with any thoughts or recommendations?

Edited June 28, 2021 by Brock

[AndyFish]

If the eight books in the last pic are mildew free I'd buy those and dispose of the rest.   Mildew can be extremely dangerous to breath in so get yourself a good mask-- not the silly paper masks people used for the pandemic, get something from a hardware store that is used during sanding, one that actually keeps particles out.    In this collection so many folks are hoarders, they can't bring themselves to throw out books even when they're beyond saving.

At the risk of talking out of both sides of my face, you can get minor mildew out a number of ways-- leaving them in a fresh air environment helps, then put them into a plastic box with a lid and an open box of baking soda-- leave in the box for 2-3 days and then check to see if it's helped, you may have to repeat (and change the baking soda box) a few times.  Anything with black dots toss in recycling right away, you don't want to deal with mold.

[revat]

15 minutes ago, AndyFish said:

If the eight books in the last pic are mildew free I'd buy those and dispose of the rest.   Mildew can be extremely dangerous to breath in so get yourself a good mask-- not the silly paper masks people used for the pandemic, get something from a hardware store that is used during sanding, one that actually keeps particles out.    In this collection so many folks are hoarders, they can't bring themselves to throw out books even when they're beyond saving.

At the risk of talking out of both sides of my face, you can get minor mildew out a number of ways-- leaving them in a fresh air environment helps, then put them into a plastic box with a lid and an open box of baking soda-- leave in the box for 2-3 days and then check to see if it's helped, you may have to repeat (and change the baking soda box) a few times.  Anything with black dots toss in recycling right away, you don't want to deal with mold.

Sounds like you know more about this than I do, but I want to second the baking soda usage.  

[divad]

If the price is right, I would buy the lot. It may take a bit of work on your part, but it will pay off. Just isolate the books with questionable aromas from your other inventory - do not integrate.

As to, "Every bad book is a threat to the seller's reputation."  - Not if your descriptions are accurate - Good luck. 

And btw, who better to handle this?

Edited June 28, 2021 by divad

[MAR1979]

"Mildew Perigree", that stinks

 

[Brock]

So I made a (low but fair) offer for the best few books, which the seller accepted, and I suggested they dispose of the rest... I guess there's also the future cost of how ever much baking soda I need!

In any event, here's what I salvaged! Most of teh newsstand editions are Canadian Price Variants.

[AndyFish]

Looks like you got some good books in there-- congrats and good luck!

[Brock]

So the experiment begins... @AndyFish and @revat - does this look right to you?

[FlyingDonut]

You may also want to try the same thing with dryer sheets - I've had success with that method.

[KPR Comics]

On 7/20/2021 at 4:22 PM, Brock said:

So the experiment begins... @AndyFish and @revat - does this look right to you?

Doubt it.  It’s the interiors that are holding the odor. Stacking them like that won’t do much.  When I had a mildewy collection, I put odorless kitty litter in the tub, with an oven rack on top, and placed one book on the rack.  One book at a time and I turned the pages once per day.  Tedious, but it worked.

[fastballspecial]

On 7/21/2021 at 10:02 PM, FlyingDonut said:

You may also want to try the same thing with dryer sheets - I've had success with that method.

Yes that works well over time. Nothing is fast. Some fans as well do remove some odor over time.
I had to do with cigarette smoke on 70 copies of ASM 380 many years ago. It worked, but it
took several weeks. 

The backing soda is good as well. Anything black I would throw out. Be thorough with these books. 
Some you might not be able to save. Foxing I would imagine will be on alot of them too.

 

[fastballspecial]

On 7/21/2021 at 10:15 PM, KPR Comics said:

Doubt it.  It’s the interiors that are holding the odor. Stacking them like that won’t do much.  When I had a mildewy collection, I put odorless kitty litter in the tub, with an oven rack on top, and placed one book on the rack.  One book at a time and I turned the pages once per day.  Tedious, but it worked.

Yes sadly this type of design will work best, but like he said its going to take a long time.

 

[Brock]

The saga continues... the owner of this collection showed up with another box they had found. This one was stored in better conditions, so has no odour or mildew issues. The books are mostly low to mid grade, but I saved a few treasures to add to my pile. Again, the newsstand editions are mostly Canadian price variants.

[ADAMANTIUM]

On 7/28/2021 at 9:45 AM, Brock said:

The saga continues... the owner of this collection showed up with another box they had found. This one was stored in better conditions, so has no odour or mildew issues. The books are mostly low to mid grade, but I saved a few treasures to add to my pile. Again, the newsstand editions are mostly Canadian price variants.

Awesome! Hope the price was well, good, since he "found" another box

JK

But looks like some great finds in low it midgrade, even if only for readers, CONGRATS!

Edited July 28, 2021 by ADAMANTIUM

[CK-1]

I'd recommend getting an ozone generator if baking soda doesn't work.

[revat]

On 7/21/2021 at 8:15 PM, KPR Comics said:

Doubt it.  It’s the interiors that are holding the odor. Stacking them like that won’t do much.  When I had a mildewy collection, I put odorless kitty litter in the tub, with an oven rack on top, and placed one book on the rack.  One book at a time and I turned the pages once per day.  Tedious, but it worked.

yah i think you gotta go page by page for best results.  the flavor is sealed in there. I mean i assume one would only do this for books with some value.

[Brock]

On 7/28/2021 at 11:34 AM, revat said:

yah i think you gotta go page by page for best results.  the flavor is sealed in there. I mean i assume one would only do this for books with some value.

They've come a fair way in the two weeks I've had them, but for the books in that first batch, it's definitely a slower process.

In that first batch, about 45 of the books I selected were bagged, and they seem to be good, so we're really talking about the other 25 books - unfortunately, they're the better ones (ASM 300, Batman 189, Thor 337, X-Men 98).

It was definitely a trade-off between not wanting a bunch of problematic books, and keeping a few that might be worth the effort.

The second batch didn't have as many treasures (although I won't complain about FF 48 and X-Men 121 & 129), and they have heavier wear, but they have no other issues.