Books

Paper repair

Don't try to mend torn pages or damaged covers, unless you have good-quality materials and are confident that the methods you use will not cause damage in the future. Talk to a conservator if you're not certain that you're doing the right thing, or if you want information about training courses.

If books are damaged, be aware that some repairs can cause further damage. Sticky tapes will, in the long term, cause permanent staining. In most cases, the adhesive migrates into the paper and changes chemically, becoming insoluble and discolouring, while the tape falls off. In addition to the original damage, the paper is now badly stained as well.

Similarly, many other glues and pastes introduce acids into the paper, and many also discolour with age.

If tears are extensive and large areas of the text are missing, it is best to seek the advice or help of a conservator. But smaller repairs on bound books can be carried out in situ.

Conservators work to a code of ethics. It is important to note some of these in relation to the repair of books, so that you can think further about the choice of materials and the methods you will use. The notes which follow describe a conservator's approach.

The treatment must be reversible, so that further treatments can be carried out in future if necessary, or so that improved techniques which may be developed can be applied.

The treatment should not disfigure or endanger the book. For example, wet treatments should not be used on material with inks that are soluble in water; and sticky tape should not be used, it stains paper badly.

The treatment and materials must match the problem. For example, heavy repair papers should not be used to repair small tears on material which is hardly used. It is better to wait till you have an appropriate repair paper.

All treatment steps should be documented with information of what was used for the repair and, if possible, with photographs of the damage before treatment.

Repairing small tears in books

Repairing torn paper or reinforcing and lining weak, degraded papers is generally a wet process—involving sticking a strong, lightweight, acid-free paper to the damaged area with starch paste.

Japanese paper repairs can be seen on the lower left corner and at the head of the book. The book is being held open by a Mylar strip which is reflecting light. Photograph courtesy of Vicki Humphrey

Japanese papers are excellent for paper repair because:

• they are lightweight and strong, and their colours blend well with most papers;

• Japanese papers have long fibres—in comparison to most Western papers—this gives them their strength;

• if you decide to purchase some of these papers, ask for conservation-grade Japanese papers. Small packs of a range of papers are available from suppliers of conservation materials. You won't need very much paper to repair small tears;

• they are usually handmade and suited for conservation. Papers such as Sekishu, Tengujo and Usumino are well-suited to book repairs because they are very fine and do not obscure the text; and

• these papers can also be water-cut, giving very soft edges to the repair patch. Knife-cut edges show as a hard ridge.

Paper can be water-cut like this:

• paper strips are water-cut using a fine brush, letter opener or bone folder, spatula and ruler;

• a stainless steel ruler is placed along the repair paper, with the required amount of paper protruding beyond the ruler;

• the wet brush is drawn along the ruler edge, wetting the paper: the paper should not become too wet;

• the letter opener, bone folder or spatula is then drawn along the ruler—to score the wet paper; and

• the strip of paper can then be pulled away from the rest of the sheet of paper.

The repair should not be much larger than the damaged area, but needs to be big enough to extend beyond the damage onto the sound paper around it. This makes a stronger repair. The feathered edges of the water-cut paper contribute to the strength of the repair, because they are all stuck down as well.

Paper strips are not always suitable for repair, and you may have to produce your own shapes. This can be done by needling out the shape using a mattress needle or the sharp end of a bone folder. Once you have made an impression in the repair paper with the needle or bone folder, apply water to the impression. Pull the shape away from the rest of the paper.

When repairing a page of text, remember:

• wherever possible, place the repair so that it does not cover text; and

• place the repair on the side of the page where the repair will be least obtrusive.

The repairs are stuck in place using starch paste. It is at this stage that difficulties can arise.

Always apply the paste to the repair paper, never to the book pages. You should also allow the paste to air-dry till it is almost dry before placing it on the dry, book page. This will help to reduce the risk of cockling and tidemarks.

Once pasted, the paper can become difficult to handle, but with practice the operation becomes easier.

Once the repair is in place, it wets the book paper, which will expand where it is wet. Because only small areas are wet, you will notice that it cockles. Controlling the drying is important for these cockles to settle back down.

While drying, the repair should be sandwiched between:

• Reemay, which will prevent the blotter sticking to the repair; and

• blotters, which should be changed regularly, to ensure that the moisture absorbed by them is removed from the repair area.

This sandwich should be weighted.

It is important that the paper is fully dried. Don't rush this, as paper can sometimes take a couple of weeks to dry fully.

Click here to see diagram

Starch paste

Starch paste is the adhesive used most widely by paper conservators. Starch paste from various sources—for example, wheat or rice—has been used for centuries to stick paper to paper, and textiles to paper. And because it has been used for so long, we know a great deal about its behaviour. Some of its greatest advantages are that it does not discolour and it is nearly always possible to remove it without difficulty.

Starch paste is not difficult to make. You will need:

• 10 grams or 3.5 level teaspoons of starch, for example, Silver Star; and

• 100ml of water, preferably distilled or deionised.

These proportions produce a nice working consistency.

• Add about 10ml of the water to the starch, and mix to a slurry.

• Add more water, if required, to produce a smooth paste, and leave to soak for approximately half-an-hour.

• Heat the remainder of the water in a double-boiler saucepan, or in a beaker or jar in a saucepan of boiling water. Use glass or stainless steel containers.

• Add the starch slurry and cook for approximately 40 minutes, stirring constantly.

Leave to cool.

Lumpy paste is difficult to use and the lumps will be obvious, so when the paste is cool press it through a fine cloth—Terylene, for example—or push it through a fine, Nylon tea strainer or sieve a couple of times.

The paste is now ready to use. Or it can be diluted if a thinner paste is required-this is best done by mixing the paste and the required amount of water in a blender. Remember, the thinner the paste the stronger the adhesive bond.

When using an adhesive on a valued, paper-based item, it is important to know just what you're applying to the paper and how it is likely to behave over time. Many commercially available adhesives are starch-based, but most of these adhesives also have additives such as:

• preservatives;

• plasticisers, for example, glucose, to regulate the drying speed;

• dispersing agents; and

• mineral fillers to control penetration of the adhesive into porous surfaces.

These substances, which can affect the long-term behaviour of the adhesive, are rarely listed on the label.

If you have a problem relating to the storage or display of books, contact a conservator. Conservators can offer advice and practical solutions.