--- Tothwolf <tothwolf_at_concentric.net> wrote:
> On Sun, 1 Sep 2002, Larry Anderson wrote:
>
> > You might want to contact the libraries in your area for companies that
> > do freeze-drying too...
>
> I don't have the funds, and I think most of the really wet materials have
> already dried out.
I had a major catastrophe in my storage area about 10 years ago. I was
working in the basement below the shop my mother was renting for her
typing/typesetting business. The beauty salon next door managed to plug
the sewage line with feminine products (as evidenced by several pounds
of cotton snaked out of the line during the repair). The first thing
that happened was 6" of rainwater. Two days later, it was replaced by
2" of sewage.
Fortunately, I had begun the recovery work when it was just water. Among
the casualties were a Diablo "RK03" disk drive, and a book case full of
1970s BYTE magazines - paid for by subscription, not free to me. The
magazines were on the bottom shelf of a pressboard book case, low enough
to wick up the water. They split the book case and dumped the contents
into the pool.
I wrapped up all the books and magazines in saran wrap and froze them
to give me time to deal with them. I stacked them in the freezer at
work (people didn't store lunches in there). About 5 at a time, I
would remove them, unwrap them, and place them under the raised floor
under a board and a weight, right in front of the air inlet. With
the constantly moving air, they didn't mold, and did a fair job of
drying out without too much cling and damage (on newsprint pages).
I did lose a few things - DEC GIGI terminal glossies, some Dec-u-scopes
and a few 1975-1980-era DEC and DECUS publications. I think I saved
about 80% of the magazines and hardback books, at least to a readable
state, wrinked but informationally intact.
Good luck on what you have left to rescue. Water is probably one
of the easiest ways to damage those things we most want to preserve.
It's OK if your circuits get wet, but not the docs and software.
-ethan
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Received on Sun Sep 01 2002 - 22:27:00 BST