02-06-2010, 02:54 AM
(06-02-2009, 02:30 PM)coramunroe Wrote: I have a bunch of gothic books I purchased off ebay awhile back. I am now starting to read a few here and there. Unfortunately, they all smell musty like they were stored in an attic for awhile. Can anyone recommend a way to remove this smell? Trying to read one of these books while eating dinner is kinda gross
I'm a librarian. If books smell musty, they're holding moisture. Mix baking soda and talcum/baby powder in equal amounts. Baking soda removes the odor and talc absorbs the moisture. Get a box or tub, plastic or cardboard whatever, it really doesn't matter but you have to be able to close and seal it. Libraries call them "stink tanks." I use a plastic tub. Spread the bottom of the container with the baking soda/talc mix. Open the book and sprinkle the mix through out the pages. Place the book with pages open into the container, igently "layer" the books on top of each other while sprinkling the mixture between layers. Then, seal the container. Leave it sealed for at least five days. When you ready to open the container, spread out an old sheet, place the container in the middle of the sheet, open the container, take your hair dryer, set it on low and cool, pull out a book and blow the soda/talc mixture off the book and back into the container. Do a couple books and if they still smell musty put them back into the container and seal it again for another five days or whatever. When you done, dump the residue from the sheet back into the container. If there's still a slight powdery residue on the book, brush it off with a clean paint brush.