Melissa,

I have been away for a few days and may not have caught all of the info 
about this thread.  Did you say how large the painting are, or how large a 
space you have to store them in?  Are they framed?  Oil on canvass, or 
watercolor on paper, or others?  The general problem with wood products is 
not just the formaldehyde from the glues, but the off-gassing of the wood 
itself, be it plywood, composite or solid wood.  This goes on very 
long-term.

For such a small number of paintings, the simplest solution may be a metal 
shelving unit with metal shelves.  This is a low-tech, low-budget solution. 
Of course, if money and time are no object, you can go for a much fancier 
alternative.  If you buy new, get powder coated paint.  If you buy used, be 
sure that the shelving is old (10 years or more) and has not been repainted 
by the vendor or anyone else.  Once it is this old, even baked enamel will 
not produce objectionable levels of off-gassing.  Generally, you will want 
shelving that is 2 feet deep.  The width will depend upon the composite 
depth of the paintings + frames, but I would imagine that 3 feet would be 
adequate.  Line the bottom of the shelf (it should be 1 foot or more above 
the floor) with 1/8" Ethafoam sheets.  If the frames are plain, 1/4" (2 
layers) thickness is adequate.  If they have composite ornamentation that 
sticks down, you need 1" (8 layers) or more to adequately pad the 
decoration.  Store the paintings vertically, bottom edges running front to 
back, faces of the paintings parallel to the sides of the shelving unit. 
Pad between the paintings, and the paintings and the end of the shelving 
unit, with foamcore, or sheets of acid-free cardboard, assuming that they 
are framed.  If they are not, more specific advice is required.  Make 
certain that the sheets are larger than the largest painting.  Group them 
roughly by size, so that they support one another.  For such a small number 
of items, you do not necessarily need intermediate supports, but the group 
of paintings will support one another.  Most likely, you will have other 
shelves on the unit that can be used to store other items.  This system will 
not work for huge paintings, but probably will work for those up to about 5 
feet in width.  One of the advantages of this type of system over slotted 
systems is that the paintings are free to exchange with air around them, and 
micro-environments inside each slot are not created.  Remember, oil 
paintings on canvas are a composite of somewhat incompatible materials 
(fabric, wooden stretcher, wooden frame, paint) that have the potential to 
deteriorate themselves if kept in a confined environment.

Again, this is a low-tech solution put forth without detailed information 
about the specific paintings.  Good luck!

Marc

American Conservation Consortium, Ltd.
     4 Rockville Road
     Broad Brook, CT 06016
     www.conservator.com
     860-386-6058

*Collections Preservation Consultation
*Conservation Assessments & Surveys
*Low-Tech Environmental Control
*Moisture Management Solutions
*Collections in Historic Structures
*Collections Care Grant Preparation
*Conservation Treatment of:
     Furniture
     Painted Wood
     Horse-Drawn Vehicles
     Architectural Interiors

Marc A. Williams, President
     MS in Art Conservation, Winterthur Museum Program
     Former Chief Wooden Object Conservator, Smithsonian Institution
     Fellow, American Institute for Conservation (AIC)


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Melissa Jolley" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, July 26, 2007 2:20 PM
Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Painting Storage


> We are looking for a permanent storage option for about 10 to 15 
> paintings.
> I have been researching a few different systems and wondered if anyone has 
> had experience with the same debate of pros and cons as we are currently 
> having.
>
> Our first thought for storage is a wooden box with slot spaces for each 
> painting to be stored vertically. In order to prevent off gassing from the 
> wood, I have seen suggestions to purchase a low or no formaldehyde MDF 
> such as Medite II. If this is the wood used in construction, will it still 
> need a barrier layer applied to the wood? Two of the most recommended 
> options for the barrier are Marvelseal or Cagmer Polyglaze 146.
> I would appreciate anyone's opinion about which works best, is most cost 
> effective and other suggestions of any similar products.
> Also, when using Marvelseal, does it need to be replaced every few years? 
> Would the Polyglaze have to be recoated as the years go by?
>
> After researching I have also seen hanging storage is a popular way to 
> house paintings. I realize that using metal would help with the off 
> gassing issue. However, the space that we have to fit the storage into is 
> fairly small, and the wall we have for the space cannot be used to mount a 
> storage system. Because we are not able to mount the screen system, it is 
> questionable if we could safely create a free standing hanging storage 
> piece. Are there any ideas or solutions to address this problem?
>
> One other option we have come up with is to make a box similar to the 
> wooden vertical slot box but instead of using wood use Lexan or plexiglass 
> (to help with the off gassing issue). Has anyone had any experience with 
> this?
>
> Sorry for such a long post. Thanks for any information you can provide!
>
> Melissa Jolley
> Curator, Redcliffe State Historic Site
> Beech Island, SC
>
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