Sherry,

Well, first, anything will probably be better than raw plywood in a
collections storage area.

In terms of the conservation concerns. You need to look at both the
floor tile material and the proposed glue. Just having someone
recommend a tile brand is next to useless because manufacturers change
their formulations all the time, there can be significant differences
from lot to lot, or in different color or pattern compositions.
Conservators often assess materials intended for collections storage
or exhibitions using the qualitative Oddy test, in which a small
sample of the material is placed in a clean test tube with a measured
amount of deionized water, cotton wool, a clean silver coupon id
suspended from the stopper, and then it is placed in a lab oven and
heated to simulate accelerated aging for weeks. If the coupon has any
visible tarnish or surface effects at the end of the test then the
material is indicating a negative for use near collections.

To get a faster assessment (in a matter of days) I once had to submit
a material to a commercial lab for a mass spec gas chromatograph
headspace analysis. In this test a measured sample of the material is
placed into the machine and incinerated - the gaseous volatiles are
analysed and this can tell you if organic acids and sulphur compounds
are elementally present and in specific concentrations. In the case ot
my material we had positives for both. This test is expensive and it
is best suited for only looking at a single sample or two, not a
multitude that can be easily done by the Oddy test as previously
described.

The glues can be a differnet issue - often by exmaining the MSDS
(material safety data sheets) for such products a conservator can
glean insight into potential problems, and also contacting the
manufacturer can sometimes be helpful. Usually any adhesive that is
low - voc (volatile organic compounds) and "green" is usually better
then one full of organic solvents.

So, if you have access to a conservator to consult with you on this,
you can go a long way towards at least avoiding the worst flooring
products out there. But as I said at the start, you can't get much
worse than the raw plywood that you already have.

Cheers!
Dave

David Harvey
Conservator
Los Angeles, CA


On 1/15/08, Sherry Kaseberg <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>
> Interested in advice and/or specifications for vinyl flooring for use in
> artifact storage rooms. Present flooring is plywood, unpainted.
>
> Sherry Kaseberg
> Museum Coordinator
> Sherman County Historical Museum
> Moro, Oregon
> www.shermanmuseum.org
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