Janean,

I am not sure what aspects of heavy-duty shelving are important to you.  Are you looking for the absolute best regardless of price?  Are you on a budget?  Does appearance matter?  Most of my clients want the frugal approach.  If that is true for you, consider used shelving from a used industrial equipment or office equipment dealer.  I worked with one client in rural NH who purchased nearly 1,000 shelves, plus the relevant number of posts and braces.  I would imagine you have several such dealers around you.  If possible, I advise solid steel shelves over wire - they are more gentle on objects and you don't have to worry about feet of furniture (e.g.chairs) or other objects going through holes.  An advantage of used, other than it is about 1/3 the price of new, is that you can get as many shelves as you want per unit, as they are generally sold by the piece.  One thing about used shelving is VERY important.  It must have its original paint.  That way, even if solvent-based paint was used, by now years later, it will have finished off-gassing and is safe for the collections.  If the dealer (or anyone else) has re-painted the shelving, do not buy it.  And, of course, do not re-paint it yourself!

Marc

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

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

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


  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Janean Mollet-Van Beckum 
  To: [log in to unmask] 
  Sent: Friday, March 08, 2013 9:56 AM
  Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Heavy Duty Collection Shelving


  Hi Listers,

   

  I am hoping someone can point me in the right direction of a source for heavy duty collection shelving.  We currently have a metal and wood configuration that I want to update.

   

  Thank you!

   

  Janean Mollet-Van Beckum

  Curator of Collections and Exhibits
  Washington County Historical Society 
  320 S 5th Avenue, West Bend, WI  53095-3333


  (262) 335-4678  

   



------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  To unsubscribe from the MUSEUM-L list, click the following link:
  http://home.ease.lsoft.com/scripts/wa-HOME.exe?SUBED1=MUSEUM-L&A=1 

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).