Helen,

It will do no good to clean the books if they are in an environment with
moisture issues as mold will simply continue to develop. The key is to
monitor and control the environment by reducing the RH to below 50%, either
through an HVAC system, a dehumidifier, or by setting up a special storage
area with climate control for your most important books. Once the humidity
is lowered and controlled the mold will die. Some molds do have health
effects, so any object that has a lot of mold should be isolated from
people and other objects. Once you can control the environment then you
should seek advice from a book and paper conservator, because what you do
to remove mold will vary whether the books are hardback, paperback, or
leatherbound, and if they have any other issues.

Cheers!
Dave

David Harvey
Senior Conservator & Museum Consultant
Los Angeles CA
www.cityofangelsconservation.weebly.com
On Jul 25, 2014 11:50 AM, "Helen Wirka" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Dear all:
>
> We have a small research library for our volunteers to check out books in
> the "docent lounge" in our museum. The library and docent lounge are in a
> room that has previously had moisture issues and unfortunately, many of the
> books have pink mold spots on them. Is there a good, inexpensive and easy
> solution to clean these spots off the books?
>
> And how harmful are these little pink spots to people, not just the books?
> I have spoken to the person who is reorganizing the library and offered her
> the option of wearing a mask.
>
> Thank you,
> Helen
>
> *Helen Wirka*
>
> *Historic Site Specialist / Curator*
>
> *Carlyle House Historic Park*
>
> A Property of the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority
>
> 121 N. Fairfax Street
>
> Alexandria VA 22314
>
> Phone: 703-549-2997
>
> Fax: 703-549-5738
>
> w <http://www.novaparks.com>ww.novaparks.com
>
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