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 > ========================================================= > 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). > > ========================================================= 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).