Literature is one of humanity's great passions, but keeping your library in optimum conditions requires a bit of effort, as books are easily prone to deterioration. This is because they are affected by external factors such as damp and dust, which can leave them in very poor condition.
The care and maintenance of books involves, first and foremost, the fight against dust. Unless you remove the particles of dust, they stick to the books. You often cannot see this easily. These dust particles can end up oxidising the pages or creating environments that encourages small organisms. The best way to fight this problem is with regular dusting. Therefore, the best thing is to remove the books from the shelves a couple of times of year to give them a good clean, but it will also give you an opportunity to spot any untoward moulds or insects before they cause irreparable damage.
One of the biggest threats to any library is moisture. Therefore, the best thing to do is to avoid your collection being damaged it to take extra care to keep it dry. A piece of wood or a panel can avoid them rubbing against walls and you should keep them away from windows or places where water flows. If you notice that one of your books is showing signs of deterioration due to damp remove it from your collection as soon as possible so it does not damage neighbouring books.
Sources of heat are not advisable either. Where you choose to store your books should be dry with good ventilation, but never with an excessive temperature. Ironically, the classical dream of reading in a library with a roaring fireplace is actually not good for the books as it can cause it to deteriorate.
Keep your books out of direct sunlight, as this will end up decomposing the paper little by little, as well as changing the colour of the pages and the covers. Always store them vertically so that they maintain their structure, without becoming deformed.
If you follow these tips, you should hopefully be able to protect your precious collection for years to come.
If you don't have enough space at home you could always hire a secure self storage to keep them safe. We have a number of
storage facilities located centrally in Barcelona so do get in touch if we can help.