A Systematic Approach to Selecting Inexpensive Conservation Storage Solutions

The appropriate storage of heritage artefacts is vital to their long-term survival, but selecting suitable storage solutions is not always easy due to the number of potentially conflicting factors that must be considered: the method of housing should be compatible with both the objects themselves and with the local environment; it must offer adequate support and protection; it should ideally be inexpensive, readily available and easy to use. Following the discovery of objects in the British Library’s collection which were showing initial signs of damage due to inappropriate storage, a systematic approach to selecting and assessing potential housing solutions was devised, as reported herein. A particular aim was to use containers, materials and testing regimes that could be sourced easily and affordably, thus permitting the rapid rehousing of all of the items identified as being at risk. This emphasis also places such test protocols and storage solutions within the reach of smaller collections with limited budgets and resources.