Budget Wet cleaning comics for the Beginner! Don't be scared!

In this video, and it's designed for a beginner if you've been thinking about doing a wet cleaning on a comic book yet you've been afraid of the outcomes, I'm going to walk you through some simple cleanings steps of a comic book wrap. We start with a 1964 X-Men 3. The book has already been disassembled and the cover cleaned and treated. We will start with a wrap. I will walk you through the wet cleaning and de-acidification of the paper, Then the drying process, blue light process, humidification and final reassembly of the book.

Product Links:

450 nanometer Blue LED panels
https://www.yescomusa.com/products/13...

Hollytex non-woven fiber
https://museumservicescorporation.com...

Calcium Hydroxide
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BXZOSLM?...

Triton X-100
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SGY8LRC?...

Calcium Hydroxide bath recipe:

I follow Dr. Paul's procedures at Liberty Hill Comics with the addition of 1oz of 12% Hydrogen Peroxide per gallon of mixture.

Mix up the following super concentrate formula in one container then dilute that in a 1:4 ratio with warm water for the bath. I heat the water to 140F to ensure the powered calcium hydroxide is fully melted into the mixture.

2 grams of Calcium Hydroxide (about a 1/4 tsp)
1 liter of water
.5% by volume Triton-X (about 6-10 drops)

1oz of 12% Hydrogen Peroxide per gallon of bath (This may form some micro-bubbles during the bath. This is normal.

Bath should first be tested for 5 min to ensure that there is no color loss or to strong of a mixture. Never more than a 30 min bath.

Why I put Hydrogen Peroxide in the bath and not mist it?

The sprayer you use, no matter how fine of a mist it produces, will cause micro-specking of the paper that is visible under an ultraviolet light. Yes, CGC uses a UV lamp. Putting HP in the aqueous bath, allows for a uniform absorption into the paper, Cover or wrap. Then once the paper is exposed to 460nm Blue LED, the absorbed HP whitens/lightens the paper.

BLED exposure

I have tried multiple wavelengths of blue LEDs and I have found that 450nm-460nm works best at a 3hr exposure time followed by a 3hr dwell (rest) and a 2nd 3hr exposure. I no longer use a box with a blue LED. I built a multi-tier mirror chamber that can handle an entire comic (cover & wraps both sides) at a time. (Visit the Instagram for Flying L Comics to see it).

  / flyinglcomics  

The Blue LED exposure will cause the paper to contract and dry out. Re-humidify it and put the cover or wrap into the heat press at 160F for 10min. Re-assemble the book. Re-humidify the assembled book once more. Re-roll/fold it then press as usual.

Cheers!
Larry

@DrPaulKosnik Liberty Hill Comics
@A1ComicsINC
@ImmaculateComics