Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
I thought this album was long gone, and I was even more surprised to see that it still contained maybe 150-200 stamps. (Before I drifted away from my collection in my teens, I invested in a worldwide Scott album and the Harris Liberty US album. I'm happy to discover my old White Ace album -- strictly for sentimental reasons; the album album is not valuable in its own right, and none of the stamps strike me as likely to have much value...though a few of them are attractive enough to draw my eye and make me want to place them in my newer, more robust collection.
Here's the sticking point, though. The old White Ace album is musty as all get out. Not moldy, mind you, but very basement-smelling musty. Part of me wants to bring the album upstairs and put it in my newly built stamp bookcase to thumb through in the odd sentimental moment. The rest of me says, "There's no way to get that musty smell out." Anyone have any experience with a musty stamp album? Should I just leave it in the basement and thumb through it there when the mood strikes me? Dare I relocate a dozen or so stamps from the musty album to my spiffy Lighthouse binder, or are a handful of musty stamps likely to make the new album smell in a noticeable way? Thanks in advance for any thoughts/insights. (And thanks also to my mom's coworker, who helped get a kid more excited about building a collection...a hobby that's taken on new life thirty-odd years later.)
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Airing it out helps. Actually, something I've done is sealed them in plastic containers with baking soda in them for a couple days. Don't let the baking soda touch, just prop the book up on something to act as legs with the baking soda spread around the bottom. The container should be sealed though. It has helped me get the "smoker" smell out of some albums. Not perfect, but there was a good degree of improvement.
If your album does not mold/mildew in it, though, this won't help that.
Nonetheless, enjoy the memories with your new find!
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Congrats on the find, I still very much enjoy my Harris Statesman album that I got when I was 12. Even though I've expanded far beyond it's capabilities, I wouldn't give it up for the world.
One thing I would add, is after a few days with the baking soda, dump it out and throw in a few dryer sheets. They'll finish the job and leave the album smelling clean.
WB
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Activated charcoal works even better.
You can usually find it in the pet section of your favorite store, in the fish tank supplies.
Randy
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Hi stevendmo;
Musty smell is the result of mold. Make the smell go away provides a false sense of security. The smell can be reduced but the mold spores can last for decades in a dormant state, and revive as soon as the humidity/temperature micro-environment is favorable to growth.
You can remove the smell but the spores will always remain. They can be a small as 3 Microns = .03mm = .00117", and invisible to the naked eye.
I've heard on here all sorts of schemes to get rid of this problem. Call it foxing, musty or whatever you want....mold is mold. Hazardous to stamps and humans alike. Here is what Wikipedia says on the health risks"
QUOTE:
Health effects:
Main article: Mold health issues
Molds are ubiquitous, and mold spores are a common component of household and workplace dust; however, when mold spores are present in large quantities, they can present a health hazard to humans, potentially causing allergic reactions and respiratory problems.
Some molds also produce mycotoxins that can pose serious health risks to humans and animals. Some studies claim that exposure to high levels of mycotoxins can lead to neurological problems and in some cases, death. Prolonged exposure, e.g. daily home exposure, may be particularly harmful. Research on the health impacts of mold has not been conclusive. The term "toxic mold" refers to molds that produce mycotoxins, such as Stachybotrys chartarum, and not to all molds in general.
Mold in the home can usually be found in damp, dark or steamy areas e.g. bathroom or kitchen, cluttered storage areas, recently flooded areas, basement areas, plumbing spaces, areas with poor ventilation and outdoors in humid environments. Symptoms caused by mold allergy are watery, itchy eyes, a chronic cough, headaches or migraines, difficulty breathing, rashes, tiredness, sinus problems, nasal blockage and frequent sneezing.
Molds can also pose a hazard to human and animal health when they are consumed following the growth of certain mold species in stored food. Some species produce toxic secondary metabolites, collectively termed mycotoxins including aflatoxins, ochratoxins, fumonisins, trichothecenes, citrinin, and patulin. These toxic properties may be used for the benefit of humans when the toxicity is directed against other organisms; for example, penicillin adversely affects the growth of Gram-positive bacteria (e.g. Clostridium species), certain spirochetes and certain fungi.
Many years ago I read that long term exposure to mold can cause a case of asthma sensitivity, and allergic reactions to many substances that were not previously a problem. We have a member on here with severe allergy for molds.
Just inhaling these spores is dangerous and unhealthy. If you have rotten or moldy food in the fridge and your wife sees you put it back in the fridge, you have one angry spouse and have risked the health and safety of the entire household.
If you feel that strongly about your album, find a identical one without the mold and place non-moldy copies of the same stamps in the album, and enjoy.
Another option, place album in a container the is airtight with a inexpensive hygrometer and a large (several ounces) desiccant pack. Also place in container activated charcoal. This can be purchased as safety grade in filter canisters for Wilson masks.
After you handle this moldy album, wash your hands before touching your stamps or handling food of any kind. Mold feeds just like flesh-eating bacteria. It secretes toxins that dissolve the host, and sucks up the soup that results.
Just sayin'....
TuskenRaider
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Thanks for the suggestions! I now have more hope for this album than I expected. Still, even if I don't get the mustiness out of it, it's still good to have it available for browsing in the basement. (The album also includes several pages of maps for different parts of the world, vintage 1950.)
NEW EDIT: Tusken, I saw your post after I wrote the paragraph above. You've given me some serious food for thought, scientifically speaking and health wise. Thank you.
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Try putting fabric softener dryer sheets between some of the pages, Snuggle, etc. I have used that technique in a couple of old books. At the very least your album will smell fresh and flowery.
Cheers,
Eric
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I like to snuggle with my stamps, too. 
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I used to snuggle with my stamps...til my wife came unhinged.
Ted
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Within the last hour -- and on the eve of my 50th birthday, no less! -- I stumbled across the first album I owned back in fourth or fifth grade. This is a White Ace Educator Junior album, with a green cover. I remember when my mom brought this album home from work one day -- a colleague who no longer collected (I assume) gave it to Mom when he/she heard that the kid had joined a stamp club at school.
I thought this album was long gone, and I was even more surprised to see that it still contained maybe 150-200 stamps. (Before I drifted away from my collection in my teens, I invested in a worldwide Scott album and the Harris Liberty US album. I'm happy to discover my old White Ace album -- strictly for sentimental reasons; the album album is not valuable in its own right, and none of the stamps strike me as likely to have much value...though a few of them are attractive enough to draw my eye and make me want to place them in my newer, more robust collection.
Here's the sticking point, though. The old White Ace album is musty as all get out. Not moldy, mind you, but very basement-smelling musty. Part of me wants to bring the album upstairs and put it in my newly built stamp bookcase to thumb through in the odd sentimental moment. The rest of me says, "There's no way to get that musty smell out." Anyone have any experience with a musty stamp album? Should I just leave it in the basement and thumb through it there when the mood strikes me? Dare I relocate a dozen or so stamps from the musty album to my spiffy Lighthouse binder, or are a handful of musty stamps likely to make the new album smell in a noticeable way? Thanks in advance for any thoughts/insights. (And thanks also to my mom's coworker, who helped get a kid more excited about building a collection...a hobby that's taken on new life thirty-odd years later.)
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re: Found the original (now musty) stamp album from my youth
Airing it out helps. Actually, something I've done is sealed them in plastic containers with baking soda in them for a couple days. Don't let the baking soda touch, just prop the book up on something to act as legs with the baking soda spread around the bottom. The container should be sealed though. It has helped me get the "smoker" smell out of some albums. Not perfect, but there was a good degree of improvement.
If your album does not mold/mildew in it, though, this won't help that.
Nonetheless, enjoy the memories with your new find!
Login to Like
this post
re: Found the original (now musty) stamp album from my youth
Congrats on the find, I still very much enjoy my Harris Statesman album that I got when I was 12. Even though I've expanded far beyond it's capabilities, I wouldn't give it up for the world.
One thing I would add, is after a few days with the baking soda, dump it out and throw in a few dryer sheets. They'll finish the job and leave the album smelling clean.
WB
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this post
re: Found the original (now musty) stamp album from my youth
Activated charcoal works even better.
You can usually find it in the pet section of your favorite store, in the fish tank supplies.
Randy
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this post
re: Found the original (now musty) stamp album from my youth
Hi stevendmo;
Musty smell is the result of mold. Make the smell go away provides a false sense of security. The smell can be reduced but the mold spores can last for decades in a dormant state, and revive as soon as the humidity/temperature micro-environment is favorable to growth.
You can remove the smell but the spores will always remain. They can be a small as 3 Microns = .03mm = .00117", and invisible to the naked eye.
I've heard on here all sorts of schemes to get rid of this problem. Call it foxing, musty or whatever you want....mold is mold. Hazardous to stamps and humans alike. Here is what Wikipedia says on the health risks"
QUOTE:
Health effects:
Main article: Mold health issues
Molds are ubiquitous, and mold spores are a common component of household and workplace dust; however, when mold spores are present in large quantities, they can present a health hazard to humans, potentially causing allergic reactions and respiratory problems.
Some molds also produce mycotoxins that can pose serious health risks to humans and animals. Some studies claim that exposure to high levels of mycotoxins can lead to neurological problems and in some cases, death. Prolonged exposure, e.g. daily home exposure, may be particularly harmful. Research on the health impacts of mold has not been conclusive. The term "toxic mold" refers to molds that produce mycotoxins, such as Stachybotrys chartarum, and not to all molds in general.
Mold in the home can usually be found in damp, dark or steamy areas e.g. bathroom or kitchen, cluttered storage areas, recently flooded areas, basement areas, plumbing spaces, areas with poor ventilation and outdoors in humid environments. Symptoms caused by mold allergy are watery, itchy eyes, a chronic cough, headaches or migraines, difficulty breathing, rashes, tiredness, sinus problems, nasal blockage and frequent sneezing.
Molds can also pose a hazard to human and animal health when they are consumed following the growth of certain mold species in stored food. Some species produce toxic secondary metabolites, collectively termed mycotoxins including aflatoxins, ochratoxins, fumonisins, trichothecenes, citrinin, and patulin. These toxic properties may be used for the benefit of humans when the toxicity is directed against other organisms; for example, penicillin adversely affects the growth of Gram-positive bacteria (e.g. Clostridium species), certain spirochetes and certain fungi.
Many years ago I read that long term exposure to mold can cause a case of asthma sensitivity, and allergic reactions to many substances that were not previously a problem. We have a member on here with severe allergy for molds.
Just inhaling these spores is dangerous and unhealthy. If you have rotten or moldy food in the fridge and your wife sees you put it back in the fridge, you have one angry spouse and have risked the health and safety of the entire household.
If you feel that strongly about your album, find a identical one without the mold and place non-moldy copies of the same stamps in the album, and enjoy.
Another option, place album in a container the is airtight with a inexpensive hygrometer and a large (several ounces) desiccant pack. Also place in container activated charcoal. This can be purchased as safety grade in filter canisters for Wilson masks.
After you handle this moldy album, wash your hands before touching your stamps or handling food of any kind. Mold feeds just like flesh-eating bacteria. It secretes toxins that dissolve the host, and sucks up the soup that results.
Just sayin'....
TuskenRaider
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this post
re: Found the original (now musty) stamp album from my youth
Thanks for the suggestions! I now have more hope for this album than I expected. Still, even if I don't get the mustiness out of it, it's still good to have it available for browsing in the basement. (The album also includes several pages of maps for different parts of the world, vintage 1950.)
NEW EDIT: Tusken, I saw your post after I wrote the paragraph above. You've given me some serious food for thought, scientifically speaking and health wise. Thank you.
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likes this post.
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re: Found the original (now musty) stamp album from my youth
Try putting fabric softener dryer sheets between some of the pages, Snuggle, etc. I have used that technique in a couple of old books. At the very least your album will smell fresh and flowery.
Cheers,
Eric
Login to Like
this post
re: Found the original (now musty) stamp album from my youth
I like to snuggle with my stamps, too.
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likes this post.
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re: Found the original (now musty) stamp album from my youth
I used to snuggle with my stamps...til my wife came unhinged.
Ted
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