War me hello and welcome to the Ral seal collection store I'm Katherine Thompson head of collections Care at museums of History New South Wales I'm talking to you today from Dar country and I would like to acknowledge Elders past present and future having a dedicated space for collection storage is an important aspect of collection care in this session we'll be looking at the sort of activities that happen in a collection store showing you options for collection storage furniture And discussing
some cost effective ways to improve the storage environment so what sort of things do we do in our collection store like many museums we have limited space this means our collection stores have to be a bit multi-purpose and are used for a range of other activities such as the processing of collections like The barcoding Happening Here doing research on the collection photography digitization and even small team meetings to keep the space adaptable for for all these activities we use chairs and t
ables with wheels a collection store can also be a home for materials and supplies collection files photographs and treatment records as well as items waiting to be accessioned these must be clearly labeled and kept separate from the main collection it's important that all activities in the collection space are compatible clean not bringing in any mess and certainly not involving any food or drink when setting up a collection store there are a few tips to follow in order to set up the best possi
ble place aim for a space where the temperature and relative humidity are quite stable avoid spaces that get too hot or too dry such as attics or rooms that get a lot of sun avoid spaces that get too damp such as basements or rooms near kitchens and bathrooms if available an internal room with no windows is ideal it's good to keep clear of water sources such as pipes and sinks as these can cause damaging leaks consider how collections are going to be transported in and out of the collection stor
e a ground floor can be desirable to avoid stairs and to not have to worry about the load bearing of the floor for heavier items and storage Furniture of course it's not often that we find the perfect space that tis all our requirements but there are some simple tricks we can Implement to help improve our collection storage environment adding insulation to floors walls and roofs can really help stabilize humidity and temperature seiling gaps around walls doors and windows can have a similar impa
ct plus will help keep out an assortment of pests adding plywood panels to Windows like we have done here in one of our textile collection stores can prevent excessive heat building up using portable dehumidifiers to bring down humidity can be useful as long as the dehumidifier can be regularly checked and emptied or in some circumstances plumbed in being strict about having no food or drink in the space will help prevent insects and other pests being attracted into the store and making sure wha
tever is brought into the store is completely clean whether it's collections supplies or Furniture this will also prevent bringing in unwanted pests and mold once you have your space the next step is to fit it out the storage Furniture should be made from materials that don't degrade and damage the collection we want to avoid the use of materials like MDF that give off volatile organic compounds voc's and acidic materials such as unpainted Timbers consider instead using more stable materials suc
h as metal furniture with a baked enamel coating alternatively you can use hoop Pine or marine grade plywood like we've done here in our collection store at the Museum's Discovery CER Center you can also seal Timber with a water-based sealant or epoxy resin paint just make sure you allow at least 2 weeks for the sealant to off gas there are a range of shelving types to consider to suit your space your collection and your budget there are open shelves which suit a range of collection formats ther
e are mobile units such as these which are great space savers but are also more costly cupboards which can give a little more security and protection from from light and open racking which can deal well with larger collection pieces you can also use plan cabinets these are great for storing flat items like photographs prints textiles and they can also be used to store storage materials like Myer and blotter here in our textile store at The Mint we have storage for large rolled textiles we are fo
rtunate enough to have space for a lot of rolled storage but the principle is the same even if you only have two or three items we have a pair of supports attached to a wall or in this case a mobile frame they hold up either end of a rod that runs through a tube around which your collection item is rolled we store our smaller textile items either rolled or flat for framed works we use art racks that are custom built to fit the space we also use slotted storage which is more straightforward to co
nstruct but does involve more manual handling to get your collections in and out take some time to think about your collection and where it is stored how is that space used are there some changes you can make to the environment or to the storage Furniture you know your collection best so with a bit of planning you can create a dedicated and effective collection store that will ensure the care and safety of your collection well into the [Music] future
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