If maximum benefits are to be gained from stabilization by freezing, every effort should be made, first, to identify and assess the value, condition, and total numbers and types of materials damaged, and second, to draw up comprehensive lists of those materials which can be replaced and those which should be reclaimed and restored. Replacement is nearly always cheaper than restoration. Volumes to be reclaimed will need to be evaluated in terms of the amount of restoration needed and probable costs. The best time to make such judgments, if a disaster preparedness plan does not exist, is after the volumes have been dried and before they are returned to the library or archive shelves

The following represent basic steps that need to be taken after drying in order to begin returning the material to normal housing environments.

Unless a drying company can guarantee in writing that no material will be returned boxed if it has a water content exceeding 7% by weight, there is a high possibility that some boxes will contain damp material that will add to the risks of post drying mold development, and which, if allowed to develop, will quickly spread to other uncontaminated material, if left unchecked and therefore undetected.

It is important when preparing specification for a drying contract that acceptable water content is not specified as an average of a books total water content. For instance the text block of a book may be measured at far less than 7% but the water content of the book cover boards may contain higher 7% of water. Therefore it is necessary to specify that the waters content of all the books composite materials be less than 7%.

Do not store the material in un-opened boxes immediately upon return from the drying facilities, even if this seems to be the most convenient action to take.

All books and paper file records should be unboxed and placed on open shelving in a well ventilated, air-conditioned rehabilitation area, well separated from the main collections. The rehabilitation area makes it easier to assess the condition of the dried materials, as well as to identify those that can be replaced and those that must be cleaned and restored.

A carefully organized, random inspection of mold- infected materials should be conducted daily by personnel trained to carry out this important task.

Whether materials have or have not been sterilized during the drying process, it is necessary to monitor their behavior as a check against the effectiveness of drying and sterilization and to identify any potential for mold growth and to take the appropriate action, before the return of these materials to the main collections.

We are concerned here with monitoring the dried volumes while they are in the rehabilitation area, and after their return to the main stacks. This monitoring should be continued at regular intervals for at least a year after they are returned to the main library shelving.

In preparing the rehabilitation area, provide about twice the number of shelves as would be needed for normal book requirements. This will compensate for the effects of distorted and expanded books and provide sufficient air space to allow the material to regain their moisture equilibrium content which, depending upon circumstances, may take a week or two.

Theoretically, equilibrium moisture regain can be accomplished at the end of a drying run while the material is contained in the drying chamber. The chamber can be back filled with moisture to achieve the desired result. However this is only possible and safe if the drying method has been guaranteed to dry the material completely. If there remains some partially damp material at the end of a drying run, back filling the chamber with moisture would make such material more vulnerable to mold growth.

The rehabilitation area should be maintained at a relative humidity of 30 to 40 percent and a temperature of less than 65ø Fahrenheit. Both humidity and temperature controls must be adjustable.

It is desirable to maintain the collection in the rehabilitation area for a period of at least six months. At this time, temperature and humidity in the rehabilitation area can be gradually changed to duplicate conditions in the stack areas to which they will be returned. At the end of this time, if no mold growth has occurred, the volumes can be returned to the main stacks and monitored as indicated above. It is highly desirable but usually not practical to leave volumes in the rehabilitation area for an added six months in an environment that duplicates normal stack conditions, as a check against post drying mold growth.

No materials should be returned to the main library shelves without very careful inspection, and preferably not before all necessary cleaning and restoration has been completed.