How to eliminate the smell of old books
If in our library, we have books that are particularly old and that give off a bad smell generated by mold, we can intervene without using chemical products but rather rely on some natural substances that are not excessively aggressive for the printing itself. Regarding this, in the following steps, we see how to eliminate the smell of old books.
The first thing to do is to select all the books by opening them one by one, to see if they smell bad and if they are a little wet due to the humidity. After this, we can dry them with a hairdryer keeping it at a safe distance. Both avoid burning that paper to avoid further discoloring the print.
After patiently doing this preliminary work on all the books and the old collectible ones, it is important to find the solution so that the phenomenon does not repeat itself.
A first and effective method is to sprinkle the book’s pages with citrus-based spray, which is useful for perfuming them and as a germicide against parasites, which feed on printed paper. We can simply create a similar product at home, using a sprayer with sodium bicarbonate and lemon juice inside.
After surgery, the books should be dried before putting them back on the shelves. Another method is to tie a cotton ball in a bag containing a few drops of lavender essential oil, the latter, and giving a pleasant scent to the room. Overlapping the moldy print’s stench also proves functional to combat the aforementioned parasites since lavender is known as antibacterial and germicidal.
Most of the insects that proliferate in the home and particularly in damp or moldy areas can be fought with a natural substance such as mint in books. The latter keeps flies away, and at the same time, prevents them from depositing their excrements.
The mint’s favorable condition gives us the cue to emphasize that another excellent non-harmful, fragrant, and antibacterial product to use in the bookcase is mentholated talc.
Spraying it on the shelf and especially among the books themselves and perfuming prevents the paint from deteriorating in the presence of mold since being also dusty, it avoids excessive thickening.
