De-Sticky Book Jacket Covers

Disclaimer: I am not a librarian, just a regular ol' book lover and I wanted to preserve my favorites.

So I purchased my first set of book jacket covers from Brodart (the exact ones here), and I've covered my first set of books. However, when I was placing them on the shelf each book wanted to "stick" to the one beside it, which means I cannot easily pull one out of its spot without its neighbors coming with it.

I know library books don't "stick" to each other like this. I thought maybe there's static... which made me wonder if wiping them with a dryer sheet would help, but I don't want to counteract the protection of the jacket cover, not knowing what dryer sheets will do to the polyester.

Is there some pro tip for making them smooth? Or did I just purchase the "wrong" kind of cover?

Hmm, I thought for sure someone on LT would have tips/advice on this one... Maybe my question is just too basic. :-)

Would someone be able to tell me if I wipe it with a dryer sheet (to try to remove static), would the dryer sheet damage the new clear jacket cover?

If it's the kind of stickiness I've experienced with them, it's not static or anything chemical, it's just that they're so shiny and smooth that they sort of seal together. This isn't a problem with the library ones because they get scratched up almost immediately. :D

I use them on some of my more collectible books at home, and they do tend to stick a bit when two books in brand-new covers are next to each other on the shelf. I don't know if there's anything to do about it except take them on and off the shelf enough to make them a bit less shiny new, or maybe drop a sheet of tissue paper between them on the shelf.

I haven't tried dryer sheets so I don't know if they'd leave a residue, but they probably would at least scratch it up a bit (it really doesn't take much.)

Thank you for the feedback! I think I'm gonna try a used dryer sheet first, and if that doesn't work, just take them off/on shelf a few times each day. Right now, I have 6 beside each other on the shelf and if I pull the middle one they all come with it. :-)

You could just put sheets of paper between them so you don't get plastic on plastic.

>2 flying_monkeys: Hi there F_M,
My apologies for not having seen your post before just now. I don't often don't look beyond the threads that first appear on the screen. I'm not anti-scrolling, but I rarely do.

Just a guess; you bought the 1.5 mil jacket cover sheets, right? The late MrsHouseLibrary had been a schoolteacher for many years, and often ran the dust jackets of her father's new books through the lamination machine. It worked fine in the short term, but over time, would bubble away from the dust jacket. The laminating material may have been 1 mil or possibly .5 mil. He owned just over 900 books when he died, and a good one third of them had laminated dust jackets, and those that were juxtaposed on the shelves all stuck together. And some would stick to other books. It didn't matter whether they were leather-bound books or a cloth material. And others were perfectly fine. Not sure what caused the issue.

Her last 12 years in education were as the school librarian. I even helped her there often. It was a new school, and we had to process all the books and shelve them before the first day of school. I've covered thousands (really) of dust jackets. We used the 2 mil rolls of Demco dust jacket protectors (they're made of Mylar); and I even have the same stuff at home, including the dispenser that holds 4 different-sized rolls. (It's an on-going, punctuated project for me.) Over time, she had to reorder the most-used sizes, and she ordered the 1.5 mil-thickness rolls. There were occasions when two or three books would come off the shelves together, not an everyday occurrence, but often enough, and in every instance at least one of the books was one that was covered with the thinner Mylar dust jacket protectors.

As for using dryer sheets, I am not comfortable with the idea of rubbing chemical-laden anythings on anything, except for when I'm oiling the kitchen cabinets and select pieces of furniture. On the other hand, I don't know of any instance where damage occurred either. I can't help but think that attempting to re-shelve a book while holding tissue paper on each side of it has got to be an exercise in patience.

And having written all of the above, I how have to ask how tightly packed are these books on your shelves? If there's some wiggle room on your shelf, you probably wouldn't have to deal with the sheets between the books. Also, humidity could be a factor, or possibly heat. Do the shelves get direct sunlight during some portion of the day? Things to consider.

>6 WholeHouseLibrary: you're correct, they're the 1.5 mil. And they're packed in fairly snug on the shelf at the moment. I'm in the process of reorganizing all my shelves, and I'm hoping to have a bit more breathing room when this reorganization/ rearranging project's done.

Yes, the suggestions for paper in between seemed like something designed to test my patience, which could always do with some improvement, yet I often like to just pull books out to look at them, and I can already envision the struggle with paper inserts.

I'm interested to test the thickness theory though. When I order the next batch I'll go with 2 mil and see what happens.

ETA: None of my shelves get direct sunlight and we have central air so I don't think humidity would be an issue.

>flying_monkeys: I can't help you with your sticking problem but I believe you are using the wrong material. Brodart does sell what you want. it is an archival quality clear covering, a form of mylar. The brand name is Duralar. It is available in sheets (and I think in rolls) You have to cut it yourself to size. The 3 mil is best, 5 mil for really big books. It does not stick. A plastic tool called a bone folder is used to press down the folds at the edges of the book cover so there is a permanent fold. It is a bit of work but the result is excellent. If the book is slipcased, the smooth cover actually makes it slide in and out more easily.
see my next message.

>7 flying_monkeys: flying_monkeys: Subsequent to writing above, I found what I was looking for: a topic in Folio Society Devotees (rather than Book Care) titled
Dura-Lar (Duralar) Clear Polyester Covers (topic is dormant)
Particularly Item #9 under my name but largely a reprint of information I received from another member, dlphcoracl. This goes into the subject much more completely.

>9 laotzu225: thank you, I will check out the other thread. I appreciate your feedback!

When I was a full-time manager of an antiquarian bookstore that specialized in children's books for a dozen years (1988-2000), we had occasion to handle many thousands of books and all dust jackets were covered (except on new trade books). As a result, we tried the several brands of dust jacket protectors that were available (Brodart, Demco, Gayloard, etc.).

We found especially that the Gaylord jackets tended to stick to each other so that if you tried to pull one book off the shelf then others were likely to come with it. This seems like the behavior described in the initial question.

At the time Brodart was not very organized in its shipping and billing departments. We had issues with double shipping of what we ordered or, at other times, double billing of items received. The plastic used in the 1990s had a slight bluish haze that looked OK once you put the jacket in but I wasn't satisfied with it, especially as the company was in a bit of a disarray for the other reasons.

Our main supplier became Demco and I still buy the PaperFold and SuperFold jacket protectors on 300-foot rolls. I get a few sizes (10" mainly but also 12", 14" and 16"). The plastic on the SuperFold line is heavier and good when you want to give a fragile or valuable book a more substantial feel.

These two Demco lines are sealed on one edge which is my strong preference. I do not like the center-spiit variety which requires an extra thickness in the middle. I have seen thin / fragile jackets inherit a crease from this style. I will often recover a jacket when it comes to me in an old protector or one of these center-split ones.

I have not experienced any significant problems with the Demco sticking in the fashion you describe for Brodart and I personally experienced with Gaylord.

Often people stick with the same product they started with.

James

>11 Keeline: James, I appreciate your feedback. I will take a look at Demco.

Forgive my ignorance, but if you buy in rolls, do you have to buy a special dispenser to cut off a "sheet" for one book? Or do you cut with scissors? Trying to figure out best practice but also have to keep pricing in mind since I'm on a budget. I have total approx 300 hardcovers I'd like to wrap.

>12 flying_monkeys: I bought a high end paper cutter.

>13 kdweber: ah, yes, that makes sense, thanks! :-)

I have to correct my own prior entry. My Duralar comes from Blick Art Supplies (www,dickblick.com). I now get 3 mil 25 by 40 inch sheets and same size sheets of 5 mil for heavier books.
Because most of my book purchases are fine bindings or older, rarer books, I have found this covering, described as archival quality, a great protectant. And there is no sticking.

I am using the same Brodart covers you are. I love everything about them except the sticking issue. (They are Mylar and Mylar does stick, for me at least.)
The two things that work great are not over stuffing the shelf (I leave just a bit of wiggle) and rubbing a little bit of talc powder on the cover. I do this while I’m putting the Mylar on the jacket so I don’t get it on my books. I put a tiny dash on the front and back page, swirl it around with my fingers, then lightly wipe excess off with a towel. When I put it on the shelf I usually grab the books that will sit next to it and press them together and rub them back and forth a few times to spread/share any remaining talc powder.
I am careful not to get it on my book, but some will spread from your fingers, etc. I do not know if this is bad for the book. I live in a very dry environment which helps. Not sure about talc in a really humid area??
Also, obviously this does dull the shininess, but it’s a good trade off for me.

Finally, I have a question: Why would 1.5 vs. thicker covers help with sticking? Mylar is Mylar right?

Best advice with those book jacket covers is to not pack the shelves so tightly, as >16 TravisAK: said. Leave some wriggle room.

I appreciate the feedback/insight.

>16 TravisAK: and >17 Glacierman:

"...to not pack the shelves so tightly...Leave some wriggle room."

Agreed and ideally that's what I'd do -- if I had more shelf space. 🤓

As noted in an earlier message, I'm in the throes of a (seemingly neverending) reorganization project in an attempt to spread my books out, but again, limited space. I think I've decided to pack the paperbacks in tighter to give my hardcovers (with their sticky dust jackets) more room so I can pull them out easier. I re-read my hardcovers more often anyway.

>18 flying_monkeys: Ah, yes. The never-ending need for space. Still, if one packs one's books too tightly, one risks damaging them in the attempt to remove one. So leave 'em loose if at all possible. Ideally, of course, one gets more shelving, but "ideal" is not always immediately practical.

>12 flying_monkeys:

We have always used scissors to cut them to length, a bit longer than the actual jacket size. It depends on your need for precision and square cuts.

The Demco rolls for PaperFold or SuperFold (thicker plastic) can be kept in the boxes in which they are shipped. Often I find it necessary to rotate the roll 180° so that the loose side aligns with the opening in the box lid. Most of the time there are plastic inserts to help with the revolution of the tube roll in the box. Occasionally I have found that they have tried to save money. Fortunately I usually have a few of the plastic inserts around from previous rolls.

On my duodecimo books I use the 10-inch high rolls. A 300-foot roll covers about 200 books with a nominal length of 1.5 feet.

James

I know this is an old post, but I had this same problem and wanted to post my solution in case anyone runs across this and wants to try it. I gave the covers a quick rub with 3000 grit sandpaper and now they pull off the shelf one at a time. The 3000 grit is so fine it doesn't even feel like sandpaper; I don't think I would try a grit any larger than that. I hope this helps someone.