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Sweeping should be discouraged since it tends to scatter dust and dirt and precautions should be taken to prevent books on low shelves from being splashed by cleaning fluids. To reduce the need for stacks cleaning, floors should be vacuumed and/or washed regularly. By cooperating, two people should be able to vacuum three sections of books and shelving in an hour.
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Stacks cleaning should always be done by a team of two people if possible - the work goes faster, easier and is less tedious if done together. Four hours should probably be the maximum time per day any one person spends cleaning. Make sure dust masks and ear plugs are easily available for people cleaning. Schedule breaks, rotate tasks, and let someone know if you are having difficulties doing the work or encountering problems with the collection. While stacks cleaning is very important for the collections it can be dirty and tedious work. Vacuuming with a HEPA vacuum (available from Preservation) that effectively captures dust rather than redistributing it into the air is preferred over dusting or general vacuuming. Their goal is to minimize both disturbance to users and damage to the collections. The following procedures are adapted from those at UC-San Diego and several other libraries.
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Construction will often require that collections be cleaned afterwards. Whenever dust, dirt, or soot are accumulating on your collections.
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