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Tips for Salvaging Fire and Water Damaged Photographs
It would be wrong to say that all of your photographs can be saved. Having said that, you can certainly improve your chances of saving your family photographs following certain guidelines.
If there is no time to attend to your photographs, take the ones that are wet and put them into a container of cool water. Make sure the water covers the photographs. This gives you 2-3 days to get back to your photographs. It is important to separate all the photographs from each other. They will stick together when they get wet. This is because the image side gets very soft when wet and allows the prints to adhere to each other. If this happens, gently separate the photographs. If you notice any resistance, I would suggest putting the stuck prints in a container of cool, clean water and then try separating. If the prints are still hard to separate, allow them to soak longer and then try again. Do not force if there is still resistance. Call me for a consultation if you still need help.
Washing your prints will help. Try to rinse photos before they dry. Place prints in a container of cool water. Do not run water directly on prints. The water pressure can cause more damage to the print. Very gently rub photos to remove dirt and soot. If smoke or dirt does not come off, do not keep rubbing. Photographs can usually be fixed in restoration. DO NOT PANIC when color photos turn blue. This is normal when color prints are wet. They will return to normal color when dry. When done rinsing, place photos in a different container with clean water and rinse. You alwats want to use fresh water to avoid contaiminating other photographs.
Lay your washed prints face-up on white paper towels (changing every hour or so) or nylon screen from the hardware store. newer prints made with a resin backong wil not curl. Older color, and black and white prints with paper backing will curl. When they are dry, I would suggest you take the photos to a frame shop and have their staff flatten them in their mounting press.
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It has been my experience that insurance companies will usually honor claims made to repair or replace damaged photographs. What they will need is an itemized estimate that describes each photograph damaged, what has to be done to it, and what the final cost will be. I can create your estimates by two means: You can send all the photographs to me me by mail, or you can scan and email the images to me. Click here for more information on how to do this. After I have analyzied your photographs, I will create an estimate that you can submit to your agent. Your agent is welcome to call me with any questions.
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