Printing paper (for a laser printer) question

[Andy Hunt]

Andy, RE guitars - have you thought about preserving the sheet music? We have sheet music at home (piano - wife, guitar - son, drums - daughter, sax - me) It would be nice if it would last a few generations (that might be long enough for me to become a resonable player ).

I hadn't thought about preserving sheet music . . . I think that most folk songs have survived simply because everyone knows the tune and the words! A lot of folk songs are often performed a capella, completely without accompaniment. And because they are traditionally sung at communal gatherings, everyone in the village knows them!

Only the very best tunes can survive Peak Oil . . .

[adam2]

As others post, it would appear that wear and tear, rather then just time are the enemies of long term storage of documents.
It might be worth making at least 2 copies, one for reference and one for backup.
Picnic "coolers" which of course dont cool at all, are useful for archive storage. The insulation means that the contents reach the same average temperature as the surroundings, but are protected against extremes.

Consider also the risks of one of disasters as well as age.
I would avoid storage in a basement or cellar as these fill with water.
Lofts should be avoided, since apart from temperature extremes, roofs leak.

For anything important keep backup copies off site against loss by fire.

For really long term archieve, acid free paper and real indian ink keep for centuries. AFAIK indian ink can only be used in a pen, not a printer which is restricting.
Typed documents appear to keep well if on decent paper, but who types now, rather than use of a PC.

[DominicJ]

I've been clearing out the archives at work recently, theres 20 year old dot matrix stuff thats as faint as the day it was stamped.
But it was printed, filed, and left untouched, out of direct sunlight.

[woodpecker]

Whatever you do, keep it dark as much as you can. Light affects both paper and inks, often to dramatic effect. A filing cabinet is good.

[adam2]

Ive thought a bit more about my aims for the documents; I think the information I wanted to record needs to last a bit longer than thing being documented so in the case of the PV system 30 years would be OK. Ill look into the archive grade paper.

Thanks for the info.

Pete M

I can certainly see the merits of preserving some types of data and documents for a century or more, but I would not worry about the details of a PV system.
If BAU continues that long, then the data should be readily available on line or from the suppliers.
If TSHTF before then, as many fear to be likely, then most PV systems will be useless in their original format.
The PV modules could be re-purposed for a simple battery charging system, this requires basic electrical knowledge, not detailed original specifications. Basic electrical textbooks, spares, and tools would be more use.
This is not an argument against preserving knowledge in general, just seems a bit pointless for a PV system.