Chicago Document Restoration

Restoring Valuable Documents

Document Restoration is one of J.C. Restoration’s primary services. Simply put, it is a lot less costly to restore property than to replace it. As such, determining replacement cost is half the battle. In an insurance loss, “contents” refers to the property within a structure, and all are the sum of their parts. Furniture in my living room. Frames, upholstery, paint. Clothes from the Gap. Cotton, thread, buttons, zippers. Books from Borders. Paper, binding, ink.

Documents, on the other hand, have synergy. Documents are more than paper, ink, binding. More than chemicals forming an image on photographic backing. More than embossed seals. More than signatures. Parents treasure them, and businesses depend on them. Therein lies the restorer’s distinction between document restoration and contents restoration. Documents are not as readily replaceable as other categories of damaged contents, hence the increased importance of proper, rapid, and cost-effective restoration.

How Are Documents Restored - Freeze-Drying

What is Document Restoration and How is it done? Just how are documents restored? The universal truth is the quicker the better! Pictures, bound or loose paper, x-rays, microfiche – all benefit greatly from rapid response because their rates of deterioration are high. Many documents can be freeze-dried. Freezing the documents halts the damage caused by moisture, and buys time to confront the restore versus replace issue. Replacement may be as easy as reprinting computer files, or the documents may be decades-old originals demanding preservation. As the name implies, freeze-drying also dries – through the process of turning a solid to a gas, or sublimation. H2O ice crystals sublimate to H2O vapor, just like ice cubes shrinking in a freezer. Freeze-dried documents are still dirty, but the damage is mitigated.