Storing Books In Slipcases

[Fuuten]

Hello gentlemen, ladies.

 

Before opening i wasn't sure whether to post this here or under izakaya, i think its more applicable here.

 

The storage of books (mainly the big heavy books), that come in slipcases. This is a topic that I've been bothered by many times before, because some of the information online is quite contradictory and perhaps comes down to the opinion of the writer (when you would expect there to be some kind of 'right' answer). For now the heavier books have been kept flat, on the cushions i normally sit on

 

Apologies for the mess, in a few months it'll look much better.

 

 

What would be the best way to store books in slipcases? - upright or flat. Some articles/people swear by slipcases and their use, others are against as stacking slipcases with heavy books on top of each other. Here some articles say no more than 3 high, although i doubt even stacking one atop another wouldn't be good for the slipcase and/or book on the bottom. Then again storing them right side up isn't really supporting the main block of paper, only the covers.

 

What i found online (as far as placement is concerned):

flat           |==|  < flat for big heavy books with or without slipcases

upright     |IIII|  < not too tightly stacked and same sizes together for maximum support

diagonal   |IIII| < what not to do

 

I going to have to pack everything because I'm moving in a few months. Now i have some moving boxes, but how to pack the books? Here my idea was to place the bigger and heavier books with slipcases with their spine down, and not stacked on top or right side up next to one another. This way the book just "lays" inside the box, encased by some towels or something. This seems to me, to be a relatively harmless way of packing the books, albeit not very nice to look at (for general storage on a bookshelf).

 

So is there one right way? (especially in regard to moving them to new house and eventually for storing them in a not yet acquired piece of furniture).

 

 

Thank you for reading,

[Jussi Ekholm]

I keep mine upright in my bookshelf. Can't say if it is correct way but it seems logical to me as text is oriented correctly and the books are "ready" as you can just take one out without the need to remove multiple books in order to get to one.

[Rich S]

I keep some upright and some lying flat, depending on where they fit on my bookcases.

Rich

[Carlo Giuseppe Tacchini]

As Rich said,,,

[Brian]

Like Rich. Some Japanese sword books are just huge, and can't stand upright on a bookshelf. Those I lay flat, not too many on each other. The rest are vertically as libraries do. If it's good enough for them....

[Grey Doffin]

I store my books vertical, in the slipcases, and with the spine of the book facing the wall (this keeps the spines from fading in sunlight).  Some slipcases, however, are made of low grade paper and probably lead to foxing.  The slipcases that come with Fujishiro's Nihon Toko Jiten are a good example.  They are poor quality, likely with acid content, and I use Fujishiro so often that I wouldn't want to bother with slipcases anyway.

Grey

[TETSUGENDO]

Axel,

 

Large and/or heavy books, slipcases or not, are best stored flat.  All others, slipcases or not, are fine for verticlle storage. Obviously fragile books should be treated in an appropriate manner.  BTW, Grey makes a good point  concerning low grade paper(high acid content) slipcases, be wary.

 

-StevenK

[Fuuten]

Thanks all! I suppose i was overthinking the whole thing. Glad to know what you all think about it.

[Shogun8]

Ideally, the best method of storing and displaying books is vertically. If you do choose to lay them flat, DO NOT stack too many books on top of each other because this can wreak havoc on the spines. If you see a book with it's pages not square and on an angle, this is due to the fact that it was probably lying on the bottom of a stack of books for some time.

[Surfson]

Grey is the expert here, so worth following his advice.  I store mine often how and where I used them last, which is why I often can't find them!