Are Bound Books Not Archival Quality?
 

Did you see this post by Persnickety Prints?

She says that the glue and ink and toner they use aren't archival, but I didn't see her explanation in my stories, so I don't know anything else.

I've never really had a problem with my older bound books, but they don't get handled very often, either.

I have feelings about this lol. Like, on the one hand, NOTHING is going to last forever...but on the other hand, there are ways to preserve our memories and our photos that will last longer than others. Even the best archival photo prints may degrade because the way you store prints, no matter how good your intentions, may not be archival.

I print photo books--some from PP--and I don't worry about their archival quality. I don't expect my books to last forever; it would be nice if my grandchildren and perhaps greatgrands could enjoy them, though. :) Good news is, I save all of my JPGs so if someone wanted to reprint a book or a mix of my pages, then they can *as long as* they have access to my EHDs or to my BackBlaze account, which I have left info about with DH. (My parents have copies of my EHDs; when they pass, I'll give my DS and DD each an EHD with my photos and finished pages on it so that I'll have a backup and they'll have access once I die. As long as they update the tech every once in awhile, those files should last white a long time.)

My photo prints are what I hope last longer than my albums; however, depending on the archival quality of the photo albums I use, the prints may degrade over time. My wedding album that I chose because of the words "archival quality!" splashed on the front is breaking down. Thankfully I got married right as digital SLRs were a thing so I have my digital files to reprint anything I need. If I had been married even 2 years earlier, that wouldn't be the case. I'd be out all of my wedding prints.

Like I said, I have feelings about this lol. As a memory keeper, it's important to me to preserve not just the photo but also the story behind it.

What she said!

The definition of archival quality is just being resistant to deterioration or loss of quality, allowing for a long life expectancy when kept in CONTROLLED conditions.

The term IMO has been usurped from the actual historical archiving that has been in existence for a long time.

Things have been learned over the years to extend the life various things but the perfect solution IMO will never happen. I've had friends that have lost their precious scrapbooks that were done with "archival products" and others haven't had a problem in the same situation.

So in my mind as long as they last for my lifetime and possibly the next generation of cousin's kids that will get my books, I'm good.

When I first started scrapping, I did a lot of research on whether my printing methods and albums were archival and chose the best methods I could afford. But then the number of scrapbooks began to grow, and grow, and grow. Each of my photobooks (and before that my postbound albums and D-ring albums) covers about 6 months. Between when my oldest was born and when my youngest turns 18, that will work out to about 46 books. Let's face it--none of my kids is going to want to inherit that number of albums or books in the future. So how important was it that everything be archival? I decided that I scrap and print for us to enjoy now, not for us to keep forever and pass down. My oldest photobooks are about 8-10 years old, and they look just as good now as when I first printed them. I don't know if all photobooks from all printers are created equal, but mine are still in great shape.

I have all the digital files, and when jpgs become old technology I'll convert to whatever the new file format is. I'll eventually give my kids digital copies of everything plus a reasonable number of printed books (maybe 2 or 3?) that cover all the highlights of their childhoods. When I print those books, archival quality and longevity will be a concern. Maybe I'll end up going with printed pages in an album because of it. But for the books I'm printing now, I'm more concerned with a decent lifespan (20+ years, not 100), less space on the shelves, and an attractive format that people want to pull off the shelf and read.

I've never noticed any fading, but some of my first albums from Shutterfly, the lamination on the covers is kind of loose.

But I agree with what Sara said. I store all my albums out of the sunlight, in a closed cabinet. Honestly I'm the only person that looks at after they've been printed.