[Nhcoll-l] Sealing holes in the lids of fluid specimens

[Simon Moore]

Hi Claire,

Yes there is, although I have not experienced embrittling of gelatine in this situation if a small microscope slide cover slip is added onto the molten gelatine.
The flowable fluid silicone is best for this - make a small ring of it round the hole and then add a coverslip on top and press down so that the silicone flows out to the edge of the coverslip. Alternatively you can smear some silicone over the hole but not too much or it may end up in the jar!  Two such sealants are available, one via Amazon (Permatex) and it’s great!

With all good wishes, Simon

Simon Moore MIScT, RSci, FLS, ACR
Conservator of Natural Sciences and Cutlery Historian,
www.natural-history-conservation.com

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> On 1 Mar 2023, at 09:30, Claire Smith <claire.smith at reading.ac.uk> wrote:
> 
> Hi everyone,  Please can I get some advice from fellow fluid specimen wranglers about how you seal holes in the lids of jars?
>  We have a range of methods in our collection (bungs made from silicone, cork, and rubber, and slide cover slips) and we need to do some maintenance work before we move the entire collection to a new space.
>  We’re looking into replacing some of the old bungs with cover slips – but what do you use to stick them to the lid?
> Ours appear to have been done with gelatine, which goes brittle over time. Is there something better that we could use instead?
>  Many thanks,
> Claire  *******
> Claire Smith (she/her) PhD Candidate: Colour retention in fluid-preserved museum specimens
> Graduate Teaching Assistant, Cole Museum of Zoology (Wednesdays)
> c.e.smith at pgr.reading.ac.uk 
> claire.smith at reading.ac.uk 
> www.twitter.com/wetconservatrix
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