{"id":8214,"date":"2014-06-28T01:00:36","date_gmt":"2014-06-28T05:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/?p=8214"},"modified":"2025-09-15T16:04:16","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T20:04:16","slug":"conservation-conversations-beva-371-film","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2014\/06\/28\/conservation-conversations-beva-371-film\/","title":{"rendered":"Conservation Conversations \/\/ BEVA 371 film"},"content":{"rendered":"

One product we\u2019ve started using in the studio on a regular basis is BEVA 371 film<\/a>. BEVA is a type of liquid adhesive used mostly in paintings conservation, but it can also be purchased as a thin sheet of film used to back items to paper or board. BEVA is heat activated, is completely reversible with heat or solvents, and creates a strong, archival bond between papers.<\/p>\n

BEVA film comes as a sheet of Mylar, which the BEVA film itself is adhered to, and a sheet of release paper over that. The backing process occurs in two steps \u2013 first the release paper is removed and the object to be backed is placed on top of the thin layer of BEVA (which is still adhered to the Mylar at this point). Heat is then applied to activate the BEVA, you can use a tacking iron or if you\u2019re lucky to have a heat\/vacuum press like we do, that works ever better!<\/p>\n

\"These<\/a>

These photos have been attached to the BEVA film but the Mylar backing hasn’t been removed yet.<\/p><\/div>\n

When the piece has cooled down you will have your object attached to a piece of Mylar. Now is the time to trim the BEVA so it is flush with the object \u2013 remember to cut out any interior areas where there are holes or losses. The Mylar can then be peeled away and the back of your object is covered with a thin layer of BEVA, like a sort of heat activated sticker. Place your BEVA-coated object on your backing paper or board and apply heat. And now you have a perfectly backed object!<\/p>\n

\"Removing<\/a>

Removing the Mylar backing<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Finished!\"<\/a>

Now this couple is backed\u00a0to acid free board<\/p><\/div>\n

I like BEVA a lot because it\u2019s great for low-stress, no-mess backing. When backing things with Lascaux the adhesive gets a bit \u201cgooey\u201d with heat and things can shift slightly. When backing with paste you need to move quickly before it dries and even while using the most care a bubble can sneak in every once and awhile, not to mention that some objects can\u2019t handle the moisture involved with a paste backing. BEVA isn\u2019t time sensitive (you can start the backing process one day and finish it a week later), I haven\u2019t noticed any \u201cshifting\u201d as of yet, and since it is a dry process there is no mess whatsoever.<\/p>\n

If you’re interested in learning more about how to use BEVA film, I recommend this page by Talas: Basic Instructions for using BEVA 371 Film<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One product we\u2019ve started using in the studio on a regular basis is BEVA 371 film. BEVA is a type of liquid adhesive used mostly in paintings conservation, but it can also be purchased as a thin sheet of film used to back items to paper or board. BEVA is heat activated, is completely reversible […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1353],"tags":[1495,1523,1884],"class_list":["post-8214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-conservation","tag-becky-koch","tag-beva-371-film","tag-conservation"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2Btis-28u","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8076,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2014\/05\/16\/conservation-conversations-lascaux-498\/","url_meta":{"origin":8214,"position":0},"title":"Conservation Conversations \/\/ Lascaux 498","author":"Becky Koch","date":"May 16, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u2019ve worked in a lot of library conservation labs throughout my training and when I was finally looking for a \u201creal\u201d job I thought I knew more or less what kind of supplies and tools were out there. But then almost two years ago I became the book conservator at\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "conservation"","block_context":{"text":"conservation","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/conservation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/photo-3.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9909,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2015\/08\/07\/conservation-conversations-so-many-papers\/","url_meta":{"origin":8214,"position":1},"title":"Conservation Conversations \/\/ Choosing the Right Repair Paper","author":"Becky Koch","date":"August 7, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"In my last post I talked about how many papers are out there for conservators to choose from. It\u2019s great to have so many options, but picking the right one for your situation can be a challenge, the options are often overwhelming. When making a mend, there are several considerations\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "conservation"","block_context":{"text":"conservation","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/conservation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Different colors of Japanese tissue","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/IMG_3740-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/IMG_3740-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/IMG_3740-300x225.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9525,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2015\/04\/22\/conservation-conversations-adhesive-pre-coated-repair-materials\/","url_meta":{"origin":8214,"position":2},"title":"Conservation Conversations \/\/ Adhesive Pre-Coated Repair Materials","author":"Athena Moore","date":"April 22, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Mending tears is a treatment that book and paper conservators utilize\u00a0nearly every day.\u00a0\u00a0For this reason, wheat starch paste is one of our best friends at the bench - a dependable go-to, especially when paired with an appropriate eastern paper. Unfortunately, this reliable standard\u00a0is is not always an option - the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "conservation"","block_context":{"text":"conservation","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/conservation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/IMG_86231.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/IMG_86231.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/IMG_86231.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/IMG_86231.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10791,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2016\/10\/24\/guild-of-book-workers-standards-of-excellence-seminar-charleston-2016\/","url_meta":{"origin":8214,"position":3},"title":"Guild of Book Workers \u2013 Standards of Excellence Seminar \/\/ Charleston 2016","author":"Erin Fletcher","date":"October 24, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"After an adventuresome time in Durham, North Carolina, where I consumed delicious local brews, lost at shuffle board, ate\u00a0so many southern dishes, visited Duke's conservation lab, toured a\u00a0lemur center and discovered that I'm still allergic to mosquito bites, Henry and I embarked on our drive to Charleston, South Carolina. Upon\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "bookbinding"","block_context":{"text":"bookbinding","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/bookbinding\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/CharlestonStandards15.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8763,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2014\/12\/30\/conservation-conversations-about-equipmemt\/","url_meta":{"origin":8214,"position":4},"title":"Conservation Conversations \/\/ About Equipmemt","author":"Jeanne Goodman","date":"December 30, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Book conservation labs are an interesting hybrid of a paper conservation lab and a bindery. Much of the equipment in a bindery you could find in a book lab, but not necessarily the other way around. Book labs can also be divided by activities, when space allows. Some processes are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "conservation"","block_context":{"text":"conservation","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/conservation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/fumehood-e1418075518360.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8138,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2014\/06\/06\/conservation-conversations-removing-tape-with-an-air-pencil\/","url_meta":{"origin":8214,"position":5},"title":"Conservation Conversations \/\/ Removing Tape with an Air Pencil","author":"Becky Koch","date":"June 6, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"For those of you that don\u2019t know, tape is bad for paper and books! Tape eventually stains paper it comes in contact with (the length of time it takes to do this depends on the type of tape and environmental conditions), and the vast majority of the time this staining\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "bookbinding"","block_context":{"text":"bookbinding","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/bookbinding\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/DSC09749.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/DSC09749.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/DSC09749.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8214","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8214"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8214\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8226,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8214\/revisions\/8226"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8214"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8214"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8214"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}