Excellent Facebook post by award winning Stefani Elkort Twyford, owner of Legacy Multimedia.
If you or someone you know needs advice/help with photographs that were caught in the flood water of Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma this article offers good advice on what you can do to preserve them.
Legacy Multimedia
Published by Stefani Elkort Twyford · September 12 at 12:45pm ·
I’ve received several calls and emails regarding photographs that were caught in the flood waters of Hurricane Harvey. I know this is such a devastating thing, as for many, the images are some of the few things that connect us with our past.
If you are unable to attend to your photos right away, you can put them in the freezer until you are able to spend some time with them. When you are ready to deal with them, brush them lightly with a sable paintbrush to remove any debris or grit. Then soak them in a tub of distilled water to saturate them. (Do not run water directly onto the photos or use tap water.) You can add some Kodak Photo Flo 200 solution (you can purchase this on Amazon) to the water and soak for a few hours.
After they have soaked and are easy to separate, place them image side down on a piece of smooth glass and using a squeegee, gently stroke along the back to squeegee all the excess water. Hang the prints to dry.
Once they are dry, you can press them between sheets of smooth coated paper with a warm iron. I would suggest experimenting with this before going forward to see if you get the results you desire. Make sure to use a smooth paper so that you don’t iron texture into your print. Photos can also be scanned and new prints made, which may be preferable. If the photo requires restoration, there are many companies, including my own, which can do digital restoration and create new photo prints for you.