Climate Guidelines

Disclaimer

The information in this document is based on the current understanding of the issues presented. It does not necessarily apply in all situations, nor do any represented activities ensure complete protection as described. Although reasonable efforts have been made to ensure that the information is accurate and up to date, the publisher, Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI), does not provide any guarantee with respect to this information, nor does it assume any liability for any loss, claim or demand arising directly or indirectly from any use of or reliance upon the information. CCI does not endorse or make any representations about any products, services or materials detailed in this document or on external websites referenced in this document; these products, services or materials are, therefore, used at your own risk.

Canada is committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions (consult Canada’s climate plans). One of the central strategies for achieving this goal, Clean Canada, specifically notes that “to build a cleaner, healthier, more affordable future that we can be proud to have our children inherit” we must improve “building codes and standards so our homes and buildings use less energy” (Environment and Climate Change Canada 2019). Museums and archives worldwide have come under increasing criticism for their adherence to energy-intensive climate guidelines that were created long before climate change and its causes were recognized. By 2020, many in the museum and archive community were re-examining their old climate control assumptions and asking for better advice from the experts. The Climate guidelines resource is the Canadian Conservation Institute’s (CCI’s) answer.

This resource replaces the previous CCI resource Environmental guidelines for museums. It considers the most recent specifications used by mechanical engineers for climate control in museums, galleries and archives. It balances two responsibilities faced by heritage institutions: reducing risks to the collection heritage at the same time as acting sustainably.

The resource contains two tools and four sections.

ClimaSpec

ClimaSpec is a quick and easy search tool for finding CCI advice on climate guidelines. You select the type of object or collection, and the tool provides brief summaries of CCI advice. The tool includes two calculators: a lifetime calculator for acidic materials in archives that decay rapidly at room temperature and a mould calculator that estimates the time required for mould development at various RH levels.

Climate Control Decision Tool

CCI’s Climate Control Decision Tool is a quick and easy tool for obtaining climate advice about your situation. Answer the short list of questions about your institution and collections to obtain basic advice on climate control.

Climate guidelines overview

The “Climate guidelines overview” section provides a detailed description of the issues that arise when making decisions about climate control.

ASHRAE types of control

The “ASHRAE types of control” section provides detailed description and explanation of the practical implications of each type of control as defined in the chapter “Museums, Galleries, Archives, and Libraries” in the ASHRAE Handbook, which is used by mechanical engineers throughout Canada, the US and elsewhere. CCI has adopted these definitions and terminology for its climate control advice.

Explanation of the mould and lifetime calculators

The “Explanation of the mould and lifetime calculator” section provides detailed information, including equations and the relevant literature sources, for the two calculators in ClimaSpec.

Climate guidelines glossary

The “Climate guidelines glossary” section provides a list of the key terms used in this resource with their definitions. Some of the terms are also explained in greater detail on one of the pages in this resource.