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Ok, have large block (about 90 cm wide and 12 cm thick) covered in Metasequoia leaves and carbonized wood that due to being partially wet when I recovered it I used white glue to lock the carbon in place. My question is, now that's its totally dried out, can I put Vinac over that to help with the whole block, add more glue, remove glue (if possible?) then do Vinac, or just leave it be? I doubt there is a perfect solution but with the knowledge here maybe there is a usable answer Thanks, Steve

I am going to feel bad if there is already a post with as much information as I am looking for, but I can't seem to find one. Essentially, I am having a hard time finding the proper consolidation materials. I have never prepped before, and I am going to be starting my first project this weekend. That being said, the extent of my knowledge of sealants comes from research on this forum. I am looking for the right materials to use (with or without acetone dilute) to keep my fossils from being damaged while working on some Moroccan matrix. I'm not finding anywhere reliable to purchase PVA B-15, Butvar, or anything of the sort. Is there a more easily accessible material I can work with? I need very little at this point in time, and not necessarily something expensive or overly high-quality as the items I will be working with are small and cheap. What are other alternatives that people use, and what are the benefits of each of them? I am eager to know all there is to know, and I've been slowly going down the list of each of the topics in this thread hoping to find what I'm looking for!

Every time I use Butvar in acetone (10% w/v) on a fossil, I get a white milky residue that is very difficult to clean off. I was told that the relative humidity had to be below 50% to avoid the white residue, but in Florida that does not happen that often. Questions: 1) How can I pull off the white residue without damaging the mammal fossil (manatee skull)? 2) Will a 5-10% PVA solution in ethanol work better in a high humidity environment than Butvar? 3) Would dissolving Butvar in ethanol work better than in acetone for the white residue? Any help is appreciated. Thanks. TrilobiteAndrew

Can I use nail polish remover made of acetone as a solvent for PVA to stabilize a fossil? If not, what is the safest way to dispose of a can of partially used acetone? thanks!

Folks, I need an archival consolidant that doesn’t dry glossy. The problem is the plant material I want to protect from flacking is sorta clay/soft shale. Even 5% w/v Paraloid in acetone is giving a glossy appearance. Not too bad on the fossil but looks horrible on matrix and fossil. In fact to increase contrast I like it on the fossil. Coating just the fossil isn’t an option. @Ptychodus04 @RJB @jpc @Harry Pristis

Hi folks. I left my PVA beads at home. This is what I normally use as a consolidant. PVA beads in acetone. Anyone think of a readily available substitute? Something that could be available at the hardware store and is reversible with acetone or another solvent. Cane across a shop selling plastic beads as stuffers for toys etc. I wonder if polystyrene would work as it dissolves in acetone, might not be as hard as PVA.... Any ideas?

So on one of our fossil trips we were given a bag of PVA B-15 beads (polyvinyl acetate) with directions to mix it with acetone until it is dissolved. Was this to be a preserving solution, to put on the surface of bones when taking them out of matrix? If so, then we'd still need a glue solution, to put the bone fragments back together? Is regular superglue (loctite superglue gel) frowned upon?

I've always been a fan of PVA and all of it's various forms. I'm getting close to needing to reorder (I'm down to around a 6 month supply). Apparently BHIGR has stopped selling PVA beads. Does anyone have contact for a supplier?

Consolidated a few of my most vulnerable looking fossils with originally ~7.5% PVA in acetone, but added slightly more acetone as the solution level seemed to decrease. I obtained the PVA through a website link that has been reposted on this forum many times. Overall was a quick and painless process, glad I bought 10" tweezers and wore protective gloves and goggles. The large horse tooth still looks a bit rough, but from what I can tell consolidation is more about protecting against further damage than reversing damage. Several of these I did re-wet (weeks before consolidation), which I didn't know at the time was an awful thing to do, but now they seem fine. I like the "wet look" some of them have again. For the two fossils under the skull, a partial fish vert and beaver/capybara incisor I consolidated a couple hours after the others (covered the solution though), which I guess might be less effective but they look good too. P.s.: Breaking off/transferring the vinac beads is a real pain, they really do make a mess. And making the PVA goo dissolve takes a good few minutes. Also think somewhere I heard shark teeth don't need to be consolidated, but some have roots that look vulnerable, so is this necessarily always true?