Why does nobody talk about PVA glue drying too fast in winter

Last month I was trying to glue up a textbook rebind in my unheated garage in Cleveland and the PVA skinned over before I even got the spine cloth on, has anyone else had to switch to something slower drying when the temps drop?

2 comments

2 Comments

tessa_kim322d ago

Last winter I finally caved and bought a bottle of Lineco pH-neutral PVA for my book repair stuff. I used to think all PVA was basically the same, you just deal with the speed and move on. But then I had a glue pot turn into a sticky skin mid-project and it totally ruined my alignment. Now I keep a damp paper towel over the pot between coats and it helps a little, but honestly I just switched to working in the basement where it's slightly warmer.

wren30722d ago

Heard a bookbinder say humidity matters more than temp for PVA skinning.