How to Soak Self Adhesive Postage Stamps

Stamps are often found in a variety of states of disrepair.

The hobby of stamp collecting has been required to adjust to the evolution of stamps over time. Particularly, the introduction of self-adhesive postage stamps presented new problems for stamp collectors. In order to properly preserve self-adhesive postage stamps, the collector must remove the adhesive layer, as many stamps have been found to deteriorate due to the adhesive. Nevertheless, removing the self-adhesive layer of postage stamps can be performed with little difficulty and a few tools.

Things You'll Need

• Bowl
• Water
• Tweezers
• Small sponge
• Paper towel

Instructions

1. Pour water into a bowl, filling it halfway full.

2. Pick up the stamp gently with tweezers. Submerge the stamp in the water for 10 seconds. Remove the stamp from the water and place it face down on a dry paper towel.

3. Rub the sponge gently across the self-adhesive side of the stamp. After you have made passes with the sponge across the entire stamp, wet the sponge to remove any adhesive on the sponge. Repeat the sponge-rubbing process until the adhesive is removed. Dry the sponge completely with a dry paper towel.

References

• Stamps.org: Preservation and Care of Philatelic Materials
• "Guide to Stamp Collecting"; Janet Klug; 2008