[LIBRARYDIR] a laptop lending conundrum...

[Christie Flynn]

Hi Deb,
Here is what my circ staff says:

We haven't found a way to get rid of the really strong odors from Chromebooks or laptops.  It seems letting them just air out helps.  I asked IT and they said an Ozone cleaning would be the best, but it is relatively expensive and it doesn't fully get the smell out.  If the device were to get hot the odor could potentially be detected.

As for the bags, we had success taking bags home and washing them our washing machines at home, but we don't do this anymore. We haven't asked if facilities would let us use the college washing machines for this purpose.  Currently, we wash them by hand with dish soap and let them air dry. It works decently.  It doesn't completely get rid of all lingering odors, but it does help especially with cigarette smoke and musty/stale odors.

We have had a couple of bags that smelled so bad that we just tossed them out.  It wasn't worth trying to salvage them.  Planning to replace a certain amount each year would be a good way to address this type of issue. We could say that to a certain degree replacing a specific number of bags each year is a cost of doing business.

Happy end of summer, all!
Christie Flynn
Dean of Library and Learning Resources
Pierce College District


From: LIBRARYDIR <librarydir-bounces at lists.ctc.edu> On Behalf Of Derylak, Deborah via LIBRARYDIR
Sent: Monday, August 29, 2022 2:00 PM
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Cc: Derylak, Deborah <Deborah.Derylak at cptc.edu>
Subject: [LIBRARYDIR] a laptop lending conundrum...

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Hi, all -

Your Clover Park colleagues are wondering if any of you may have some advice about a special challenge that comes with laptop lending...

How do you deal with odors that linger - on laptops themselves, on bags, and even on power cords and perhaps other peripherals?


  *   Have you had any success with various forms of odor-removal?  E.g., computer-safe cleaning methods and/or cleansers for bags and such?  Activated charcoal?  Ozone generators?  Other handy tools/methods?
  *   Do you charge your students for heavy odors that linger?  Or do you just eat the cost of, say, replacing a certain number of bags every quarter?

In our laptop lending policy, we include strong odors of smoke among the kinds of damage for which students may be charged, because smoke can cause harm to the devices.  But there are plenty of other scents that linger - perfumes, cooking smells, pet odors, etc.

This can be a subjective experience and a sensitive thing to address, and we very much want to err on the side of grace, so we haven't yet formally addressed this with a student.

But it's a thing.  And perhaps you experience this thing, too?  Any wisdom from the collective is welcome and appreciated.

Thanks!

peace,
Deb


Deb Derylak, MLIS (she/her/hers)
Learning Resource Center Coordinator
253-589-5730 | deborah.derylak at cptc.edu<mailto:deborah.derylak at cptc.edu> | Bldg 15, Rm 113I
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