1.1 This practice covers the washing, rinsing, drying, ironing, and related testing of backing fabrics prior to their use in textile conservation research. Both sturdy and delicate pretreatment procedures for backing fabrics are described.

1.2 This practice applies only to the pretreatment of the backing fabrics with which a textile artifact might be in contact. This practice is not to be applied to any textile artifact, whether it be fragile, sturdy, historic, or contemporary, as other considerations and treatments would be required. Decisions regarding the conservation treatment of textile artifacts should be made only by textile conservators.

1.3 This practice on pretreatment of backing fabrics used in textile conservation research is limited to use on greige goods. Considerations for dyed or bleached backing fabric will not be addressed in this practice.

1.4 The procedures in this practice concern:

1.4.1 Removal of sizings and any impurities left in the backing fabric from the manufacturing process,

1.4.2 Preshrinking of the backing fabric, and

1.4.3 Testing for impurities.

1.5 All backing fabrics used in textile conservation research should be pretreated before use. Even greige fabrics obtained as "preshrunk" and "desized" should be pretreated to further reduce shrinkage and residual amounts of sizing and impurities. Residual shrinkage and impurities might be a source of unwanted variability in research.

1.6 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety problems, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.