A Story from the Field: The Day Mam's Shop Stopped Smelling Like New Paper

Mam has run a small photocopy and stationery shop on Suk Sawat Road in Rat Burana District, Bangkok, for almost fifteen years. At the front are three photocopiers, a laminating machine and a table for binding school reports. Further inside are shelves of exam preparation books, children's books, notebooks, pens, colored paper and craft supplies. Her regular customers are students from nearby schools, office workers, and people from the riverside communities along the Chao Phraya who drop in to copy ID cards and government forms.

In early October 2026, heavy rain fell for several days in a row while high tides pushed the Chao Phraya River upward. Water backed up into the lane and flowed into the shop to a depth of about thirty centimeters. Mam and her son managed to lift the photocopiers onto wooden platforms in time. But dozens of reams of A4 paper stacked on the storeroom floor, the books on the lowest shelves and unopened boxes of notebooks could not be moved fast enough. The water stayed inside the shop for almost a week.

When it drained away, Mam opened the door and stopped in her tracks. The smell that used to be fresh paper and printer toner had turned into a heavy, damp odor mixed with mud. The soaked reams of paper had swollen into solid blocks. The books on the bottom shelf had wavy pages, and their covers were dotted with black and brown spots. What worried her even more was that books on the second and third shelves, which had never touched the water, were starting to smell musty too, and some had a fine white bloom growing along the spine. The humidity trapped inside the closed shop had risen and settled on everything.

Two or three days after she reopened, a regular customer picked up an exam guide, sneezed several times in a row, put the book back and said, "I'll buy it somewhere else for now. The smell is really strong." Mam later said, "I can accept losing the things the water destroyed. But when the things that are still fine won't sell because of the smell, that is what really wears you down."

This situation has played out in bookstores, photocopy shops, stationery stores, print shops and second-hand book shops across Rat Burana, Bang Pakok, Thung Khru and other riverside areas on the Thonburi side of the Chao Phraya that flooded this year. For a business whose products are made of paper, the flood does not end when the water leaves. In many ways, that is when the real damage begins.

Why Paper Grows Mold So Quickly After a Flood

Paper is made from cellulose fibers that absorb moisture very easily, and cellulose is also an excellent food source for many kinds of mold. When the humidity in the air stays high for several days, the mold spores that are naturally present in every room begin to germinate on paper surfaces, book covers and corrugated cardboard boxes. This happens fastest in shops that were shut tight during the flood with no ventilation at all.

Bookstores and stationery stores also pack their products tightly on shelves. Very little air moves between the books, so moisture lingers for a long time. Once mold starts on one book, it releases spores that drift onto the books next to it. That is how the problem spreads from the bottom shelves to the top, even when the upper shelves never came into contact with floodwater.

Cardboard boxes make the situation worse. Corrugated cardboard acts like a sponge, pulling water up from the floor and holding it against whatever is inside. A box of notebooks that looks dry on the outside may be damp and moldy at the bottom. Plastic shrink wrap can also trap moisture against books instead of protecting them, creating a small greenhouse where mold thrives.

Health effects

• Allergies and asthma. Mold spores on paper are released into the air every time someone picks up a book or turns a page. This causes sneezing, a blocked nose and itchy eyes, and can trigger asthma in children and older people.
• Floodwater germs. Mud and water stains left on floors, counters and the legs of shelves may contain bacteria such as E. coli, which can be picked up on the hands of staff and customers.
• Leptospirosis. This is a risk for shop owners and staff who wade through mud while moving stock, especially if they have cuts on their hands or feet.
• Long hours in a musty room. Staff who stay in the shop all day and breathe in mold spores and musty air for hours may suffer from headaches, tiredness and general discomfort.

Effects on the business

The value of books and stationery depends on them being new and clean. A book with mold spots or a musty smell can hardly be sold at full price. Customers who notice a strong smell at the door often never walk in. Photocopy shops face another problem: damp paper jams the machines more often, prints come out less sharp, and repair costs rise. All of this happens at the exact moment the shop most needs income to recover from the flood.

Why the Usual Fixes Are Not Enough

Wiping mold off book covers. This makes books look cleaner, but the spores embedded in the paper and the spine are still there. Wiping with a damp cloth can also damage covers or smear the mold over a wider area.

Spraying perfume or air freshener. This only masks the smell for a while. The fragrance also soaks into the paper, creating a mixed smell that some customers dislike even more than the original musty odor.

Using bleach or wet disinfectants. These are fine for tiled floors and counters, but they cannot be used on paper. They make paper wet, cause stains and fade colors.

Leaving the air conditioning and fans running. This reduces humidity to some extent, but it does not destroy mold spores or the odor molecules that have soaked into paper. The storeroom at the back, which usually has no air conditioning, stays just as musty as before.

Repainting the walls. Fresh paint covers water stains, but if the wall underneath is still damp and moldy, the paint will blister and the mold will return within a few weeks.

What paper-based shops need is a method that reaches every gap between books, every box and every corner of the storeroom, without adding any more water.

The Solution: Ozone Treatment First, Supported by Chemgene HLD4H Disinfection Fogging

For shops where most of the stock is paper, World Health Disinfection (WHD) recommends the ozone treatment service as the main method. Ozone is a gas, so it does not make paper wet. It spreads into the gaps between books, inside boxes and behind shelves. It helps destroy mold spores in the air and on the surface of products, and it breaks down the musty odor molecules that have soaked into paper. After the room is ventilated, the ozone turns back into oxygen and leaves no chemical smell on the stock.

For the shop floor, counters, shelf legs, the lower parts of walls, the restroom and anywhere the mud reached, the team uses the disinfection service with CHEMGENE HLD4H disinfectant applied through ULV fogging machines. Fogging is directed only at hard surfaces and avoids spraying directly onto paper products, to reduce the bacteria brought in by the floodwater.

An honest note: Ozone treatment works well for mold and odors on stock that is already dry and still in sellable condition. It cannot restore paper that has soaked until it swelled, stuck together or turned to pulp. Those items should be separated, photographed for your records and written off.

Step-by-step service process

1. Shop survey. The team assesses the damage and divides the shop into zones: the front counter, the book shelves, the stock room and the photocopy area. They also check for areas that are still damp.
2. Stock sorting advice. Products are sorted into items to discard, items that need drying first and items that are dry and ready for treatment. Mud is removed, and a technician checks the photocopiers and the electrical system.
3. ULV disinfection fogging on floors, counters, shelf legs, lower walls and the restroom.
4. Controlled-dose ozone treatment. The shop and stock room are closed, box lids are opened, and books are spaced out slightly. Time and concentration are set according to the size of the space.
5. Ventilation. Doors and exhaust fans are opened until the ozone has fully broken down before the owner and staff go back inside.
6. Re-check. The team checks odor and moisture and gives advice on storing stock to prevent mold from coming back.

How to Sort Paper Stock Before the Ozone Treatment Day

• Items to discard: reams of paper that have swollen into blocks, books whose pages are stuck together or falling apart, and muddy wet cardboard boxes. These are sources of germs and mold that will spoil good stock around them.
• Items that must dry first: books that are damp but not falling apart. Stand them upright with the pages slightly fanned open in a shaded, breezy place. Avoid strong direct sun, which makes paper yellow and warp.
• Items ready for treatment: books, notebooks and stationery that are fully dry but smell musty or have only a light surface bloom. Arrange them with small gaps between items before treatment.
• Non-paper items: pens, rulers, pencil cases and plastic goods can be wiped clean, or wiped down using CHEMGENE HLD4H disinfectant spray (750ml).

Sorting clearly from the start helps the ozone treatment work better. It also gives the owner a realistic figure for the actual loss, which is useful for financial planning or an insurance claim.

Places Paper Shops Often Overlook After the Water Recedes

• Behind shelves pushed against the wall. Moisture from the wall seeps into the back row of books. This is where mold usually appears first, yet it is seen last.
• Under the photocopiers and under the counter. Mud and wet scraps of paper get stuck there and give off a constant smell.
• The back stock room. It usually has no windows and no air conditioning, and it is where the musty smell is strongest.
• Paper trays inside photocopiers. Paper left in the trays during the flood has absorbed moisture. Take it out and replace it with fresh paper.
• Door mats and rubber floor mats at the entrance. They hold water underneath and are the first source of odor customers notice.
• Display racks for greeting cards and posters. Thin card and glossy paper curl and spot quickly in humid air, and they are often displayed near the door where outside moisture comes in.

Why Ozone Suits Paper Better Than Liquid Treatments

Most disinfectants work by wetting a surface and leaving the liquid in contact with germs for a set time. That approach is ideal for tiles, steel and plastic, but it is the opposite of what paper needs after a flood. Paper that has only just dried out should not be made wet again, even lightly, because every bit of added moisture gives mold another chance to grow and can leave tide marks on pages and covers.

Ozone avoids that problem. Because it is a gas, it moves through the air of the whole room at once and reaches places that no cloth or spray nozzle can touch: the narrow space between two tightly packed books, the inside of a sealed carton, the top of a tall shelf and the back corner of the stock room. It reacts with odor molecules and mold spores it meets along the way, and once the treatment is complete and the room is aired out, nothing wet is left behind. For a shop with thousands of individual paper items, treating the air and the space as a whole is far more practical than handling each item one by one.

10 Reasons Bookstores and Photocopy Shops in Rat Burana Choose WHD

1. Ozone treatment does not make paper wet, which suits shops whose stock is mostly paper.
2. Ozone reaches the gaps between books, the inside of boxes and the space behind shelves.
3. It breaks down musty odors soaked into paper instead of just covering them up. Learn more about ozone treatment for odors and chemical residue.
4. Supported by disinfection fogging on floors and counters that the floodwater reached.
5. CHEMGENE HLD4H is applied to hard surfaces while avoiding paper stock.
6. Controlled ozone dosing protects photocopiers and rubber components.
7. Straightforward advice on sorting stock, with no exaggerated promises.
8. Helps the shop reopen sooner, in time for the new school term and exam season.
9. Reduces sneezing and eye irritation for staff who spend all day in the shop.
10. The team works with the Master Ozone Generator, equipment it knows well.

Before and After Shop Recovery

Customer Voice

"The team told me straight away that the paper that had swollen could not be saved and should be thrown out. But the books that were dry and only smelled musty could be helped with ozone. When I opened the shop the morning after the treatment, the smell was much lighter. My regular customers came back and stood browsing the shelves just like before."

— Owner of a photocopy and stationery shop, Rat Burana District (a story from the field)

How to Store Paper Stock After Reopening

• Lift paper cartons and product boxes onto pallets or shelves at least 15 to 20 centimeters above the floor.
• Leave a small gap between shelves and walls so air can circulate.
• Run an exhaust fan in the stock room every day and watch the walls for signs of damp.
• Use first-in, first-out rotation, and avoid holding large paper stocks for long periods during the rainy season.
• If you notice a musty smell or new mold spots, separate the affected items immediately and book a follow-up ozone treatment.
• If the owner or any staff member develops a fever, calf pain or red eyes after wading through floodwater, they should see a doctor, following the advice of the Department of Disease Control.

Talking to Customers About the Recovery

Customers in a neighborhood like Rat Burana know that the area flooded. Many of them went through the same thing at home. Being open about what the shop has done builds trust far more effectively than staying silent and hoping nobody notices the smell.

A simple sign by the door saying that the shop has been cleaned, disinfected and ozone-treated after the flood, with the date, reassures parents buying books for their children and office workers who need clean paper for important documents. Setting up a clearly labeled discount table for books with minor water marks, sold honestly as "flood-affected but treated," can also turn part of the loss back into income while showing customers that the shop is not hiding anything. Many loyal customers are happy to support a local shop that is clearly working hard to recover the right way.

For photocopy shops, printing a few test pages for regular customers and showing them that the machines run smoothly with fresh, dry paper is another small but effective way to show that the business is back to normal.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Will ozone treatment turn paper yellow or damage it?
A: The team controls the dose and duration to suit the space and the type of stock. When carried out according to the proper procedure, the treatment is suitable for bookstores. Rare books and important documents should be stored separately and discussed with the team first.

Q: Will moldy books become white again?
A: Ozone helps destroy mold spores and reduce odors, but the stains that mold leaves on paper may still be visible. Owners should decide which books can still be sold as they are and which should be discounted or written off.

Q: How long will the shop need to close?
A: Small shops usually need only a short time. The team gives an estimate after the survey, including the ventilation time before reopening, and work can be scheduled outside business hours.

Q: Do the photocopiers need to be moved out?
A: They should be covered or moved according to the team's advice, and the machine service technician should inspect them before use, because machines exposed to water or very high humidity may have electrical problems.

Q: Can second-hand bookshops or small libraries use the service?
A: Yes. This includes second-hand bookshops, school reading corners and office document rooms.

Q: How do I get in touch?
A: Call 065-556-6294 or add LINE @whd268.

Bring Back the Smell of New Paper to Your Shop

Talk to the World Health Disinfection team to plan ozone treatment and disinfection fogging for your bookstore, photocopy shop or stationery store in Rat Burana, Bang Pakok, Thung Khru and nearby areas.

Book Ozone Treatment, Click Here

See Disinfection Service, Click Here

Call 065-556-6294 · LINE @whd268 · worldhealthdisinfection@gmail.com

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Sources: WHO – Floods and health and the Department of Health, Ministry of Public Health