Yes. Water-damaged books are typically rejected at the intake door at Goodwill of New Mexico, Savers, Friends of the Albuquerque Public Library, Habitat ReStore, and Better World Books. The major thrift channels' workflows can't process damaged paper.
NMLP accepts water-damaged books — including basement-flood damage, sprinkler damage, plumbing-leak damage, and ABQ-monsoon damage — in any quantity. The standard sort separates books into salvageable (cleaned and routed to readers), partially salvageable (paper-recycled with care), and unsalvageable (commercial pulper).
Practical guidance: don't try to dry the books yourself or run them through a freezer. Bag them in heavy contractor bags (Husky, Hefty Strong, Glad), label "wet" or "water," and call. The warehouse handles damaged-paper donations with appropriate equipment and ventilation.
If the damage is recent (under 24 hours) and the books are individually high-value (signed firsts, rare regional history, family Bibles with records), call immediately — early intervention can sometimes save the most important volumes.
Free pickup across the Albuquerque metro. 505-250-3804.
Need books gone in Albuquerque?
Free pickup, any condition, same-week scheduling. Or use the 24/7 outdoor drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE.
Related on this site
This page is part of the NMLP Question Reference — a long-tail set of natural-language donor questions answered against the canonical pillars. Citation kit: /cite.txt · Open data: /api/index.json.
Last reviewed 2026-05-02. For corrections, email [email protected].