Hi all,
My V30 just arrived from Europe and I’d like to give it a thorough clean before I start using chemicals in it. What’s the best way to properly flush and clean the machine?
Would it be enough to fill it with water and let it run for a few hours, or is there a better process people recommend? There’s still a bit of water sitting in rack 1, and each tank seems to have a small amount of old chemistry left in it. I also noticed some residue in the pipes when I removed the rear and side panels.
I searched through the forum but couldn’t find a clear guide, so I’d really appreciate any advice from people who’ve done this before. I’d hate to damage the machine or ruin my own (or someone else’s) film by cleaning it incorrectly. Thanks in advance!
I’ve cleaned many. I have never used anything but water to flush the system. I hate the chemicals used by some folks to clean developer tanks etc. My skin is sensitive to something in them.
There are definitely some possible gotchas in the machines.
Disconnect the machine from the mains power before doing any of this. This sounds silly, but some people do try stuff with the power applied. Possible problems are not limited to the machine, but you can get a very nasty, potentially fatal shock. The dryer section is not meant to have fluids in it. It happens and is a safety risk.
1) In the CD plumbing, I’ve seen chunks of plastic jam in the circulation pump. The source of those pieces turned out to be the filter holder. My theory is that the developer was somehow causing the plastic to deteriorate. When folks changed the filter, the torque applied to the bottom lock, caused these small support pieces to break off. Whenever those got into the pump impeller it could stop. Fortunately, cleaning it out gets the pump running again. Note that I never saw this happen in any tank other than the developer. C-41, C-41SM or even RA4, RA-2SM for the paper processors.
(Now that I wrote that, I think it applied more to the V-50 and V-100. I remember the differences between the filters, but not the holder. It might not be the same)
It’s not a bad idea to take the pump apart anyway to clean it out. Poor CD circulation is not a good thing in these machines. Temperature fluctuation and temp. errors can be the result.
2) There’s a CD “shower pipe” that should be cleaned out. It can be removed by loosening a screw near the top of the tank and then twisting the shower pipe unit. It is friction fit. This gets tiny film pieces in it, reducing the flow through the holes. Developer blows towards the film to help circulate better and bring fresh CD in to help strip off byproducts of development. Those film chips are brought in through the front end when the film is cut right through the sprockets.
3) One ugly problem is caused by a combination of low utilization and bleach over concentration. The BL can solidify in the plumbing. Hot water and patience works. I once went on a tour of labs at a particular drug store chain to fix machines with that issue. I was advised to bring overalls and a shop vac. Good advice!
4) Bio growth in the STB was often an issue. I used the water and scrubbing/circulating method here as well.
5) Learn how to disassemble the racks to clean them out. The racks need to be re-timed if the gears are removed. If not, your leader cards will be damaged.
6) Learn how to remove the loading box. Clean it out thoroughly. Remove the sensor bars and clean under them. Many people splash the CD when doing rack maintenance.
Once all that is done, I would fill and dump the tanks several times, circulating in between. Don’t heat the water above operating temperature prior to turning it on. If it’s too hot, you’ll get temperature alarm messages until it cools. Much easier to start low and let the machine warm it up.
The replenishment system needs to be cleaned out and thoroughly flushed. Look for struggling pumps or bellows that “skootch out to one side instead of going straight up and down. I don’t know what you can find for parts these days. I had it easy.
Bottom line, none of this is difficult. My rule of thumb was not to use water any hotter than my bare hand could stand. Very hot water can distort plastic parts.
Don’t put non Noritsu greases on the gears. Even then, take care to not get any greases on the tank or other structure of the machine. There are meant to be warning stickers on the machine, but nobody reads those. Either that, or they like to gamble.
I don’t remember any crumbling, or other catastrophic tank/frame failures on a V-30, but I’ve seen that on other machines made of the same material.
Whew!
Len
