Am I being too anal or not?

So, I start setting up tonight to process some B&W film and I notice that both my last good analogue thermometer is busted (separated and it won't tap back) and my last good digital thermometer is also busted. Due to my anality (is that a word??), I have packed it away until I get a new thermometer of some description.

Am I being to anal about it? Should I just guess and process based on the ambient temperature (its around 23 inside at the moment)?

Cheers

Dont know about your question...

But the rule is only store thermometers vertically when temperature goes (or may go) high.
Just put it back where you had it before and it should fix itself after a hot cool cycle or two.

depends on your developing process/developer I guess. If it was me (using HC-110 dilution 1+49, where development time doesn't need to be that precise) I would just go for it.

Well, no, I don't think that's being anal at all. Quite the contrary. Unless your image results don't matter to you. In which case why care about any other aspect of photography?

I'd have done the same thing...

I have to admit I am reasonably regimented when it comes to processing, including temp. I have been like that since my first roll, so I have little experience and don't know what the results will be like if I'm a bit "loose".

I can sometimes use some guesswork and estimation when printing, but I don't play around when I develop film. And if I'm going to fudge a bit on the developing time, I need to know the temp accurately first - so I'd do the same as you.

hoffy said:

I have to admit I am reasonably regimented when it comes to processing, including temp. I have been like that since my first roll, so I have little experience and don't know what the results will be like if I'm a bit "loose".

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as I said it would depend on your process. what film? what developer? what dilution?

I'd wait until I got a good thermometer as well. Also keep in mind the new one may not be in sync with your old ones, unless all were calibrated to a known standard. That's why I always try to keep a reference one around.

film? It was going to be a roll of Foma 100 and a roll of FP4+ (processed separately) in D76.

As for thermometers, I have a fertility thermometer that I use as a reference. Yes, its range is a little above B&W processing, but it seems to be a good starting point!

hoffy said:

film? It was going to be a roll of Foma 100 and a roll of FP4+ (processed separately) in D76.

As for thermometers, I have a fertility thermometer that I use as a reference. Yes, its range is a little above B&W processing, but it seems to be a good starting point!

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Did you try putting your separated processing thermometer in your freezer for a few hours? Might just work???? John W

Actually, no I didn't! I tried to heat it, but that just pushed it up too high. It's not ruptured, so I'll give the freezer a try.

Cheers

hoffy said:

So, I start setting up tonight to process some B&W film and I notice that both my last good analogue thermometer is busted (separated and it won't tap back) and my last good digital thermometer is also busted. Due to my anality (is that a word??), I have packed it away until I get a new thermometer of some description.

Am I being to anal about it? Should I just guess and process based on the ambient temperature (its around 23 inside at the moment)?

Cheers

Click to expand...

Can you try putting the thermometer with separation into a pan of water and heat it on the stove until the liquid inside reaches the highest of the isolated bits and then remove it from the heat, stand the thermometer upright and let it settle down again?

(Let it push if it does so until it is all joined up again and then cool it upright...)

RR

In the future, keeping chemicals, tanks, and wash water at room temperature, and keeping that room within a practical range for film development, eliminates several potential problems. Then a cheap wall thermometer suffices. Consistency is more important than absolute temperature after we have determined our own preferred B&W development time and temperature. Only for valid experiments with data from others do we really need specific temperature measurements.

hoffy said:

So, I start setting up tonight to process some B&W film and I notice that both my last good analogue thermometer is busted (separated and it won't tap back) and my last good digital thermometer is also busted. Due to my anality (is that a word??), I have packed it away until I get a new thermometer of some description.

Am I being to anal about it? Should I just guess and process based on the ambient temperature (its around 23 inside at the moment)?

Cheers

Click to expand...

anality.You used it and we understood what you meant by it.so,it passes the test of bein a word!

Jim Jones said:

In the future, keeping chemicals, tanks, and wash water at room temperature, and keeping that room within a practical range for film development, eliminates several potential problems. Then a cheap wall thermometer suffices. Consistency is more important than absolute temperature after we have determined our own preferred B&W development time and temperature. Only for valid experiments with data from others do we really need specific temperature measurements.

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Suppose the room temperature is not the same as the temperature he has standardised on?

RR

Jim Jones said:

In the future, keeping chemicals, tanks, and wash water at room temperature, and keeping that room within a practical range for film development, eliminates several potential problems. Then a cheap wall thermometer suffices. Consistency is more important than absolute temperature after we have determined our own preferred B&W development time and temperature. Only for valid experiments with data from others do we really need specific temperature measurements.

Click to expand...

Good thought.

hoffy said:

So, I start setting up tonight to process some B&W film and I notice that both my last good analogue thermometer is busted (separated and it won't tap back) and my last good digital thermometer is also busted. Due to my anality (is that a word??), I have packed it away until I get a new thermometer of some description.

Am I being to anal about it? Should I just guess and process based on the ambient temperature (its around 23 inside at the moment)?

Cheers

Click to expand...

if you aren't sure if your thermometer is working
put it in a glass of icewater, it should read "0ºC "

I am ridiculous about controls during the processing of film. Do things without a
proper plan and controls in place, expect unpredictable results.

CropDusterMan said:

I am ridiculous about controls during the processing of film. Do things without a
proper plan and controls in place, expect unpredictable results.

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if someone has a system that works for them, that is great,
it can be as ridiculous about controls or as slack as can be
when he or she processes film. someone with no controls
( or seemingly no controls ) can get just as predictable results
as someone with ridiculous controls.

there are ways to develop film without knowing the "proper" time
http://michaelandpaula.com/mp/devinsp.html
people have been doing this for 100+ years, whether with pan film and a green light
or glass plates. and the results are quite predictible ...
i use caffneol developer made with home roasted coffee beans.
i don't really measure any of my ingredients and i use a little print developer mixed in
i sometimes stand develop myfilm with regular old cold water from the tap, sometimes warmer
for anywhere between 25-35 mins i dont' really pay attention to the time, if i remember to get down and rinse i do
if not, i don't worry about it, another few mins isn't going to do anything ...

i don't have any tight controls, gave up on them, im not suggesting you or anyone else stop doing what you like, and what works for you
but there are ways of getting predictible results whether you have strict anal, and ridiculous controls or not ..
whether you use fresh, in-date cold stored film or expired, shelf stored film, middle of the road well known chemistry ( like D76 & c ) or
something else concocted on the spot from ingredients found around the house ( or supermarket shelf )...

the thing is to have a good time, the way i see it is if you are too busy worrying about .05ºF or 1/8fstop over/under exposure or if your film was stored in
a 54ºF fridge instead of 55ºF ... it doesn't seem like that much fun .. and it is supposed to be a fun exercise ..

YMMV

Depends on your film and developer. If you're using Tri-X and D76, I'd say go for it. Your friendly, or not so friendly, Walmart has those cheapie digital thermometers for peanuts in the health care section. We have one for checking our cat's temperature. I've used it in a pinch for developing, and it's plenty accurate enough.

Haaa,

I just went through this ritual. Dropped one glass thermometer, the other had separated and I broke it trying to rejoin the blue liquid pieces.

Be conservative if you heat to raise the bar of fluid to the top. Look for an upper expansion space that some thermometers have, and if it doesn't then it might break when you heat to the top. Also keep the rate of heating slow.

Then I was lucky to get another good glass thermometer from my local camera store. I'll be taking care of it until some future unforseen (but with thermometers inevitable) accident.

First liter out of the tap is ambient 68-70 degrees. otherwise I have to go up and get the digital cooking thermometer.

Hof, I would be thinking about one of these.

I already have one that I use for food. It comes as a certified thermometer. It can be re-calibrated by yourself, as long as you follow the instructions carefully and correctly.

It is super fast in giving a reading. It matches my $1,200 process thermometer I used in manufacturing within 0.1 at 0ºC and within 0.2 100.0ºC. At temperatures commonly used in B&W film developing, 20ºC to 24ºC it matches almost exactly, or as exactly as I can measure with two thermometers in one solution.

The initial reading is ready in 3 seconds, it becomes very stable within 5 seconds and only requires 5mm insertion for an accurate measurement. You can of course insert the probe to about 100mm but your main recording bit is in the first 3mm tip.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/White-ET...126?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item5673147986

If you wish to buy these in Oz, do so, but with the Australia tax you'll be looking north of $130 AUD plus postage for the privilege. At $58.71 AUD delivered to your doorstep, this is pretty good value, that is, if you wish to go down that route.

To answer your question, I would wait to get a decent thermometer.

Mick.

What's the maximum temp on the separated thermometer? I've got a few that regularly separate, like my Jobo one that only goes up to 30C on the scale.
Simple solution, some hot water out of the tap about 40-50C in a cup. Dip the thermometer and watch the liquid rise until it's nearly to the top, then pull it out so it slows or goes down a bit. Keep dipping and pulling out (man, that sounds dirty), to keep the liquid rising slowly, until it's all back together.
(It won't explode too easily, there's a bulb at the top to keep some expansion space, but if you drop it in water that's too hot and forget about it, it might.)
Once all the liquid is back together, just let it cool to room temp while holding it vertical (or near enough).

I develop b/w in same place with controlled conditions. In finished basement of recently build house and I don't use fresh tap water for developer, fixer, only for wash.
Stopped using thermometer years ago.