Chemical Disposal When On A Septic Tank

Doremus Scudder · Feb 7, 2020

Maris,

Thanks for the detailed information! It's always nice to hear from a knowledgeable source, regardless of the variations and intricacies of local regulations.

Doremus

Wayne · Feb 7, 2020

I dump bw developer and citric acid fix down the drain. If I'm developing a lot (which is rare, unfortunately), I'll space out when I dump it. My wash water is piped out the window into the yard. Fix goes to a photolab that recovers the silver.

When I did a lot of Cibachrome I took the bleach to the local sewage treatment plant in 5 gallon buckets. Call yours and see if they will take anything directly.

Old_Dick · Feb 7, 2020

Thanks Maris,

You helped save my mind, wallet and septic system, Very much appreciated.

Louis Nargi · Feb 8, 2020

There was an article in the magazine Photo tech many years ago. The Black and White chem { Dektal Selectol Soft Fixer are ok } no toners When mixed together they natural

removed account4 · Feb 8, 2020

Louis Nargi said:
There was an article in the magazine Photo tech many years ago. The Black and White chem { Dektal Selectol Soft Fixer are ok } no toners When mixed together they natural

dektal selectol soft are developers, is the article suggesting the fixers used with them don't get saturated with silver ?
typically what they say ( they meaning the people who are involved with regulations &c ) is ph is what is worried about with developers, fixer remover and stop bath &c, and when you mix these things together they neutralize and they are sometimes ok to flush down the drain with an entire sink full of water to dilute everything ( this is what i was told by an environmental commission that monitors this stuff near me, and fines people if they are "non compliant" ), but ... the fixer, because it has silver in it, no matter the developer and stop bath &c used, is the "stuff" that causes trouble.
if you have the article can you post a reference to it, sounds interesting i'd love to read it!

Louis Nargi · Feb 9, 2020

I think I still have the magazine I'll look for it

removed account4 · Feb 9, 2020

Louis Nargi said:
I think I still have the magazine I'll look for it

louis - thank you !
john

Louis Nargi · Feb 11, 2020

jnantz said:
louis - thank you !
john

I found it The March/ April edition 2000 Photo Techniques Are Darkroom Chemicals Safe For Septic Systems by Dr. Robert Chapman

removed account4 · Feb 11, 2020

thanks for the date of the magazine, i'll see if i can find it, sounds like an interesting article !
does it really say if a photographer uses selectol or dektol one doesn't get silver accumulation in the fixer?

maybe i am misunderstanding what you wrote before...
thanks!
john

Louis Nargi · Feb 12, 2020

jnantz said:
thanks for the date of the magazine, i'll see if i can find it, sounds like an interesting article !
does it really say if a photographer uses selectol or dektol one doesn't get silver accumulation in the fixer?

maybe i am misunderstanding what you wrote before...
thanks!
john

I'll reread it and let you know

Louis Nargi · Feb 12, 2020

jnantz said:
thanks for the date of the magazine, i'll see if i can find it, sounds like an interesting article !
does it really say if a photographer uses selectol or dektol one doesn't get silver accumulation in the fixer?

maybe i am misunderstanding what you wrote before...
thanks!
john

I'ii reread it and let you know

Ariston · Feb 12, 2020

Mine goes in the backyard.

KenS · Feb 17, 2020

waynecrider said:
New house has a septic tank so what do YOU do with the chemicals.

I believe I have responded 'privately' to a few members in this regard... However,
I 'recover' the silver from all my used fixers by 'savinging' it in a large glass carboy.. add 'used but not dead' developer and 'shake'... repeat as required, until you have the carboy 'about 3/4 full...or 'about 6 inches of pecipitate.
Carefully, syphon off as much of the clear liquid. Add more 'clean water' and shake.. settle the precipitate. re-wash
a couple more times. then filter out the precipitate for 'recycling'.
That 'precipitate' is what is known as "black silver' probably the purest form of silver you can 'get'.. Wash it WELL and Take it and 'have it 'melted down' in ether a muffle furnace OR.. to your 'favourite' jewellery repair shop and have then melt it down for a 'percentage' of the value of the finished 'product.

This keeps silver out of your septic tank (or the municipal 'facility') and you also have 'pennies' to buy more film.
chemicals.. or eventually a bigger/newer camera of your choice.

I've been doing this for Years and have no regrets about the time and effort required.

Ken
Ken

mgb74 · Feb 17, 2020

KenS said:
I believe I have responded 'privately' to a few members in this regard... However,
I 'recover' the silver from all my used fixers by 'savinging' it in a large glass carboy.. add 'used but not dead' developer and 'shake'... repeat as required, until you have the carboy 'about 3/4 full...or 'about 6 inches of pecipitate.
Carefully, syphon off as much of the clear liquid. Add more 'clean water' and shake.. settle the precipitate. re-wash
a couple more times. then filter out the precipitate for 'recycling'.
That 'precipitate' is what is known as "black silver' probably the purest form of silver you can 'get'.. Wash it WELL and Take it and 'have it 'melted down' in ether a muffle furnace OR.. to your 'favourite' jewellery repair shop and have then melt it down for a 'percentage' of the value of the finished 'product.

This keeps silver out of your septic tank (or the municipal 'facility') and you also have 'pennies' to buy more film.
chemicals.. or eventually a bigger/newer camera of your choice.

I've been doing this for Years and have no regrets about the time and effort required.

Ken
Ken

Interesting, but I'm a bit confused. 6" of precipitate in the bottom of a carboy is a lot. If that's "the purest form of silver you can get", there must be a lot of silver in there. And what is the purpose of adding the used developer?

KenS · Feb 18, 2020

mgb74 said:
Interesting, but I'm a bit confused. 6" of precipitate in the bottom of a carboy is a lot. If that's "the purest form of silver you can get", there must be a lot of silver in there. And what is the purpose of adding the used developer?

The added 'used' but not 'dead' developer converts the 'dissolved' silver in the used fixer to a precipitate that will eventually 'settle' as a precipitate to the bottom of the container
I'm not sure of the 'how' (NOT being much of a 'chemistry expert I don't have the required 'knowledge....)
But from my memory it was either Ron Mowery or Martin Scott at Kodak that suggested my 'doing it' to reduce the amount of silver getting into either the city sewer system (or septic tank for those 'off' the municipal sewers system) and being 'lost' forever.

'Black silver' is apparently the 'purest form of silver yo can 'get'. Apparently "mined' silver still has LOT of other
chemical in 'combination' thhat has to be 'removed' .. but not being a chemistry 'expert' I have NO IDEA as to how that is accomplished.

Ken

thefizz · Feb 19, 2020

KenS said:
I believe I have responded 'privately' to a few members in this regard... However,
I 'recover' the silver from all my used fixers by 'savinging' it in a large glass carboy.. add 'used but not dead' developer and 'shake'... repeat as required, until you have the carboy 'about 3/4 full...or 'about 6 inches of pecipitate.
Carefully, syphon off as much of the clear liquid. Add more 'clean water' and shake.. settle the precipitate. re-wash
a couple more times. then filter out the precipitate for 'recycling'.
That 'precipitate' is what is known as "black silver' probably the purest form of silver you can 'get'.. Wash it WELL and Take it and 'have it 'melted down' in ether a muffle furnace OR.. to your 'favourite' jewellery repair shop and have then melt it down for a 'percentage' of the value of the finished 'product.

This keeps silver out of your septic tank (or the municipal 'facility') and you also have 'pennies' to buy more film.
chemicals.. or eventually a bigger/newer camera of your choice.

I've been doing this for Years and have no regrets about the time and effort required.

Ken
Ken

What ratio of developer to fixer or does it matter Ken?

RalphLambrecht · Feb 19, 2020

waynecrider said:
New house has a septic tank so what do YOU do with the chemicals.

collect aqnd bring to haz-mat collection.

Kino · Feb 19, 2020

RalphLambrecht said:
collect aqnd bring to haz-mat collection.

You only assume there IS a hazmat collection point within 100 miles that accepts photo waste. Not true in many rural areas in the US.

Wayne · Feb 19, 2020

Kino said:
You only assume there IS a hazmat collection point within 100 miles that accepts photo waste. Not true in many rural areas in the US.

I would think there is one within 100 miles of MOST areas of the rural US, though not all. Even my small town of less than 4000 has a hazardous waste collection facility.

koraks · Feb 20, 2020

KenS said:
The added 'used' but not 'dead' developer converts the 'dissolved' silver in the used fixer to a precipitate that will eventually 'settle' as a precipitate to the bottom of the container

You could also toss some strips of tinfoil into the fixer. The aluminum will dissolve, and the silver will drop out of solution.

removed account4 · Feb 20, 2020

koraks said:
You could also toss some strips of tinfoil into the fixer. The aluminum will dissolve, and the silver will drop out of solution.

but then you have water saturated with aluminum in one's septic system.
sounds like kenS' method is good, i guess if your local regs allow whats left to be put in the drain..
im on sewer now because we have wetlands near us and a stream and the coastline and they don't want anything leeching
into the water table.. while home remedies seem good, who knows .. i certainly don't and while i've been actively helping people
if they need physical stuff to buy and use to treat their "stuff" i really can't give straight disposal advice..
what's right for their neck of the woods is FUBAR where i am..
i mean aluminium has been linked ( or was? ) to alzheimer's
do you really want fluid with aluminium in your water table ? kind of gives happy shiney people a new spin..

Fluidphoto · Feb 20, 2020

I grew up on a septic system and did a project in school to try and make the chemicals less of a hazard before disposal. What we came up with was that adding table salt to the fixer solution, it dropped the silver out of the solution. Didn't get it to zero, but pretty close. Then all I used to do was filter out the white precipitate and pour off the rest. I used to dry out the precipitate and then take it in for disposal when there was enough to justify the drive. When I was in University, the tech there had a bucket filled with steel wool that he would pour the chemicals into and it slow drained out the bottom into another bin for disposal. The silver would collect on the steel wool and every few months they would sell the buckets to some place that recovered the silver from the steel.

KenS · Feb 20, 2020

thefizz said:
What ratio of developer to fixer or does it matter Ken?

I don't know about the 'ratio" OR if there is a 'need for one. I was 'introduced' to that silver recovery means by
Ron Mowrie at Kodak about 17 years ago.. and I 'do it' {having been born and 'raised' in the 'land of the kilt' (read 'canny wi' yer pennies' lot) and is probably as the the least expensive means of recovering the silver.. It just takes a little extra 'time' and 'effort' and to 'participate'.

After the 'black silver' has been melted down and 'cooled' enough to hold that 'lump' (in the palm of your hand) there's a certain amount of 'satisfaction' on 'knowing' that you have taken that 'small step' to 'keep' things a 'little bit cleaner'

Ken

KenS · Feb 21, 2020

waynecrider said:
New house has a septic tank so what do YOU do with the chemicals.

Out of sheer curiosity...
Has anyone actually 'tried' the silver recovery from used fixer that I posted using 'used but not dead developer' to get the precipitate of "black silver.

1. How well did it 'work'??
2. Easier... and 'well enough' for you to continue the practice?

koraks · Feb 21, 2020

I have not tried the used developer approach, but the tinfoil approach. It seemed to work quite well, but I did not test for residual silver in the effluent, so I don't know how effective it is exactly. And I didn't continue the practice.

Chemical Disposal When On A Septic Tank

Doremus Scudder

Wayne

Old_Dick

Louis Nargi

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Louis Nargi

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Wayne

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Chemical Disposal When On A Septic Tank

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