Close call

wedoe · May 7, 2007

Earlier today, I was sitting in my darkroom cutting up a film and inserting it into a binder. I turned on my enlarger to get some backlight for viewing(my white light is a bit weak, and the walls aren't white), and after inserting all the negatives I went away. I went back in just now, and was a bit surprised at the heat and the smell, cause there's no oven in the room. I found that I'd forgotten to turn off the enlarger, and the thing was generating a lot of heat. I'm so happy I went back in, really a coincidence. If I hadn't, I'm afraid I'd damage the thing, or worse, set fire to my house.

Ok, this entire thing isn't really all that important, just a reminder: remember to turn the thing off. Phew.

Michel Hardy-Vallée · May 7, 2007

It's a good thing film base is not nitrate anymore (since the 40s? 50s?), because then it could have been a real problem. Normal acetate base is very safe, and the worst you could have suffered was a damaged negative.

wedoe · May 7, 2007

Well, the negative wasn't in, but I was more thinking of the proximity of the wooden wall and shelf to the enlarger, a focomat IIc, which is large and made of metal, and in those two hours or so it was getting very warm. Never mind.

Richard Kelham · May 7, 2007

When I was a callow beginner (some 40 years ago) I would sometimes swap the enlarger bulb for a 500W photoflood when I wanted large and very grainy blow-ups. The enlarger was an old Gnome which would start smelling after about 30 seconds, and would probably have melted after a couple of minutes.

Got some good prints though...

Richard

gordrob · May 7, 2007

I have always been worried about leaving something on when I have finished printing so when I built my current darkroom I wired it so that the main light switch controls almost all the outlets and when it is shut off any pretty much everything in the darkroom is off. That plus GFI protected plugs throughout the darkroom gives me a lot of comfort.

Regards
Gord

Paul Howell · May 8, 2007

Years ago I had friend who left an Omega D 2 on, cracked the condenser.

walter23 · May 9, 2007

mhv said:
It's a good thing film base is not nitrate anymore (since the 40s? 50s?), because then it could have been a real problem. Normal acetate base is very safe, and the worst you could have suffered was a damaged negative.

I used nitrocellulose in a biochemistry lab once as an undergraduate (for a western blot or something, I think). Fortunately I'd also brought in a lighter that day. It was fun stuff. Flash paper. POOF (gone).

Close call

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