Cloudy negs FP4+ and HP5+

[John McCallum]

:confused: Been getting what looks like a cloudy, creamy colored film on the emulsion side of my FP4 & HP5. Seems to fade a bit after negs dry but still there. It's very noticeable, can't see through the shadows(!). Although still able to get a print off them, doesn't seem ideal.
Tray devld in stock soln D76, didn't prewash this time, new Ilford stop bath, slightly old Fixer.
Anyone else experienced the same?

 

[Nige]

Your fixer is probably not doing it's job. mix up some new stuff making sure of the dilution and refix.

 

[glbeas]

You should also go by the old rule of using double the time it takes to clear the film. When the time gets twice what the intructions say to use for fresh fix dump it. Preferably sooner. Fix is cheap. Good negatives with good images on them are not.

 

[John McCallum]

Ahuh - so it's the fixer ... thanks Nige and Gary.

 

[Doug Bennett]

The quick test for fixer is: clip a small piece off of the leader of 35mm B&W film. Toss this in your fixer, and then test how long it takes to turn the film completely clear. As Gary said, fix for twice this time.

Check the technical info on your fixer. When the film clip test takes 50% longer than their specified time for fixing film, it's time for new fixer (or sooner; as Gary also pointed out, fixer is relatively cheap in comparison to the problems it can cause).

 

[John McCallum]

Brilliant! Will give it a go tonight .... thank you. John.