D76 in brown Datatainer Jugs...

...I've found some that a former photo club partner mixed and labeled with a dump date of 4/1/2010. The developer was powder; mixed with distilled water and the jugs (two) have been stored at between 68 and 76 degrees (f) in a dark closet. They've not been opened since the mix date, which based on the labels, I'm presuming was November of '09. Probably the biggest issue would be any air trapped in the bottles and the fact that the lids for these jugs aren't always 'air tight.'

Does anyone have any experience with D76 that's passed the data sheet expiration time line? Does D76, when stored in these dark brown jugs, become completely useless and oxidized in the 6 months shown on the Kodak data sheets? I'm hoping not. It would seem a shame to dump it all.

And in the FWIW department, she was asked not to mix more than the club would likely use in a three month period...

EDIT: Also from the FWIW department, I did search for this topic as it pertains to D76 and didn't see anything relevant...found lots on Xtol though!

Dear BillBallard,

Chemicals are cheap. Your time spent composing and exposing a roll of film is certainly worth more than a bag of D-76.

I may be wrong, but I think there is a recent post by someone who used some D-76 as a print developer. At least that way you're not risking anything.

Good luck,

Neal Wydra

Pour some in a glass, if it looks like clear tap water, it is probably good. Closer to coffee, probably dump time. I've stored D76 mixed with distilled water and stored for over a year now in a clear 2 liter soft drink bottle, it appears to work just fine when there is no brown tint.

I'm patiently waiting for it to turn colour, so far it hasn't.

Dip a leader strip clipping from some film in the D-76. it should show a lot of darkening in a couple of minutes in room light. Or shoot a test roll and process a short clipping to really be sure.

You know, if it's clear it's probably ok; but why risk it? The cost of a bag of D-76 powder is only a couple of bucks more than the cost of a roll of film. Looking at it from strictly a dollars and cents point of view, you've got to ask yourself if it's even worth the effort. The film cost alone makes the prospect unattractive, to say nothing of the time and effort expended.

A clip test, where you develop a few frames of well exposed film, can save something on the film cost, but nothing on time and effort. The exposed leader test will only tell you that the developer still has some reduction potential, but nothing truly useful. Just because there is some reduction potential left doesn't guarantee that the developer will behave as expected in it's intended application.

Personally, I'd just chuck it; but the choice is yours. If you feel that it's worth the effort, develop a few frames of well exposed film and examine the negatives closely or make a contact sheet to determine the state of the developer. Don't rely on an exposed leader to determine the efficacy of the developer.

I've used D-76 that was almost 3 years old with no problems. The key is a full jug and a tight cap. The solution was water clear and remained that way for another 2 months until it was all used up. The negs came out just fine and printed superbly. I won a Best of Class in Art for an orchid photo at a show.

Thanks to all that replied. This is what I love about APUG; all informative and experienced answers!

I will do some testing before putting something prized through the brew; mainly my question was out of curiosity more than concern. And while I agree 100% that chemistry is (relatively speaking) cheap, this situation is somewhat complicated by the fact the photo club is a partnership and all the partners share in the operational costs, which includes the purchase of chemistry. Were it my own, I would have dumped it.

And congrats Buje on your Best of Class win!

Thanks again -