Disaster? Accidentally didn't rinse after bleach and before sepia step

rpavich · Oct 28, 2016

Argg!
I was sepia toning a print and absentmindedly went from bleach to sepia without rinsing; immediately I saw little chunks or particles of something dark appear in my part B of the toner. I quickly removed the print and rinsed it and put it back in the part B and it toned fine. I filtered the liquid before putting it back into the bottle also.

So...did I ruin my toning kit?

darkroommike · Oct 28, 2016

What's a Sepia Toner kit sell for now? Is it worth more than the time, energy, and paper expended to get a shot. In my experience with most two part toners (and developers) getting A into B is the normal progression, you might shorten the life of your kit a bit but no big deal. Getting Part B into Part A is usually terminal.

rpavich · Oct 28, 2016

darkroommike said:
What's a Sepia Toner kit sell for now? Is it worth more than the time, energy, and paper expended to get a shot. In my experience with most two part toners (and developers) getting A into B is the normal progression, you might shorten the life of your kit a bit but no big deal. Getting Part B into Part A is usually terminal.

Ahhh..I think it was about $12.00 or so...maybe $18.00 $16.00 with shipping.

Thanks.

John Wiegerink · Oct 28, 2016

Why not just try it on a scrap test strip or test print to see if it works.

rpavich · Oct 28, 2016

John Wiegerink said:
Why not just try it on a scrap test strip or test print to see if it works.

I know it will work, after I made the mistake I rinsed off the print and continue to tone it. I'm wondering if I did any longer term damage, like making the sepia tone or not last as long as it normally would have.

I realize I can just keep using it until it dies and learn my lesson, I was wondering if somebody had already made this same mistake and could tell me what to expect based on their experience.

MattKing · Oct 28, 2016

You have decreased the capacity of the "toner" part of the kit. Keep using it until its available activity is inconveniently low.

I'm not sure whether you can "replenish" the toner, but I do know you can do that with the bleach part.

rpavich · Oct 28, 2016

MattKing said:
You have decreased the capacity of the "toner" part of the kit. Keep using it until its available activity is inconveniently low.

I'm not sure whether you can "replenish" the toner, but I do know you can do that with the bleach part.

Thank you Matt.

Patrick Robert James · Oct 28, 2016

I have a friend who doesn't wash very much at all, practically just rinses the print off, after the bleach. He likes the paper to stain a little. I think he uses Berg sepia toner. Basically my point is your print should be fine.

Sepia toner is such a simple thing. You should just mix it yourself. For a few bucks more you will have nearly a lifetime supply. You only need KFerricyanide, KBr, and Sodium Sulfide. Easy peasy. You can mix it loosely too, especially the b bath. I normally just throw a teaspoon full in a tray and stir it in. If you mix it yourself you can also alter the bleach to change the tone if you are so inclined.

rpavich · Oct 29, 2016

Patrick Robert James said:
I have a friend who doesn't wash very much at all, practically just rinses the print off, after the bleach. He likes the paper to stain a little. I think he uses Berg sepia toner. Basically my point is your print should be fine.

Sepia toner is such a simple thing. You should just mix it yourself. For a few bucks more you will have nearly a lifetime supply. You only need KFerricyanide, KBr, and Sodium Sulfide. Easy peasy. You can mix it loosely too, especially the b bath. I normally just throw a teaspoon full in a tray and stir it in. If you mix it yourself you can also alter the bleach to change the tone if you are so inclined.

Thanks, i should do that, i believe that i have the chemicals.

Disaster? Accidentally didn't rinse after bleach and before sepia step

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