dust/sand problem

nc5p · Jul 1, 2006

I develop my own 120 b&w film in a small tank. The problem I have is, living in the desert we have a terrible dust problem. Not just dust but minute sand particles. Recently I have been troubled with dirt even on negatives that have just dried. I have this film cleaning solution that has worked well before, but now I find myself creating scratch marks across the entire frame from the little sand particles.

I can't do a lot about my environment but what should I do about cleaning this film for enlarging/scanning? I tried the air in the can but that stuff seems to blow out a freezing mist that frosts the film. Should I pipe shop air into the house and use that, then wipe down what doesn't come off?

Doug

glbeas · Jul 1, 2006

Scratch marks can only be caused by wiping the film with a dirty something or other. Try a final rinse of distilled with a drop or two of wetting agent in it and shake it off, not wipe. Hang it in a corner where the air is still or preferably build a filtered drying cabinet to hang it in to keep the ambient particulates at bay. If you have forced air ventilation in the darkroom be sure you are pumping air IN through a good hepa filter to create a positive pressure in the darkroom to blow out the dust trying to come in as you open the door and from seeping in the cracks while the door is shut. If you have to use clean room techniques such as changing into clean clothes before doing darkroom work and having a tacky mat of some kind to trap dirt from your shoes at the entry to your darkroom. Theres more you could do but these are the easiest and most effective to start with.

firecracker · Jul 1, 2006

nc5p said:
I can't do a lot about my environment but what should I do about cleaning this film for enlarging/scanning?

Doug

If your negs have got something, you can redo from the washing and dry them in a less dusty area of your darkroom space that you can find. Then make test prints and see how much unwanted spots there still are.

Canned air doesn't do much of a job for real tiny dust spots. You can try liquid film cleaner with a Q tip instead.

Also determine what size you want to eventually print the images from those negs. If they are up to 8x10", it's a matter of careful handling. No sweating. As long as you don't scratch the emulsion side, you don't really have any problems.

I don't personally know too much about tiny sand particles because I don't live in a desert, but if that's a common problem in your residency, you might want to seal off the window gaps and door slots a little tighter.

JHannon · Jul 1, 2006

You can also try hanging the film to dry in one of those sealed plastic clothes hangers with the zippered front.

Jim Jones · Jul 1, 2006

You might try drying the film on the reels with filtered air blowing gently through the reels. Long ago I used a commercial film drier made to do this. They worked well. If you get grains of sand imbedded in the film while it dries, you may have a permanent problem. Even if you can remove the sand, it will have left an indentation that will leave a white spot on the print when using a condenser enlarger.

AllenR · Jul 1, 2006

Doug,

I ended up building a film drying cabinet to solve the problem. With our low humidity, there is no need for any type of forced air system, just a clean place for the film to dry. I have also had significant problems with junk in the tap water that sticks to the film even after treatment with Photo-Flo mixed in distilled water. A water filtration system solved that problem. The real trick, for me, is keeping the negatives clean when printing. The low humidity and static electricity makes that a challenge.

Allen

Jim Noel · Jul 1, 2006

If you are not ready to build a drying cabinet, try the shower.

For more than a few years I would runcold water inthe shower for 3-5 minutes, turn the water off and hange the film. Then I shut the door until the film was dry. Never had any dust problems because the cold water literally knocked it down.

Jim Noel · Jul 1, 2006

If you are not ready to build a drying cabinet, try the shower.

For more than a few years I would run cold water inthe shower for 3-5 minutes, turn the water off and hang the film. Then I shut the door until the film was dry. Never had any dust problems because the cold water literally knocked it down.

MurrayMinchin · Jul 2, 2006

For cleaning negatives before enlarging I use one of these...

http://www.kinetronics.com/cgi-loca...at.html?L+scstore+qtzq7373ff8c9c8c+1170542820

...and it works great.

Murray

dust/sand problem

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