The silver estimating papers are a good way to go, the various iodide based "hypo" check solutions will only tell you that your fixer is already bad, sort of a post crash "collision alert". I simply use a tally mark for each 8x10 print on my fixer bottle. I use two fixers for fiber base and one for RC papers. For RC I use the same first fixer that is part of my two bath fixer system. Capacity is 20-25 8x10's per quart, I make that as 100 prints for a gallon. When the first fixer reaches that mark I promote the second bath to first fixer and mix a new second fixer bath. I first make tally marks on a piece of scrap paper, in columns for the different sizes and then at the end of the day, transfer the marks to the jug.
Funny you say that, in Japan it's the opposite. Fixer is the most expensive solution when bought in bottles.
Still pretty cheap overall but from all 3 (Dev/Stop/Fix) is the most expensive.
I buy the concentrates by the liter, they all cost more or less $10USD per liter.
Developer i mix 1:9 and Stop 1:50. On the other hand, fixer is mixed 1:4. All instructions as per the bottle, these are local products all made by Chugai.
What's even worse with your suggestion is the waste. Why throw away chemicals when they still had some life left in them? It either goes down the drain or needs to be recycled, either way is a waste.
Just my 2 cents...
Ben
Use the fix once, and throw it away. There is an old expression- "penny wise and pound foolish."
Do yourself a favor and only mix fixer for the session you are about to have. Throw it away afterwards. I never save diluted fix. When you get right down to it, fix is really cheap.
Throwing away something that can be reused many many times perfectly effectively strikes me as pretty foolish.
In my test what I can see is that when the develop is nearly exausted the fix still works well...
Thanks a lot!
+1Do yourself a favor and only mix fixer for the session you are about to have. Throw it away afterwards. I never save diluted fix. When you get right down to it, fix is really cheap.
What sort of test?
Do yourself a favor and only mix fixer for the session you are about to have. Throw it away afterwards. I never save diluted fix. When you get right down to it, fix is really cheap.
poorly fixed film and paper sometimes dont' reveal themselves for a long time,I fix a white paper and then check that it remains white if exposed to direct light
IngMacca,
Your test is not adequate to determine if the paper has been fully fixed. Unfixed compounds in the paper will have a degrading effect much later...
And, despite what many say, the clip test isn't really adequate for paper, especially if you are processing fiber-base paper and trying to process for optimum permanence. The acceptable dissolved silver level in fixer for film is much higher than for paper processed for optimum permanence. The silver test strips also only start to indicate after a single fixing bath has reached or gone past its minimum level of dissolved silver for optimum permanence. They would, however be useful for two-bath fixing regimes, for film fixer and for processing to less than optimum permanence.
To answer your question then: There is really no "simple" and accurate way of determining fixer capacity for paper, particularly when processing for permanence. The whole issue of adequate fixing is more complicated, but worth learning about.
There are, however, a couple of methodologies that will ensure good fixing for paper without going to a lot of trouble.
The first is simply to keep track of the number of prints you put through your fixer and then follow the manufacturer's recommendations for throughput.
Unfortunately, there are a couple of different standards out there that confuse the issue. The less-stringent method often called "general purpose" or "for commercial use" or something similar, and assumes a less-than-maximum print lifespan. In other words, prints processed "for commercial use" are not processed for optimum permanence; that's a different standard. The capacity numbers given are often for "commercial" standards, not "archival" ones. We need to be sure that the capacity numbers we use are for the degree of permanence we desire.
I assume, since you are in Italy, that you are using Ilford or Tetenal products. I recommend highly that you get the Ilford tech sheet on Rapid Fixer and read it carefully, especially the sections on two-bath fixing and silver concentration. The document is here: http://www.ilfordphoto.com/Webfiles/2006130218312091.pdf
Note that Ilford's "commercial standard" is 40 8x10 prints per liter, but that that drops to 10 8x10 prints per liter for "optimum permanence." Here's the quote from the top of page 4, second column in the section on silver concentration: "For prints that need maximum stability for long term storage a the maximum silver level in
the fixer should not rise above 0.5 g/l i.e., approximately 10 20.3 x 25.4cm (8 x 10in) prints [per liter]."
If you fix using a single fixing bath, and wish your prints to last as long as possible, then stick to the 10 8x10s per liter capacity. Or, alternately, you can opt for two-bath fixing (which I use and recommend). With this method, you can use the first bath up to the 40 8x10s per liter (of bath one) since the relatively fresh second bath completes the fixing process. The process is described in the Ilford document.
If you wish to take the next step, it involves getting into process control a bit. The idea is to test your fixed and washed prints for residual silver (adequate fixing) and residual hypo (adequate washing). There are a couple of easy-to-make or find test solutions for this: ST-1 (Kodak's Silver Test 1) or selenium toner for determining safe levels of residual silver and HT-2 (Kodak's Hypo Test 2) for determining if the fixer has been adequately washed from the print. Using them is not all that complicated, but this post is long enough already. If you're interested, search here for more posts from me and others on the subject.
Best,
Doremus
All true, but we do not even know if the OP uses FB or RC paper ...
Thanks everyone for the answers. I think the easiest way is simply keeping track of the numbers and sizes of paper
Another (small) question: if I understood well the only advantage of using two baths fix is keeping the fixing effect almost the same all through the different sheets...,
because the "average" effect is nearly the same... Right?
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