How to clean trays storage botles etc.

Paul. · Feb 21, 2007

Have done a search but cannot seem to find what I need.
I have a number of trays and storage bottles that have become stained with use and would like to clean them. Normal washing ie. soap and warm water has had little effect.
The stains are as follow:-
1 silver stains on trays used for developing.

2 brown stain on tray used for Selinium toneing. [spots here and there not all over]

3 blue stain on bottles used to store mixed Ferricyanide/Potasiumbromide bleach. [ forgot about it and it exhausted its self in the bottle]

Please does anyone know of a cleaning agent or recipie for one that I could mix up from basic chemicals suitable to deal with the above stains.

I have tried Domestos bleach but it had little efect apart from makeing the darkroom stink.
Thanks in advance, regards Paul.
ps. sorry realised I did not tell you all articles are plastic and JOBO manufacture.

PatTrent · Feb 21, 2007

For stains in developing trays I use chlorine bleach (specifically, Clorox). It does a great job, including the stains that settle into fine scratches on the plastic bottoms of trays.

reellis67 · Feb 21, 2007

I use the same trays for the same tasks each time, so it's not a big deal, but there are formulas for tray cleaner in older formulary books and in the Darkroom Cookbook.

- Randy

PhotoJim · Feb 21, 2007

I agree that the stains aren't a big deal. If you use things like chlorine to wash the trays, you have to be very careful to rinse them completely clean afterwards. Conversely, if your developer gets put into a silver-stained developer tray, nothing bad happens. I label my trays and use them consistently for a certain type of chemical (I will use different types of developer in a developing tray, but never stop, fix, wash aid, toner, etc.).

Paul. · Feb 22, 2007

Thanks all for the info.
Regards Paul.

Mike Wilde · Feb 22, 2007

Bottle cleaning option - battery acid

I have a bottle of sulphuric acid that I draw from sparingly to clean out stained/bottom gunked amber glass bottles.

Put on your lab coat, apron, rubber gloves & goggles/face shield, & closed toe shoes - this isnt for the faint of heart.

Fill the gunked bottle about 1/3 full woth warm to hot tap water.

Pour about 10mL of sulphuric acid into a small cup (I save the little plastic cups that come on the top of cough syrup bottles - handy for other home mix uses too). Pour it into the bottle. Rinse the little cup very well under running water. Put the cap back on the acid bottle, and put it away.

With the cap from the bottle loosely in place. and one gloved hand over the cap, gently swish the solutuion around. Hold to a light source to see when the last of the crud is dissolved.

The solution can be used on several bottles in a row, before being flushed down the drain with the rinse water generated by the now clean glassware getting a final rinse.

There are also dichromate based cleaners. I keep old still orange intensifier that has ran its specified maximum number of films, but has not yet turned green, and reuse it to clean trays. Once it turns green it is not as hazardous, but I take it to the hazardous waste facility when I take in my dehydratred fixer sludge anyways.

I keep the same labelled trays for developer, stop, fix1, fix 2 and hypo clear, and usually reserve the tray cleaning routine for just prior to using one of my toning trays for a different type of toner. They get labelled with a bit of masking tape to tell me what I used them for last. No use in purging selenium stains if I am going to selenium tone with it again.

David Brown · Mar 7, 2007

PhotoJim said:
I agree that the stains aren't a big deal. If you use things like chlorine to wash the trays, you have to be very careful to rinse them completely clean afterwards. Conversely, if your developer gets put into a silver-stained developer tray, nothing bad happens. ...

In another thread, someone posted to NEVER use chlorine bleach to clean trays. I would think that a weak solution of bleach would be fine as long as the rinse is thorough, as has been stated in this quoted post. I also agree that a developer stained tray used for developer is no big deal.

However, I recently got a "deal" on 4 16x20 trays for $10. Who could pass that up? Well, they're filthy! I'm not sure that it is all photo chemicals, or even which chems they might be. So, I want to absolutely clean these trays. I've even thought of using wet/dry #600 sandpaper.

Any suggestions?

And, just for the record, if trace amounts of chlorine are present, just what does happen exactly ? :confused:

gordrob · Mar 7, 2007

There are a couple of commercial solutions available for cleaning trays and equipment that I have used. Edwal has the Sinlge Solution Cleaner (contains Sulphuric Acid) and Photographic Solutions has the Multi Purpose Cleaner which is rated as nontoxic and bio-degradable for the darkroom. In the past I have also used Lysol Toilet Bowl Cleaner to remove a real heavy build up of RA4 developer tar in a processor I had bought. It contains hydrocholic acid. Any equipment that you clean need to be thoroughly rinsed with water to make sure no residue from the cleaner remains that could contaminate your chemistry.

Regards
Gord

jstraw · Mar 7, 2007

When I was responsible for maintanance on a large color print processor, I was taught to use toilet bowl cleaner. I can't remember what brand we used. It was a blue gel from a squeeze bottle. It cleaned the stainless, rubber and plasic very well.

reub2000 · Mar 7, 2007

I found that isopropyl alcohol is good for removing the white stains left behind from fixer.

PHOTOTONE · Mar 8, 2007

The bottom line (as I see it) is that absolutely clean sparkling trays is a vanity project. The stains left behind from use are in no way harmful to future use of the trays. As long as the trays are scrubbed out and have no particulate left in them, squeaky clean, but stained is a non-issue.

McCluney Photo

David Brown · Mar 8, 2007

PHOTOTONE said:
The bottom line (as I see it) is that absolutely clean sparkling trays is a vanity project. The stains left behind from use are in no way harmful to future use of the trays. As long as the trays are scrubbed out and have no particulate left in them, squeaky clean, but stained is a non-issue.

McCluney Photo

I couldn't agree more. However, I have some trays with UNKNOWN particulate matter. And it's not wanting to come out. So, I would like to clean the trays. And, I still want to know "why" I can't use bleach.

I'm going to try the toilet bowl cleaner - sounds like a good idea.

PHOTOTONE · Mar 8, 2007

I don't know about that taboo against bleach. Here is my experience. Years ago, when working for an advertising agency as their photographer/lab tech I needed to mix up 1/2 gallons of E-4 slide chemistry. I was told to go around to the laundromats and scavenge for some 1/2 gallon Clorox bottles. Wash them out good and use them. I did. They worked. Later when E-6 came along, I did the same thing...used the 1 gallon E-6 kit Kodak made, and divided the mixed chemistry up between 2 sets of 1/2 gallon used Clorox bottles. Used E-6 for many many years that way, and have had zero issues with residual "Clorox" contaminating anything. So, I don't see an issue with using Clorox to do any cleaning, as long as the tray or bottle is thoroughly rinsed multiple times before use.

PHOTOTONE · Mar 8, 2007

If I need to get "particulate matter" out of a tray or tank, I use a scotch-brite pad and elbow grease. I have plenty of elbow grease.

Jim Jones · Mar 8, 2007

I tried Clorox one time to clean trays. I don't know if the gas it produced is similar to the chlorine gas used in WWII, but it certainly made the room uninhabitable for some time. The plastic trays were intended for photographic use. Metal, Glass, or impervious plastic trays can perhaps safely be cleaned with chlorine.

PHOTOTONE · Mar 8, 2007

It would be best to use a cleaner like Clorox in a well ventilated area, like outside.

dancqu · Mar 10, 2007

reellis67 said:
I use the same trays for the same tasks
each time, so it's not a big deal, ... Randy

I use the same tray for all tasks each time,
so it's not a big deal. Dan

dancqu · Mar 10, 2007

Mike Wilde said:
Fill the gunked bottle about 1/3 full woth warm to
hot tap water. Pour about 10mL of sulphuric acid ...

With the collection of glass Boston Rounds I've
got, about 1/3 full would range from 11 to 165 ml.

Have you tried using sodium bisulfate; a suggested
alternative for sulfuric acid? Much safer. Dan

MikeM1977 · Mar 12, 2007

Call me sloppy, but I don't think I've ever washed my trays. They get rinsed in water when I am done. I make no efforts to use the same try for the same chemical-- I routinely mix developer and fixer trays.

I haven't noticed any problems in my prints.

donbga · Mar 12, 2007

PHOTOTONE said:
It would be best to use a cleaner like Clorox in a well ventilated area, like outside.

Don't you guys ever do laundry?

When cleaning foreign trays with a lot of grunge and caked on chems give them a long soak in hot water and them scour with a Scotch Brite pad to get the crud off.

After that cleaning use hot water, dish washing detergent, and an ounce or two of chlorine bleach. Of course never mix anything with ammonia with the bleach. You will smell the chlorox but there won't be any deadly fumes released.

Rinse throroughly after that final cleaning with bleach. Chlorox goes into solution very easily and will easily wash away.

I've been using Chlorox for decades to clean trays for B&W processing.

My 2 cents,

pnance · Mar 13, 2007

I've tried sodium hypochlorite 6% (bleach, Clorox, etc) to clean silver stains from trays, and I didn't see any reduction in stain. What else did you do?

Jim Jones · Mar 13, 2007

pnance said:
I've tried sodium hypochlorite 6% (bleach, Clorox, etc) to clean silver stains from trays, and I didn't see any reduction in stain. What else did you do?

Maybe the safelights in your darkroom are too bright. Dim them. Of course you'll still see the stains in bright light, but, since you aren't processing film or prints in bright light, it doesn't really make any difference. It doesn't make any difference when you are actually using the trays, either.

argentic · Mar 14, 2007

Maybe not when there's years and years of caked on chemicals. But putting most of the darkroom gear in the dishwasher works for me most of the time. I just take care not to mix darkroom gear and dishes.

Jim Jones · Mar 14, 2007

argentic said:
. . . I just take care not to mix darkroom gear and dishes.

Good idea. It would be terrible to contaminate darkroom gear with kitchen waste.

fschifano · Mar 18, 2007

Guess what guys. The detergent for dish washing machines has quite a bit of chlorine bleach in it. How else do you think it gets your dishes so squeaky clean. It's not just the hot water and agitation.

How to clean trays storage botles etc.

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