Long lasting paper dev and film/paper fixer once opened

[Thrain]

Hello guys
So, i’ve finished my chemicals and i need to buy some new ones. Since I print only twice, maybe three times a month, i was wondering if there are some chemicals that last for very long once opened, especially fixers - like a year, maybe more. This way I might buy big bottles and store them, cutting the costs. For film i’m using hc110 and i’m feeling great with it!

 

[koraks]

Fixer generally lasts quite a while and you can buy a smaller bottle if you're concerned that it will go bad. For occasional (well, any printing im fact) printing, I prefer home made developers; the dry components store virtually indefinitely and one can mix the exact amount required. Mixing a b&w developer is easy; all it takes is a reasonably good precision scale (the ones in the 10-20$ range work just fine) and some chemicals that are easy to get from a variety of sources. With fixer I don't bother mixing my own and just use commercial concentrates; either generic acid rapid fixer or c41 fixer.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Hello guys
So, i’ve finished my chemicals and i need to buy some new ones. Since I print only twice, maybe three times a month, i was wondering if there are some chemicals that last for very long once opened, especially fixers - like a year, maybe more. This way I might buy big bottles and store them, cutting the costs. For film i’m using hc110 and i’m feeling great with it!

I had positive experiences with Ilford's Hypam fixer but make my on from bulk chemicals now;always fresh!

 

[Rick A]

I have a 5 year old bottle of Eco-Pro Neutral fixer that still works great, and I use Ethol LPD paper developer, lasts a very long time both in storage and open time in a tray. LPD is replenishable, versatile dilutions for cool or warm tones without sacrificing developing times.
https://www.freestylephoto.biz/1231296-LegacyPro-EcoPro-Neutral-Fixer-1-Gallon-(Makes-5-8-Gallons)
https://www.freestylephoto.biz/121641-Ethol-LPD-Powder-Paper-Developer-1-Gallon

 

[Peter Schrager]

I had positive experiences with Ilford's Hypam fixer but make my on from bulk chemicals now;always fresh!

Ditto...buy some sodium thiosulfate Crystal's
I use a pound to 64 oz water ..add about 15gms sodium bisulfite and your all set to go
I only use this for prints ...TF5 is great for negatives

 

[pentaxuser]

I use Ethol LPD paper developer, lasts a very long time both in storage and open time in a tray. LPD is replenishable, versatile dilutions for cool or warm tones without sacrificing developing times.
https://www.freestylephoto.biz/1231296-LegacyPro-EcoPro-Neutral-Fixer-1-Gallon-(Makes-5-8-Gallons)
https://www.freestylephoto.biz/121641-Ethol-LPD-Powder-Paper-Developer-1-Gallon

I can't speak for retailers in Italy where the OP is based but the problem me with Ethol LPD is that I have certainly never seen it for sale in the U.K. which is a pity as I'd like to try it. The other issue is that even if a retailer does decide to stock it in the U.K. I'll bet he wants a king's ransom for it. Whether this is forced on him by duty payable, shipping cost or whatever reason, it means that the stuff then has to be nothing short of miraculous to make it worth purchasing

Do I sound a bit peeved about this? Yes, I am afraid I do

pentaxuser

 

[removed account4]

the longest lasting developer I have ever used is ansco 130
it comes in a kit from the photographer's formular and is called "formulary 130"
once mixed in a stock solution you can use it for about a year maybe more
depending on how it is stored &c, open in a try will be good for 1 month ...
maybe you can source the ingredients locally, the only hard to find thing is glycin
the formulary is one of the few places that still makes it. bought sealed in a vacuum pack
and frozen some say it lasts a while IDK i just use what i have when i buy it. you might also
think of just buying the chemistry and mixing things from scratch D72 ( is like Dektol but you mix yourself )
is like Ansco 130 ( sort of ) but no glycin. it is easy to mix and only has a handful of easily found ingredients.
you just need a scale. and D23 for any film you might have, its only a few ( 3? ) ingredients and works like a champ.

have fuN!
john

 

[Alan9940]

Like koraks, I mix all my own paper developers and most of my film developers; though I do use HC-110 and Spur Acurol-N. For fixers, I either mix my own or buy a liquid rapid fix. My primary reason for mixing my own developers is that I use formulas that are only accessible via "roll your own."

 

[markbau]

the longest lasting developer I have ever used is ansco 130
it comes in a kit from the photographer's formular and is called "formulary 130"
once mixed in a stock solution you can use it for about a year maybe more
depending on how it is stored &c, open in a try will be good for 1 month ...
maybe you can source the ingredients locally, the only hard to find thing is glycin
the formulary is one of the few places that still makes it. bought sealed in a vacuum pack
and frozen some say it lasts a while IDK i just use what i have when i buy it. you might also
think of just buying the chemistry and mixing things from scratch D72 ( is like Dektol but you mix yourself )
is like Ansco 130 ( sort of ) but no glycin. it is easy to mix and only has a handful of easily found ingredients.
you just need a scale. and D23 for any film you might have, its only a few ( 3? ) ingredients and works like a champ.

have fuN!
john

+1. Ansco is, IMHO, the best paper developer bar none. I've even left it in an open tray, working dilution, for 2 or 3 days and it is still fine (I tested for max black and the prints were as good as when it was first mixed. Some people say glycin goes off, I'm not sure about this as I've had some very old glycin and the prints were as beautiful as they always are from Ansco 130.

 

[Alan9940]

...the only hard to find thing is glycin
the formulary is one of the few places that still makes it. bought sealed in a vacuum pack
and frozen some say it lasts a while

Where ever you source the glycin, make sure to state that you want FRESH glycin. And, I do freeze mine; have some that's nearly two years old now and it seems just fine.

 

[MattKing]

Liquidol is a print developer designed for longevity.

 

[John51]

You already own the longest lasting print developer, HC-110.

30ml HC-100 + 1 litre of water + 15g of washing soda, (sodium carbonate). My trial of it still printed well at close to 40 hours in an open tray. At 48 hours it looked to be a stop lighter. At 56 hours it started to turn brown.

I need to do some more testing with it as I feel that 15g of sodium carbonate is too much but that's the recipe I read here. Room light exposed paper turned full black very quickly. Well short of a minute.

 

[scheimfluger_77]

You already own the longest lasting print developer, HC-110.

30ml HC-100 + 1 litre of water + 15g of washing soda, (sodium carbonate). My trial of it still printed well at close to 40 hours in an open tray. At 48 hours it looked to be a stop lighter. At 56 hours it started to turn brown.

I need to do some more testing with it as I feel that 15g of sodium carbonate is too much but that's the recipe I read here. Room light exposed paper turned full black very quickly. Well short of a minute.

Is this syrup to water? This mix looks close to Dil. B.

 

[John51]

It is close. The recipe I got was an ounce of HC-110 + 1 tbs of washing soda in a quart of water. I use the metric equivalent.

Was an anecdotal here where straight HC-110 was used but it gave poor blacks.

 

[R.Gould]

I opened a 5 liter bottle of Champion amfix around 2 years ago and am nearly down to my last liter, and it is still going strong, as regards paper developer, I am using a i liter bottle of Firstcall paper developer, which I atarted 2 years ago, long past it's use by date, still looks and performs as fresh, Firstcall will export world wide som worth a look

 

[Dali]

I have a 5 year old bottle of Eco-Pro Neutral fixer that still works great, and I use Ethol LPD paper developer, lasts a very long time both in storage and open time in a tray. LPD is replenishable, versatile dilutions for cool or warm tones without sacrificing developing times.
https://www.freestylephoto.biz/1231296-LegacyPro-EcoPro-Neutral-Fixer-1-Gallon-(Makes-5-8-Gallons)
https://www.freestylephoto.biz/121641-Ethol-LPD-Powder-Paper-Developer-1-Gallon

+1 vote for LPD. With replenishment, I use it for 15-18 months. Years ago, I switched from Dektol to LPD and never looked back since.

 

[tezzasmall]

I like to buy brands that I know of and that have a good reputation, along with a good price generally being the final bit of the choosing equation.

At the moment, I am coming close to finishing a 5 litre bottle of Ilford multigrade paper developer and the same size of Agfa fixer, that I bought about five years ago, with both going strong right until the end. They have been used totally in a Nova slot processor, as I already had other chemicals for developing my film, including a fixer.

It should be noted that it was all re-bottled into 1 litre bottles immediately on receipt and after each use, the bottle used is topped up with the 'special gas' that is available to stop oxidisation of the chemicals.

Terry S

 

[jim10219]

LPD. Maybe it can go bad? Hard to say. I just replenish it with a bit of concentrate every time I use it and it never fails. It's a great developer for someone like me who wants options (warm or cool tones) and doesn't do a lot of printing.

As for fixer, I use used film fixer. I'll mix up a batch of Kodak powdered fixer, use it to develop a couple sheets of film in a tray, and then transfer it to another bottle, where it gets used to develop paper prints at a later date. It gets used once as a film fixer, once as a print fixer, and then dumped. Seems to work okay, and keeps my costs down (as I make more negatives than prints). You're supposed to dilute it for paper, but since it's already been through some film, I just use it at full strength and don't have any issues. I also have some traditional Hypo which I can use in a pinch, but generally reserve that for fixing Van Dyke prints.

I store everything in old 1 liter soda bottles, and squeeze all of the air out of them before resealing them. Then I store them in a dark place. This seems to help them keep a long time. The only thing I've had go bad using this method is D76, and that's usually around the 8 month to 1 year mark, which is longer than the manufacturer recommends.

 

[Thrain]

Mmmh i’d prefere to use 1 shot solutions only, so that i’m sure i’m using the full potential of it... and also not make my own chemicals especially because it’s a pain in the arse in my city to find the materials! And if they’re eco, it’s even better!
For paper i’m using Moersch Eco, opened in march and i hope for september that it still works. If not I might try LPD. As for the fixer, maybe the best long lasting solution is the Eco pro fixer... My darkroom is very small and my equipment as basic as it can be!

 

[koraks]

I think within your requirements I'd stick with the Moersch developer and buy the smallest bottle they have, and get fixer that also comes in reasonably small bottles such as 250 or 500ml.

 

[pentaxuser]

Thrain, if you do find Ethol LPD anywhere in Europe let me know. I have never found a stockist. Maco for instance appears to have once stocked it but its site now says unavailable

pentaxuser

 

[tezzasmall]

Thrain, if you do find Ethol LPD anywhere in Europe let me know. I have never found a stockist. Maco for instance appears to have once stocked it but its site now says unavailable

pentaxuser

Can you tell me why you are so interested in using Ethol LPD, as I've not heard of it until this particular forum posts?

And I too can't find any European stockist either, but a few people seem to offer a 'homemade' but 'not an exact replacement' formula for LPD, which may be worth a try. Has anyone ever done this formula listed?

https://lists.ding.net/othersite/alt-photo-process/2004/apr04/0521.htm

= P-72

To make 4 liters of stock solution use:

3L of distilled water 50C - 125F
180g Sodium Sulfite
50g Hydroquinone
270g Sodium Carbonate
2g Phenidone
7.5g Potassium Bromide
1g Benzotriazole

Add water to make 4 liters

Terry S

 

[kingbuzzie]

Liquidol is a print developer designed for longevity.

What he said. I use liquidol, hc-110 and rodinal. Sometimes I mix them all altogether with a splash of vermouth and olive juice. I also just mix the hypo as a one shot from a jar of powered mix.