For those who may be looking for a reliable alternative to the Jobo system, I want to share my experience with lab water baths for precise temperature control for c41.
When I first started out in c41 home development about a year ago, I used the water in a large pan in the sink method. This worked in the beginning, mostly because I didn't know what I was missing. I'm a pretty process-oriented person and even for me, it was hard to keep the water precise. I got frustrated with the lack of consistency in the development, so I looked for alternatives.
I experimented with different laboratory water baths, but I think I found one that suits my process. I've included pictures here to help.
I landed on a dual 180 Series Precision Water Bath. I picked it up from eBay for 80 bucks, which was a steal. I keep the left reservoir at 102-103 F which I found keeps my chemicals right around 101-102F. I need the extra temp for the pouring and initial tapping to release bubbles. I don't use a prewash as in my experience, it's just another variable I have to consider.
What I found to be more important is the temp of the right reservoir, which I obsessively keep at precisely 100F. I keep the development tank by itself here. I use a 1L Paterson with the little swirly stick, so after the pouring, the initial 30 seconds of agitation and tapping, the tank temp matches the right reservoir temp exactly. It maintains this throughout the 3:15. I use Kodak chemicals with the separate bleach and fix.
I use 1250mL amber wide mouth packer bottles. I find the extra volume above 1L room keeps spilling to a minimum. They also fit nicely into the left reservoir.
This setup works especially well if you're running multiple developments. It keeps your chemicals at the perfect temp. I often run batches of 4-6 rolls of 120 film and sheets of 4x5 in one night.
Anyway, I hope this helps some of you. I've put in a lot of trial and error on my process and this system is working really well for me. It might help some of you.
When I first started out in c41 home development about a year ago, I used the water in a large pan in the sink method. This worked in the beginning, mostly because I didn't know what I was missing. I'm a pretty process-oriented person and even for me, it was hard to keep the water precise. I got frustrated with the lack of consistency in the development, so I looked for alternatives.
I experimented with different laboratory water baths, but I think I found one that suits my process. I've included pictures here to help.
I landed on a dual 180 Series Precision Water Bath. I picked it up from eBay for 80 bucks, which was a steal. I keep the left reservoir at 102-103 F which I found keeps my chemicals right around 101-102F. I need the extra temp for the pouring and initial tapping to release bubbles. I don't use a prewash as in my experience, it's just another variable I have to consider.
What I found to be more important is the temp of the right reservoir, which I obsessively keep at precisely 100F. I keep the development tank by itself here. I use a 1L Paterson with the little swirly stick, so after the pouring, the initial 30 seconds of agitation and tapping, the tank temp matches the right reservoir temp exactly. It maintains this throughout the 3:15. I use Kodak chemicals with the separate bleach and fix.
I use 1250mL amber wide mouth packer bottles. I find the extra volume above 1L room keeps spilling to a minimum. They also fit nicely into the left reservoir.
This setup works especially well if you're running multiple developments. It keeps your chemicals at the perfect temp. I often run batches of 4-6 rolls of 120 film and sheets of 4x5 in one night.
Anyway, I hope this helps some of you. I've put in a lot of trial and error on my process and this system is working really well for me. It might help some of you.
