Print-washing strategies to save water

[koraks]

I console myself with the thought that the water is not truly wasted. It will eventually fall as rain somewhere else.

Well, yes, but I can imagine that people may want to cut down water use, especially in particular regions and in summer. As you know, the situation has been getting very precarious in some parts of the world, indeed.

Can you dry a print and continue to wash at a later time? I didn’t think that was possible.

It's possible, but whether it's exactly as effective as washing the print right away, is debatable.

 

[GregY]

Aquarium pump. So you don't have to spend water just for the sake of agitation.

Agitation by hand just takes time.... not water.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Correction: Hypo Eliminator is problematic, and will make prints more susceptible to deterioration.
Hypo Clearing Agent will speed effective washing, and will enhance the longevity of your prints.

That is what I meant HCA. At this moment I am in a hotel in Buenos Aires Argentina. Tomorrow morning I take a flight for the cruise to Antarctica. I am texting my girlfriend and family while live streaming two Los Angeles television stations about the fire which is not far from our places. We are below UCLA and while we are under evacuation but appear to be safe for now. UCLA and the Veterans Administration and the Veterans Cemetery.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I hope not.

It is if (a) you are using Ilford paper, (b) monitoring fixer capacity closely, and (c) not overfixing.

Yes on all three.

 

[Paul Howell]

Correction: Hypo Eliminator is problematic, and will make prints more susceptible to deterioration.
Hypo Clearing Agent will speed effective washing, and will enhance the longevity of your prints.

To piggyback MattKing, Hypo Eliminator is made just before use with Ammonia and Hydrogen Peroxide, it does not reduce wash time, may actually increase increase time as after treatment the prints to be rewashed. Hypo eliminator is used to eliminating any remaining hypo.. In the 60s we used Hypo Eliminator in college until the GAF rep told the darkroom instructor what prints needs a tiny bit of residual hypo to keep for deteriorating. Last I looked at my prints treated with hypo eliminator I have not noticed any changes.

 

[MTGseattle]

I'll note what I've seen at a couple of community darkrooms (where it makes sense to enforce a regimen to try and save water)
The fiber side has a 2-tray fix. I can't remember the times they specify for sure, possibly 2 min each?
Then, there is obviously a soak tray. The soak tray is in the darkroom tray area and under safelight. It is sometimes turned onto a trickle, and sometimes left off, but filled to the top and a bit of fresh added depending upon who/ how many people are in there.
Out in the main wash area is a pre-wash tray 5 min circulating, then a hypo-clearing tray 5 min, then an archival washer (big enough for 20x24) 10 min.

Usually, a survey of the current workers is taken and prints from a number of people go into the wash together, so the big washer isn't run for 2 pieces of 8x10.

As I type this out, I see where some savings could be made, but the instructions are clear, and they have monitors around to make sure no one really goes crazy.

Do you all rotate your prints in your hypo-clear tray? It makes sense to me to do so, but I cannot remember where I heard it.

I don't have running water in my darkroom setup, so I use a holding tray, a hypo-clear tray, and 2 wash trays. Wash tray #2 gets a complete dump and refill at least once. I get rid of/store all of my chemistry, clean trays, and then setup for wash which is why I use more than one for washing. In my head, it's easier than filling and dumping the single tray containing my prints. So I guess I use something approximating the Ilford method.

 

[Paul Howell]

Perama wash recommends agitation, not sure about Kodak Hypo Cleaning, seems like a good idea even if not recommended.

 

[GregY]

I'll note what I've seen at a couple of community darkrooms (where it makes sense to enforce a regimen to try and save water)
The fiber side has a 2-tray fix. I can't remember the times they specify for sure, possibly 2 min each?
Then, there is obviously a soak tray. The soak tray is in the darkroom tray area and under safelight. It is sometimes turned onto a trickle, and sometimes left off, but filled to the top and a bit of fresh added depending upon who/ how many people are in there.
Out in the main wash area is a pre-wash tray 5 min circulating, then a hypo-clearing tray 5 min, then an archival washer (big enough for 20x24) 10 min.

Usually, a survey of the current workers is taken and prints from a number of people go into the wash together, so the big washer isn't run for 2 pieces of 8x10.

As I type this out, I see where some savings could be made, but the instructions are clear, and they have monitors around to make sure no one really goes crazy.

Do you all rotate your prints in your hypo-clear tray? It makes sense to me to do so, but I cannot remember where I heard it.

I don't have running water in my darkroom setup, so I use a holding tray, a hypo-clear tray, and 2 wash trays. Wash tray #2 gets a complete dump and refill at least once. I get rid of/store all of my chemistry, clean trays, and then setup for wash which is why I use more than one for washing. In my head, it's easier than filling and dumping the single tray containing my prints. So I guess I use something approximating the Ilford method.

When I print up to 11x14" I use 2 wash trays. For 16x20" & 20x24" I dump and refill because i only have room for 5 trays that size, before I've used up all my sink space. I keep some space for jugs of wash water that are at 20-22° C for the next refill...so i'm not subject to water coming out of the taps at whatever temp.

 

[Pieter12]

I don't follow these instructions to a T, but I do use eco-pro chemicals:

FB paper processing
Exposed fiber based (FB) papers are developed in a print developer according to the instruction of the print developer. In the case of eco•pro Paper Developer, the exposed print should be developed for 90 to 120 seconds in a 1+9 dilution at approximately 20°C (68°F). Developed prints are rinsed in fresh tap water with continuous agitation for 30-60 seconds, or immersed in acid stop bath for 15-30 seconds.

1. Processing using eco•pro Hypo Wash (RECOMMENDED)
After the print is drained, it is immersed in eco•pro Neutral Fixer working solution (1+4) for 1 minute with continuous agitation. It is important that the fixing time is accurately timed, and within the range of 60 to 75 seconds. Fixed prints should be rinsed in tap water for 1 minute with continuous agitation, immersed in eco•pro Hypo Wash working solution (1+19) for a minimum of 5 minutes with continuous or frequent agitation, and washed in fresh tap water for 10 minutes.

 

[Doremus Scudder]

Y'all do know that there are easy and reliable tests for adequate fixing and washing, right?

Doremus

 

[pbromaghin]

Has anybody used both Ilford and Fotospeed Washaid? How do they compare?

At B&H, the Fotospeed product at full dilution comes to about 1/3 the cost.

 

[mshchem]

Y'all do know that there are easy and reliable tests for adequate fixing and washing, right?

Doremus

+1
Absolutely!!!

 

[bernard_L]

Has anybody used both Ilford and Fotospeed Washaid? How do they compare?

At B&H, the Fotospeed product at full dilution comes to about 1/3 the cost.

1 tablespoon of Sulfite in 1 litre of water.

 

[Ian C]

I’ve never owned a print washer. I use a developing tray under a slowly trickling tap to wash. I use Heico Permawash before the final wash. The label data is attached as a PDF.

Note: The capacities listed are for a gallon of WORKING STRENGTH Permawash.

 

[grain elevator]

One simple way to conserve water is re-using the wash water for flushing the toilet (either directly from a bucket or turn off the water supply to the toilet tank and pour it in when empty) or for watering plants (maybe not the very first cycle). If it replaces water you'd otherwise use, you've effectively saved the whole amount.

 

[mshchem]

One simple way to conserve water is re-using the wash water for flushing the toilet (either directly from a bucket or turn off the water supply to the toilet tank and pour it in when empty) or for watering plants (maybe not the very first cycle). If it replaces water you'd otherwise use, you've effectively saved the whole amount.

Good idea. One could probably drink wash water after the first cycle.

 

[Ron789]

I collect all prints during the printing session in a large tray. At the end of the session I dump and refresh the water, then leave them overnight. Next day I do 2 more dump and refresh cycles, some agitation, some 15 minutes in total. No hypo clear. Dump and refresh is way more effective and takes much less water than continuous flow. I've been doing this for 45 years and the (fibre based) prints I made 45 years ago are still perfectly fine today.