Pump/siphon for chemistry

[nsurit]

My darkroom will be up and running in the near future. I am on septic and will be hauling the chemistry to a disposal place. Can anyone suggest a specific product that would make it easier to get the chemistry from the trays to the disposal containers? I'm thinking a small pump or siphon. Some trays will be fairly large and over the next few years anticipate not wanting to wrestle with a lifting and pouring a large tray full of chemistry. Thank you, Bill Barber

 

[Ken N]

Easy. You can get a portable, rolling waste-water tank from any RV store. Best part is that you can have a specific sink that drains directly into this holding tank.

 

[archphoto]

An other solution might me putting a drain with valve in one of the corners of your trays with a hose att.
Depends a bit on your sink though.

Peter

 

[Mike Wilde]

I process all sorts of stuff, and some definitly does not go down the drian, septic or no septic. RA-4 blix and C22 bleach are some of the candiates. When volumes are small, like under 4l and there is not much else yet to consider taking to the hhw depot at my local transfer staion, I put them out to dehydrate them partially first. I pur them into surplus food service stainless steel warming trays and leave them out in the sun in a covered area of my back yard that is sheltered from rain. Depending on the weather they reduce in volume at differnet rates. I have also put them in my gagrage uver the winter. The freezing nad thawing as my wife's car moves in and out means that it takes months for what happens in days in the summer.

My HHW will not take me pouring out whaterver I take, so I save up empty 2l soda/pop bottles to turn the waster liquids over in. I label them well, so there is no mix up in what they are trying to neutralize before it is disposed of.

 

[Larry.Manuel]

Draining large trays

A small pump should be available from Edmund Scientific [now renamed, search using old name].

When I use my 20"x24" Paterson tray, it's not difficult to pour the liquids back to an 8"x10" tray, and from there into a bottle with funnel. I use one liter of liquid in the 20"x24" tray, any more than that and the print doesn't stick to the bottom. Single-tray processing is surprisingly simple with pouring in and out the various chemicals with print stuck to the bottom of the tray.

With one liter, the liquid is very shallow in the big tray. Tilting the tray back and forth gives excellent sloshing over the print.

 

[fotch]

Get yourself a length of 1/2 inch clear plastic tubing, say 2 foot long. Immerse the entire tube or hose under the solution so all the air runs out. Then hold one finger on one end (keeping the other end under the solution in the tray) and put the finger capped end in a bucket with this end lower than the other end still in the solution. Release your finger and the fluid will now start flowing into the bucket. Note! You can even run up hill, over the edge of a sink, and back down, as long as the waste bucket side is lower. As the tray level drops, tilt one end so the solution now is deeper where you have the hose. You will be able to drain almost the entire tray this way. What little is left in the tray you can now handle the tray and empty directly from the tray to the bucket. No pump to buy or clean, no mess or spills, little cost, last forever. Used this method for 16x20 or 24x28 trays for years. Good Luck.

 

[John Koehrer]

Harbor Freight and others have small siphon pumps for about $5 apiece. They're two lengths of flexible tubing separated by a squeeze bulb pump. They're self-priming so you put one end in the juice, one end in the can & squeeze baby, squeeze.
Try an auto parts store too, they're used for what else? Siphoning gasoline.

 

[Reinhold]

I'll second the siphon method. Cheap and foolproof.

Instead of plastic tubing, latex (gum) rubber tubing is more flexible.
A simple clip bent from a piece of stainless welding rod holds one end in the tray.
A metal tube in the outlet end, with a large rubber washer keeps it from falling into the bottle.

Cheap and foolproof.

Reinhold

www.classicBWphoto.com

 

[fotch]

I'll second the siphon method. Cheap and foolproof.

Instead of plastic tubing, latex (gum) rubber tubing is more flexible.
A simple clip bent from a piece of stainless welding rod holds one end in the tray.
A metal tube in the outlet end, with a large rubber washer keeps it from falling into the bottle.

Cheap and foolproof.

Reinhold

www.classicBWphoto.com

Good. I never have seen Latex tubing at the hardware store, of course, I wasn't looking for it. Where can you get it?

 

[Reinhold]

Latex tubing is also known as "surgical tubing".

If you have one of those fantastic Farm & Fleet stores near you, I bet they'll have it.
Sporting shops sell it for the fishing folks.
True Value Hardware may still carry the larger sizes.
RV supply stores are another place to look.

I use it almost everywhere in the darkroom; it behaves nicely.
(Except where I expect to have some water pressure... It''ll blow up like a pregnant python)

Reinhold

www.classicBWphoto.com

 

[bdial]

Here's a mailorder source for latex, and many other kinds of tubing; http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/category.asp?catalog_name=USPlastic&category_name=18308&Page=1

 

[fotch]

Thanks Reinhold, I will check it out. More flexible would be a definite plus.

Thanks also to bdial, although not sure I want to buy 50 foot just yet. Maybe elsewhere they list smaller quantities. Will check out later if I cannot find it locally.

 

[Reinhold]

Here y'go...

Dead Link Removed

Have Fun

Reinhold

www.classicBWphoto.com

 

[Renato Tonelli]

Jobo has a ready-made siphoning gadget that I use when draining large trays. I bought it only a few months ago and I believe it is still available from Freestyle.