Red stain, chemical contamination, exhausted fixer, or rust?

AndreDjanikian77 · Monday at 11:49 AM

Hi everyone,

On Saturday I made 5 prints in 20x24 and went to tone them with selenium on Sunday. Before starting the selenium bath, I noticed that two of the prints had a reddish stain, almost rust-colored, and it raised a few questions about the real cause behind these marks...

Here’s my process:

Dev: Ilford Multigrade 1+9, 2 minutes
Stop: Acetic acid 100% — 13 ml per liter, 1 minute
Fix: Ilford Rapid Fixer 1+4, 2 minutes
HCA: 1+4 from a stock solution made with sodium sulfite (1kg for 10 liters), 4 minutes
Selenium toner: Kodak T-55 formula, 3 minutes

My main doubt is whether this stain comes from insufficient washing, exhausted fixer, or maybe some rust from the drying rack.

Any ideas on what could be causing this stain?

retina_restoration · Monday at 12:13 PM

Did you go directly into the selenium after the HCA or did you do a proper, complete water wash after the HCA and before the selenium?

koraks · Monday at 12:35 PM

AndreDjanikian77 said:
or maybe some rust from the drying rack.

If the drying rack has rusty spots, then that's a logical explanation. The other steps in the process are unlikely to produce this particular color.

retina_restoration said:
Did you go directly into the selenium

The way I read his post, he noticed the problem before the print ever came near any selenium.

AndreDjanikian77 · Monday at 12:51 PM

So, my washing process here goes like this:

After the fixer I wash for 20 minutes, then I run the HCA, wash again for another 15 minutes, then do the selenium, and finally a 25-minute wash.

But this print was developed and went through HCA on Saturday, and I only did the selenium toning on Sunday. I actually noticed the stain before toning. After finishing the HCA, I put it to dry on the rack, then on Sunday I rehydrated it in a water tray for about 15 minutes and only then did the selenium.

One thing I’m suspicious about is that in my lab I don’t have an archival washer—it’s really hard to find one here in Brazil… I wash the prints in larger tray with a siphon. For 20x24 prints I usually use 30x40 trays, often washing more than one sheet at a time. That’s why I suspect the issue might be something in the washing stage. But since Koraks mentioned that it’s unlikely for stains of this kind to come from the process, it might actually be rust. Still, I haven’t been able to easily find rust spots on the drying screens.

miha · Monday at 12:54 PM

AndreDjanikian77 said:
My main doubt is whether this stain comes from insufficient washing, exhausted fixer, or maybe some rust from the drying rack.

Such a stain could only have formed in such a short time if you had contaminated your already washed prints by splashing some drops of fixer on them. Rust is the most probable cause.
But since you're asking, I wonder how many prints, and at what size, do you fix in one litre of fixer? And how long do you wash your prints?

loccdor · Monday at 1:05 PM

I like to use a rust converting primer on metal with rust spots followed by an oil-based glossy metal enamel paint. Priming is important otherwise the rust starts to migrate up through the paint over the years.

pentaxuser · Monday at 1:10 PM

loccdor said:
I like to use a rust converting primer on metal with rust spots followed by an oil-based glossy metal enamel paint. Priming is important otherwise the rust starts to migrate up through the paint over the years.

Interesting tip Is there a link with the OP's problem?

pentaxuser

Vaughn · Monday at 1:29 PM

A platinum printer was having a heck of a time with spots on his prints...drove him almost nuts.

Then one day he pulled the chain to turn on the safelight above his trays before turning off the main lights -- and noticed a little rust falling off the chain. Problem solved.

Ian Grant · Monday at 1:48 PM

The water supply to my house is an iron pipe, you can get particulates from them, although my pipe is heavily calcinated, The water board has replaced the pipe to my boundary in polypropylene, I need to dig up my drive and do the rest.

Various Iron compounds are often used in water treatment, maybe filter your water.

Ian

loccdor · Monday at 3:08 PM

pentaxuser said:
Interesting tip Is there a link with the OP's problem?

pentaxuser

They mentioned a possible rusty drying rack.

pentaxuser · Monday at 7:09 PM

loccdor said:
They mentioned a possible rusty drying rack.

Thanks I hadn't noticed that

pentaxuser

John Wiegerink · Wednesday at 12:14 AM

AndreDjanikian77 said:
So, my washing process here goes like this:

After the fixer I wash for 20 minutes, then I run the HCA, wash again for another 15 minutes, then do the selenium, and finally a 25-minute wash.

But this print was developed and went through HCA on Saturday, and I only did the selenium toning on Sunday. I actually noticed the stain before toning. After finishing the HCA, I put it to dry on the rack, then on Sunday I rehydrated it in a water tray for about 15 minutes and only then did the selenium.

One thing I’m suspicious about is that in my lab I don’t have an archival washer—it’s really hard to find one here in Brazil… I wash the prints in larger tray with a siphon. For 20x24 prints I usually use 30x40 trays, often washing more than one sheet at a time. That’s why I suspect the issue might be something in the washing stage. But since Koraks mentioned that it’s unlikely for stains of this kind to come from the process, it might actually be rust. Still, I haven’t been able to easily find rust spots on the drying screens.

I use nylon/ poly plastic type screens they use for drying fruits and vegetables. They can't rust and store very easily when not in use.

qqphot · Wednesday at 3:50 AM

Vaughn said:
A platinum printer was having a heck of a time with spots on his prints...drove him almost nuts.

Then one day he pulled the chain to turn on the safelight above his trays before turning off the main lights -- and noticed a little rust falling off the chain. Problem solved.

I was also going to suggest looking for sources of corroded iron-related materials that could be getting dislodged and falling to the print surface, or being kicked up into the air and settling back down. A reddish color can also sometimes be from oxidized developers - perhaps some developer was mixed up from powder nearby?

joho · 2025-08-22T12:14:39-0400

well, one way to get rid of rust ---vinegar.

real good wine vinegar-2 drops it should vanish the stain.

Red stain, chemical contamination, exhausted fixer, or rust?

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