What?!? White paper base...came out like warm tone!

[Goncalo]

Hello guys,

Today I got something unexpected! I use Fomabrom 111 FB glossy paper which have a white base that I personally like.
Yesterday I was printing a negative and since I didn't finished I kept all the same settings for todays print.
When I was to start, the lamp of the enlarger was "dead", so I changed for a new one. After the first print came out, I noticed that the tone of the paper was no longer white ( as it used to be, even compared with the prints from the day before ), but had like a warm tone ( on the image itself and in the borders, where no light should touch).

After that, I changed for another batch of paper, got the same results. Then switched the developer for a new one ( I use Ethol LPD ) and got the same results. Then I switched off the safelight near the enlarger..and the warm tone appeared again, it was no longer with a white base!

The fixer ( Ilford Rapid Fixer ) was relatively new, and the stop bath ( citrin base ) was still on the safe range that I normally use.

Anyone had experienced similar problems? What could be the cause?

Thank you in advance
Best

 

[Lachlan Young]

What you describe sounds like the paper was insufficiently fixed - Fomabrom really needs 3 mins in rapid fix, not the minute that Ilford needs. Or the fixer was exhausted more than you were expecting.

 

[dpurdy]

If you haven't solved the riddle yet you might try taking a small scrap of the paper out of the box in the dark and putting it directly into the fix... see if it is still warm color. If it isn't, then at least you know it happens in a processing stage.

 

[M Carter]

I always leave a testing margin on my prints that can be trimmed off or covered with a matte. After I fix, I do a quick rinse, blot the print, and put a tiny droplet of straight selenium toner on the white margin (I keep it in a nail polish jar with the tiny brush). Any stain and it gets fixed more or I swap out fixer bath two.

After fixing, I rinse in warm water, then do HCA (just sodium sulfite), then I start washing with 5% salt water added to the first water load, which eventually gets replaced by warm tap water. So my wash times are usually faster than advised; I use Residual Hypo Test after 20-30 minutes. Even Ektalure can come clean in less than a half hour, but man, I want to be sure.

I'm not into guessing for fixing or washing...