When to throw out Dektol

drgoose · Sep 14, 2014

Stop bath changes purple, there is fixer checker, how do you decide when its time to toss the current batch of Dektol?

removed account4 · Sep 14, 2014

when it stops making prints with black in them.
sprint systems of photography ( sorry for the advertisement )
is called a "system" because when their stop bath goes, it indicates EVERYTHING is spent .. not just the stop.
and their developers from what i remember are metol free ( incase you are allergic ) and i think the stop bath smells like vanilla ...

RalphLambrecht · Sep 14, 2014

it turns brown and gets smelly and the Dmax comes down.Ten,it's time for new Dektolor better, before that because, it can take a while.

Gerald C Koch · Sep 14, 2014

Michael R 1974 said:
Kodak's guidelines for Dektol:

Stock solution: 6 months in a full bottle
Working solution in tray: Discard after printing session (ie don't keep past 1 day). Capacity ~32 8"x10" sheets per liter.

Ditto This is one of the advantages of using a commercial product. The manufacturer, in this case Kodak, has done the research for you. Once again it is helpful to remember that film and paper are expensive in relation to chemicals

RalphLambrecht · Sep 14, 2014

Gerald C Koch said:
Ditto This is one of the advantages of using a commercial product. The manufacturer, in this case Kodak, has done the research for you. Once again it is helpful to remember that film and paper are expensive in relation to chemicals

That may bebut, a manufscturer's instruction is always a bit pessimistic a bout product longevitybecause, thst's better for salesDektol doesn't show any significant loss in Dmax for severaldays of use as documented by Dr. Henry.There is little need to throw it out after the first printing session.All the bestand let's not be too wasteful.

Cybertrash · Sep 15, 2014

So if I read this right I should throw away all my Dektol after one session (assuming I use a liter of developer)? Seems expensive...

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

removed account4 · Sep 15, 2014

Cybertrash said:
So if I read this right I should throw away all my Dektol after one session (assuming I use a liter of developer)? Seems expensive...

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

it can be ... but like some say it sometimes lasts more if for example you put a sheet of saran / food wrap directly on the developer in the tray
to prevent ( sort of ) air hitting it ... ansco 130 lasts seemingly forever ... some say upto 30 days in an open tray. isometimes process paper negatives in
ansco 130 as black as coca cola and it works great.... but like with all things internet YMMV

Cybertrash · Sep 15, 2014

Michael R 1974 said:
Also note given current papers, which are less responsive to differences in developer formulation than they once were, if you're concerned about economy you might simply consider alternatives to Dektol, which isn't the most economical developer. There are other developers with greater capacity or shelf life or both.

Any recommendations?

fotch · Sep 15, 2014

RalphLambrecht said:
That may bebut, a manufscturer's instruction is always a bit pessimistic a bout product longevitybecause, thst's better for salesDektol doesn't show any significant loss in Dmax for severaldays of use as documented by Dr. Henry.There is little need to throw it out after the first printing session.All the bestand let's not be too wasteful.

"instruction is always a bit pessimistic" Pessimistic is a negative term, being conservative is more accurate, maintaining their reputation as a reliable manufacturer is what they are doing.

"Better for sales", again, negative. Protecting their reputation and insuring a positive result for their customer is what they are doing.

Hatchetman · Sep 15, 2014

I put my trays in plastic bags and use within 48 hours.

Jim Jones · Sep 15, 2014

I try to mix only as much Dektol as needed for one printing session. When diluted Dektol starts to turn brown, dump it. It can still work well when quite grey.

Animalcito · Sep 15, 2014

Well my approach is maybe not scientific, but it worked out quite well in the past with ORWO/Calbe N113 and now also with Fomatol P (W14 Fenal), which is an Ascrobate/Phenidon developer. The RC paper I'm using is quite fast in developing, in fresh developer it is completely developed in much less than 60s. So my timer is always set to 60s. Before I transfer the paper from the developer to the stop bath I hold it for ~ 10 s letting the developer running from the surface. In case the developer got weak I can see a darker "runway" of the developer on the print and this runway is my indicator that it is time to change.

Arklatexian · Sep 15, 2014

How about that! The Great Yellow Father and I agree when it comes to Dektol. It turns brown as a working solution pretty fast.....Regards!

MartinP · Sep 15, 2014

Cybertrash said:
Any recommendations?

Depending on where you are and what products are available, you could have a look at Moersch Eco. It has a working-solution life of eight months, if you put it back in bottles after the session (and don't use up the capacity first of course).

Rick A · Sep 15, 2014

When I still used Dektol, I would pour the solution back into a filled and tightly stoppered bottle between sessions. It lasted longer that way, but not as long as LPD does. I've been using LPD for a few years, my last batch mixed is dated 11/13 and still going strong after nearly a year. I use it replenished, and still have about 1/3 gallon of stock solution left, and two liters of working strength on going.

jochen · Sep 16, 2014

Hello,
one possibility would be to exposure a transparent step grey scale on a strip of paper and develop and fix it, so that all grey zones from paper white to black = Dmax come correctly. You can make some more strips for storage. If you have a densitometer you can even measure the densities and calculate the contrast. After use of your Dektol, you can take a fresh "test strip" and do the same and compare it with the strip from fresh Dektol.

When to throw out Dektol

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency