Will vinegar work as stop?

stradibarrius · Mar 1, 2010

My indicators stop smells just like strong vinegar so I was wondering if vinegar will work as a stop bath?
For film?
For prints?

Pinholemaster · Mar 1, 2010

Plan tap water will work, too.

perkeleellinen · Mar 1, 2010

Yes, I use white vinegar diluted 1:4.

Athiril · Mar 1, 2010

stop bath is generally acetic acid, cheap arse brand white vinegar is generally weak acetic acid (3-5%).

Divide the percentages and dilution ratio for the stop concentrate to find equivalent dilution.

+1 for water

Ian Grant · Mar 1, 2010

Pinholemaster said:
Plan tap water will work, too.

Plain tap water is not ideal for prints particularly Fibre based as the developer carry over will not have been neutralised and this will impact on the pH & capacity as well as life of the fixer.

Ian

stradibarrius · Mar 1, 2010

Is this a yes for both paper and film?

perkeleellinen · Mar 1, 2010

I use it for paper and film.

wclark5179 · Mar 1, 2010

I tried vinegar but my fingers got pickled. One time, in between darkroom work, I cut up some garlic for a dinner receipe, developed some more prints and thought my fingers sure smelled like a cucumber. They were even green! Pass the dill!

Just kidding!

I only use indicator stop bath. It's cheap & it works!

Colin Corneau · Mar 1, 2010

Yeah, actual stop bath is so cheap with its dilution that it may actually be cheaper than vinegar.

Anon Ymous · Mar 1, 2010

Colin Corneau said:
Yeah, actual stop bath is so cheap with its dilution that it may actually be cheaper than vinegar.

Yep, and we haven't taken into account the added indicator dye that a proper stop bath has. It's also so abysmally cheaper compared to... paper. If you want to save money, learn to print efficiently. But that will cost you some paper!

stradibarrius · Mar 1, 2010

It is not a cost thing just a "I wonder" thing. Probably ISB is less expensive??? But if I ever need to do an Emegency Stopectomy, it is good to know What choices I have at hand!!!

Anon Ymous · Mar 1, 2010

stradibarrius said:
It is not a cost thing just a "I wonder" thing. Probably ISB is less expensive??? But if I ever need to do an Emegency Stopectomy, it is good to know What choices I have at hand!!!

Distilled white vinegar is the best choice. Dilute accordingly to get a 1,5 - 2% acetic acid solution.

hughennis · Mar 1, 2010

From my recollection (I'm at work - miles from the kitchen) table vinegar is usally 5% actetic acid so 1 part vinegar to 2 parts water will give you a 1.66% solution . Again from my recollection the cost would work out very similarly , in fact if you buy 5Litre bottles of stop its bound to be cheaper than vinegar . Interesting question though - always wondered myself!

Bob-D659 · Mar 2, 2010

At $7 for a 474ml bottle of Kodak ISB, that works out to 30 cents per liter, so if 5% vinegar is more than 60 cents per liter, the Kodak is cheaper for a 2-2.5% mix.

JMcLaug351 · Mar 2, 2010

Now for the really important question. Can I use my Stop Bath on my salad? And if so, what dilution should I use?
JOHN

michaelbsc · Mar 2, 2010

As mentioned use distilled vinegar, the stuff that looks like water, not the brown stuff. And not any of the exotic vinegars like Balsamic.

imokruok · Mar 2, 2010

michaelbsc said:
As mentioned use distilled vinegar, the stuff that looks like water, not the brown stuff. And not any of the exotic vinegars like Balsamic.

It might be an interesting effect! Balsamic vs. apple cider vs. red wine...

Will vinegar work as stop?

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