XTOL lasted 8 months! (sharing experience)

[tkamiya]

This is not a question but my experience with XTOL. I thought I'd share because someone asks how long XTOL would last and how to store them every now and then here.

This is my experience. Your experience may vary. Tax, tag, and title extra and void where prohibited by law. Always consult professional and don't try this at home. Object may contain nuts. Slippery when wet.

I mixed XTOL with filtered water 8 months ago and stored in my system of bottles as follows:

2 liter
1 liter
1 liter
1/2 liter
1/2 liter

When freshly mixed, 5 liters of resulting solution goes to all bottles. I start using them with smaller bottles first. When both 1/2 liters are empty, 1 liter gets poured into two 1/2 liter bottles. This way, all except the smallest one bottle is always full. They are stored in room temperature and for me, that's 80 to 83 degrees F. I don't do anything else. No saran-wraps, no marbles, no preserver gas, etc.

Last weekend marked 8 months since I started this batch. The results were still fine. I didn't do any scientific comparison study so there may be some loss of activity but then visually, they looked the same.

These bottles are regular plastic brown bottle Adorama sells. Nothing special.

Just to be sure, I did clip test after 6 months period just to make sure XTOL has not gone dead completely. For this, I clip small piece of exposed film, soak in solution for 6 minutes and then fix for 6 minutes. I check to verify the result is a DARK clip, not transparent.

It might gone even longer but my stock is now all empty.

Just sharing....

 

[brianmquinn]

I have done a similar thing but I reuse small 330ml GLASS Perrier water bottles. I use distilled water. I set some bottle aside for a storage test and my Xtol was good for 2 years. It may have lasted longer but that is when I ran out of my old stock. I don't intend to redo the test as I almost always fo through 5L of Xtol in well under a year.

 

[wclark5179]

Similar experience .... D-76 lasting 2 yrs.

Kept stock solution in 2 liter soda bottles, stored under sink in bathroom I use for film developing.

 

[dainmcgowan]

good to know.

 

[JohnArs]

Oh my longest in my basement at about 18° Celsius is 14 months in dark green glass bottles filled totally up with no space for air!
I keep it in 1 liter bottles!

Cheers Armin

 

[kossi008]

Mine's almost a year now, worked fine yesterday.

I mix double-strength stock solution from destilled water (2,5 liters are easier to store) and keep it in normal black Jobo plastic bottles with protective gas on top...

PS: I do apply the devleloper drop test when it gets older: just take the cut-off film leader, put a drop of stock on the emulsion, hold it in the fixer and see if the dot turns dark...

 

[Richard Jepsen]

I keep XTOL up to 8 months in 1L soda bottles. No issues. Use the recommended minimum stock solution before diluting with water. At 8 months I dump the remaining developer in an abundance of caution.

 

[Wade D]

I'm just using up the last of a batch of D-76 and Dektol that were mixed last July. A little brown but no ill effects in the processing. No speed loss, etc. even though the bottles were half full.

 

[Robert Budding]

I dump XTOL once 6 months has passed. Developer is cheap. Exposed film is priceless.

 

[Ian Grant]

My last batch of Xtol lasted wellover 2 years , but it was used heavily and replenished so the replenishing stock was newer. It's a great developer and unfortunately got a bad name early on because of a Kodak packaging problem.

Ian

 

[ruilourosa]

try Pc tea, lasts forever

 

[Brandon D.]

Literally just finished mixing a fresh batch myself. Poured stock solution into 4oz and 8oz bottles, and this should give me about 40 rolls. Hopefully, I shoot through that in less than 6 months, but I may save a bottle or two just to see what it does 6-8 months from now, .

 

[Robert Hall]

Ive used X-tol from a full closed plastic bottle 2 years after the fact with no noticeable difference. I don't use it much as I prefer other developers.

I have used it as well from a half full bottle a year after which I had sprayed caned "air" into to remove the air inside with no trouble.

If I didnt use PMK, it would be my developer of choice.

 

[ruilourosa]

you all should shoot more! your developers would be fresh!

 

[Ian Grant]

you all should shoot more! your developers would be fresh!

If replenished it could be older as well

Ian

 

[Anthony Cronin]

Although I have not been at this photography lark as long as many ( 3 years fast approaching). I have used XTOL a lot and have had no problems up to 6 months, where I then threw out any remaining rather than risk it. I have only used simple plastic water bottles with some food wrap to assist with air tightness and not had an issue with air. Storage has been in the hot press at home. Which doesn't get that hot but is consistently dark.

 

[sperera]

Xtol is my developer too....

I mixed up 5 litre pack and separated into 5 1 litre bottles and put food 'cling' film over the caps and that's it....so far so good, Mixed it up last year.

The clincher for me was being able to mix it at normal room temp and the fact it can be used 'seasoned', that is, I dump 100cc every roll of 120 and replenish the bottle with fresh 100cc from the other bottles. Also its cheap in comparison to T-Max developer. I can get 50 rolls of 120 format out of Xtol 5 litre pack the way I do it.

 

[ruilourosa]

Do not drink or repleshish developers, unless you are using 777 - WHATA KICK...