Problems With Heat and D76 Storage

<p>Ever since we moved to Florida I've been having trouble w/ my D76 developer. We like the house warmer than most people, and usually have the inside temperature around 82 degrees and keep the ceiling fans on for a breeze. If I forget to put the A/C on before I leave in the morning it can get even hotter. I've been buying the D76 in powder form that makes 1 liter (maybe I should be fixing up the smaller packages to make 1 gallon). Using it a day after I mix it produces wonderful results w/ tight grain and good tonality, even if I develop multiple rolls and increase development time 10% for each succeeding roll. But after a few weeks of setting under my kitchen cabinets, where it is a LITTLE cooler and the temps run 77 degrees or so, it causes problems. I get too much grain, even using it full strength. It's like it's becoming more potent. Freestyle suggested that I put it and my fixer in the fridge, but that can't be good for it either. Should I switch to HC110? Or am I going to have the same issues? The problem w/ the D76 is that if I could mix small batches as I need it, it would work fine. But the way it is now, I'm having to throw out a lot.</p>

<p>The fridge idea is a good one...cooler temps slow down all the chemical reactions including oxidation - which should prolong its usable life.</p>

<p>D-76 is known for getting more potent for a while as it ages. Then it loses potency. This comes from reacting with oxygen.<br>

One solution is to use a liquid concentrate developer like Kodak HC110 or Ilford Ilfotec DD-X. In concentrate form, they are extremely stable (no water in the concentrate, so no dissolved oxygen). Mix the HC110 directly from syrup, don't make "stock" solution.<br>

Another approach is to put the mixed D-76 in 8 ounce or 16 ounce bottles, full to the brim (no air) and use it one-shot. It's much more stable in oxygen-free storage. Such bottles are not expensive, and easily bought online in a box of 12. You're not wasting developer this way, as the capacity is one roll for each 8 ounces.<br>

Another approach is to buy a small 300 gram digital scale, and mix D-76 from scratch on demand. (Or mix a liter or two and store it in those 8 or 16 ounce bottles.) This is the cheapskate way to go.</p>

<p>If you are stuck on D76 then the fridge might be the way to go, but since you ask about switching to HC110 I guess you're open to suggestions. One of the best keepers and it's not fussy where it's kept, is Rodinal/Adonal. Last forever and a little goes a long, long way. My No.1 pick would be Sandy King's Pyrocat-HD in Glycol mixed 1:1:100. Lasts until the cows come home and as you can see by the ratio of parts A and B to H2O it goes a very long way also. I bought all the chems and mixed my own, but if you're not into that you can just order it from Photographers Formulary. So far I love it! I just ran a couple of roll of Acros in my Rollei and the negs should scan perfect and print very easy. Check out Tony Lockerbie's post in the "Classic Camera Forum" under Rollei 2.8E and you'll get an idea of why it will become my main developer. I'll still use Rodinal and Ilford Perceptol from time to time, but Pyrocat will be covering most of my film from now on and I'll never have to throw it out the window because it went flat. Just something to think about. Have fun! JohnW</p>

<p>I saw Tony's post on the 2.8 actually, and the tones that he got were beautiful. Looked very much like what I get from D76 if it's fresh and I get everything perfect in the development, which is not a given :( The fridge scheme worries me a little, as I read somewhere that it's possibly a problem w/ D76. Apparently low temperatures are not too good either.</p>

<p>I've been putting my D76 in little bottles like John suggested, but they're all still subject to the high temps in the house. I'm hesitant to mix partial packages because while sloppy development only ruins film, sloppy habits w/ powders will ruin me. Those years I spent working with an O.S.H.A. research contractor on a study titled "The Permissible Exposure Limits of Toxic and Hazardous Chemicals and Materials in the Workplace" are still fresh in my memory. Powders are potentially very dangerous. I once had another job painting designs on decorative ceramic works, and when the potters would mix up the porcelain we would have to leave the studio for about 6 hours to allow the air to clear completely. Working w/ highly toxic glazes and ultra fine particles made them adopt rigid safety habits.</p>

<p>If I can get the same "look" from HC110 syrup that I get from D76, that sounds like a good solution, but the Pyrocat-HD in Glycol sure sounds promising, especially from what I saw on Tony's post. The only other developer I use is Acufine, and it gives great results, but the negs look very different than when I use D76. Thanks everyone! Great ideas.</p>

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<p>Steve,<br>

The only way to know if Pyrocat-HD gives you what you want is to try it. It might end up being in the same boat as Acufine for you. A nice developer, but not for your "normal" work. The nice thing about trying Pyrocat-HD is that you don't throw your money away 'cause it lasts and you'll always have it in case you want it for that "certain" look. When I took my first college Graphic Arts class (Photography 101) the required tools for the darkroom were Kodak HC110 @ dilution B, Ilford graded paper and Dektol. The only film we were allowed to use was Tri-X. I got to see prints that were near perfect from many in the class. Mine never did matchup to some of the best, but I think I might have been a little sloppy in my darkroom procedure. I remember one gal who's prints were everything I dreamed of and I wanted to learn all her tricks. I found out what camera she used, how she adjatated here film and all the little things I could. I still could not get her "look" no matter what. It wasn't until Photography 102 that she confessed to my that she was using Edwal's FG7 for her Tri-X. I had never tried any other developer until that time, but learned from that point on how much the "look" can change with different tools. Still, HC110 is a very efficient developer, pretty darn safe health wise, lasts a good long time and you can use many dilution schemes to get the look you want. Truth is, I could probably live with only HC110 if I had to, but the nice thing is, at least for now, we don't have to. Oh, and I liked your result from your Acufine negatives also. JohnW</p>

<p>Absolutely do not put your D-76 in the refrigerator. If you recall your high school chemistry classes, you will remember that dissolved particles can precipitate out of solution when the solution gets cold. In other words, part of the powder that you you mixed with water (at around 120 degrees to get it to dissolve fully) will start to clump up and settle to the bottom on the container. That will leave you with weak D-76 and flakes in the liquid that can settle on your wet film inside the tank and get stuck to the film forever.<br /><br />Despite what your'e seeing, I seriously doubt that storage at 82 degree is having any effect on your developer. I keep my house around 76 and have never had a problem. D-76 is a very robust, versatile, forgiving developer. In a pinch, you can stick your finger it it, take a guess at the temperature, and still come up with printable negs. In my newspaper days, it was used by traveling news photographers who developed film under every condition you can imagine, from freezing to death to sweat dripping off their foreheads into the tank. <br /><br /> If you are using the developer at 82, you need to shorten development time accordingly, but you might get to the point where the time is so short you have issues with uneven development. (The charts that used to come in Kodak film boxes and with developer only went to 75 degrees.) To get developer down to 75 (or lower) you can put your developing tank and storage bottles into a water bath. Or you can use the D-76 1:1, mixing it with colder water to get the temperature you want.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></p>