Cleaning Negatives

[n._reese]

Hello,

 

I have some negatives from a class I took and would like to print them with a used enlarger I just purchased. I was wondering if you could

clean negatives with rubbing alcohol? There are some negative cleaners I have used in the past but they mostly had a very strong scent

of alcohol. Will using rubbing alcohol ruin my negatives? Thanks.

 

~N.

[peterbcarter]

<p>I use kerosene (lamp oil) if they are really dirty...like finger prints. Alcohol is fine for water spots but does not do much else. It's best not to get cleaner on the non-shiny side as that will leave marks that may not come off.</p>

<p>When cleaning C-41 negs, they will have to be re-soaked in the stabilizer (formalin). The wash will remove the colour stabilizer and needs to be re-applied.</p>

[n._reese]

They are Kodak t-max B&W negatives

[chris_waller]

<p>I use 70% isopropanol.</p>

[western_isles]

<p>Have you tried Pec - 12? I use it to clean up E6 transparencies and it works fine. Apparently can also be used on negatives. </p>

[Fotohuis RoVo]

<p>PEC-12, IPA</p>

[craig_shearman1]

<p>How dirty are they? If there aren't clear smudges, something spilled on them, etc., it may be all you need to do is blow the dust off. If you handle negatives properly they should never get to the point where you need to use any kind of cleaner, but things happen.</p>

[ant_nio_marques]

<p>WARNING: if the emulsion looks smeared/smudged, DON'T put anything liquid in contact with it, it will wipe the emulsion off. Otherwise, I suppose it's safe to use PEC-12.</p>