Pierre P Blais Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 I was wondering, how long can I keep unmixed e-6 chemical component from the single use kit before they lose their properties? The kit yields 5L and that's a bit much for a single use, considering my lomo thank only uses 1.5 litres about, and I rarely process more then 200ft-400ft per 4 week period, if that. So I'd much rather mix smaller quantities of the solutions, when I need it. thanks! Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Charles MacDonald Posted February 12, 2012 Premium Member Share Posted February 12, 2012 I was wondering, how long can I keep unmixed e-6 chemical component from the single use kit before they lose their properties? The kit yields 5L and that's a bit much for a single use, considering my lomo thank only uses 1.5 litres about, and I rarely process more then 200ft-400ft per 4 week period, if that. So I'd much rather mix smaller quantities of the solutions, when I need it. Firstly, I am assuming that it is an all liquid kit, partial mixing of powders is a problem. Most of the liquid chems are packed with a shot of nitrogen in the top of the bottle to keep the air under control. It is exposure to the air taht causes problems. Many photographers will use small glass bottles and re-pack the remainder of stock solutions to exclude air Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre P Blais Posted February 12, 2012 Author Share Posted February 12, 2012 Firstly, I am assuming that it is an all liquid kit, partial mixing of powders is a problem. Most of the liquid chems are packed with a shot of nitrogen in the top of the bottle to keep the air under control. It is exposure to the air taht causes problems. Many photographers will use small glass bottles and re-pack the remainder of stock solutions to exclude air This is the liquid version i'm talking about yes. That is good to know, I would not necessarily have thought about doing that, but since I have the glass bottles... now I will! thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Pritchard Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 The other trick I discovered many years ago in still photography is to put glass marbles into the bottle to keep the bottle full and exclude the air. I still use this technique for my B/W developers. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Millar Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 last year I used some Tetenal 3 bath opened and left half filled from 2003. Worked, I did soup it sliiiiightly longer I think in the first dev though, but heck it looked nice to me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Nowak Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 Chem stability depends greatly on storage conditions as well as how much oxygen it's exposed to. Storing them in air tight containers (you can also displace some of the oxygen in a partially full bottle with a bit of canned air or nitrogen) in a cool, dry environment will work better then a hot, humid environment. That said, I've had better luck with my E6 chems than with the C41. The E6 has lasted months in partially full bottles where the C41 part C developer oxidized within weeks. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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