Washing Negatives in a Jobo 3006 Drum

[tim atherton]

I have been doing three wash steps, on the processor- one one minute, one two-minute, and one three-minute wash, each one with a dump and refill. Is this enough?

I'm suffering from a brain fart - I think you probably need one more step - but this morning I can't for the life of me remember if it's 1,1, 2, 4 minutes or not...

[Bruce Watson]

I'm suffering from a brain fart - I think you probably need one more step - but this morning I can't for the life of me remember if it's 1,1, 2, 4 minutes or not...

That's the sequence I've been using.

[paulr]

Just don't use the drum for your final rinse with photo flo. It clings tenaciously to the reels and can cause development irregularities.

I know it sounds far fetched, but a Jobo tech told me this when he helped troubleshoot some streaking issues I had years ago. He had me clean the reels in bleach and never use photo flo in the drum again. The problem went away for good.

[tim atherton]

Just don't use the drum for your final rinse with photo flo. It clings tenaciously to the reels and can cause development irregularities.

I know it sounds far fetched, but a Jobo tech told me this when he helped troubleshoot some streaking issues I had years ago. He had me clean the reels in bleach and never use photo flo in the drum again. The problem went away for good.

yes - there is (or was when they still made processors...) info on this on the Jobo site somewhere.

For sheets, I have an old rubber processing tank - 4x5 or 8x10 - and as I pull the sheets out and put clips in it them to hang and dry, I dip em in the tank with water/photo flo

[Scott Davis]

I've photo-flo'd my sheets in my Expert Drum and had no problems getting the photo-flo out or with streaking on the film. I don't use a Jobo drum that takes reels - on the odd chance I'm photographing with roll film, I'll do it in stainless tanks by hand. I've heard the same comment made about using Paterson or other plastic tanks when using photo-flo. It must have to do with the surface tension of the photo-flo and its willingness to adhere to the nooks and crannies of the plastic reels more than anything.

[tim atherton]

I've talked with Jobo about this and they recomend not using it in the sheet film tanks either. As they say it essentiall seems to bond with the inside surface of the tank and then cause contamination by absorbing chemicals from processing. And it van be difficult to fully remove all traces of it from the plastic surfaces (FWIW I've found CLR works....):

Why can't I use stabilizer, Photo Flo, or other wetting agents in my JOBO tanks?
Stabilizer or wetting agents, of any type, any brand, should not be used in the tank or with the film on the reels. It doesn't really damage the reel, but it causes a sludge-like build-up which ultimately can cause contamination and loading problems. Wetting agents and stabilizers don't wash off. They seem to chemically bond with anything they contact. Kodak even has instructions for users of stainless steel reels for reducing (not eliminating) the buildup.

In our darkroom at JOBO USA, we use a Rubbermaid or Tupperware type container to hold our stabilizer. The snap-on lid keeps the solution clean between uses and we don't have to smell the odor from the stabilizer. We choose a container deep enough for 120 film and wide enough for 4x5 film. When we're ready to stabilize the film, we simply twist the roll film reel counterclockwise to open the two halves, and then allow the film to drop into the solution. After one minute, we wipe off the excess with a JOBO squeegee. We don't get any scratches on the film, and we avoid build-up on the reels.

[paulr]

for the low volume I do, I find an 8x10 tray works fine for the final soak. Quick and easy.

[Sanders McNew]

If you have an upright print washer, just stick the negatives in it -- that's what I do with the 5x7s I process in the 3006. Much easier than washing in the tanks and the negatives won't mind a bit. Sanders.