Drum Scanning: Is oil archival (film left oily for years)

[Whatsnewsisyphus]

I have about hundred sheets of film left with oil from drum scanning, is this still archival or should I clean them?

Thanks a lot for the response.

[Bruce Watson]

I have about hundred sheets of film left with oil from drum scanning, is this still archival or should I clean them?

Thanks a lot for the response.

I'm not even going to ask how you managed to leave hundreds of sheets of film in drum scanning fluid, or why the fluid didn't evaporate after "years".

Clean the film(s) with a film cleaner. Your best bet for a cleaner is to use the companion cleaner for the mounting fluid you have. For example, if it's Prazio anti-Newton mounting fluid, try to find some Prazio film cleaner and use that. If you can't, you can't -- just use any film cleaner like Pec-12 (many art supply stores carry this). But use a film cleaner, don't use random stuff from the drug store like "rubbing" alcohol -- it contains water which will soften the emulsion and make it easier to scratch and mark.

[Whatsnewsisyphus]

The films are not mine per-se, I've been assigned the task of figuring it out. Apparently they were returned like that some years ago and have been kept in such condition. Is there a problem of leaving them in the said state was the first question I was asked and I didn't know. I told them that we should get some pec-12 and found a dealer here overseas, but the original question of if and why should we clean them still stands.

[GPS]

Clean them by all means! Oil will feed all kinds of funghi that will happily eat both the oil and the film gelatin.

[Bruce Watson]

The films are not mine per-se, I've been assigned the task of figuring it out. Apparently they were returned like that some years ago and have been kept in such condition. Is there a problem of leaving them in the said state was the first question I was asked and I didn't know. I told them that we should get some pec-12 and found a dealer here overseas, but the original question of if and why should we clean them still stands.

Oy. The problem of "leaving them in said state" is that it presents a handling and archiving problem. The proper state for the storage of most photographic films is clean and dry.

I have no idea what leaving film soaked in some non-specific fluid would mean from a biologic point of view -- whether it would promote or discourage bacteria, fungus, or some other destructive critter from eating the emulsions.

Depending on what the fluid actually is (unless in a fully sealed environment a modern scanning fluid would almost certainly have evaporated after "years" of storage), it could well be a fire hazard. I'm thinking something like an old school mounting paraffin, but really I have no idea what you're dealing with.

If the fluid absorbed water and the water was in turn absorbed into the various films' emulsions, you may find that you lose the emulsions entirely when you try to clean them. That is, the emulsion might slide right off the base. I've seen film do this stored just 24 hours in water.

So... there might be a problem leaving them as they are. It would probably be wise to clean them. If you intend to keep them. If they have little value to anyone (and since no one has wanted them for years, that may well be the case), you can always toss 'em in the trash bin. If you are going to do that I doubt that cleaning them first would be worthwhile. ;)

[Peter De Smidt]

Do you know what kind of fluid? If so, talk to the manufacturer, If you don't know what kind of fluid, it'll be impossible to tell if it could damage the negatives. Try cleaning one of them.

[Whatsnewsisyphus]

Apparently it has been ten years and we cannot know what fluid they have used back in the hay day, I haven't even seen the said film yet but I'll ask him to pick the least desired one to test things on :). I don't know how this happened, everything else is stored pretty well.

[Ed Richards]

Bet it is mineral oil.

[Peter De Smidt]

Yeah, I agree. Other things commonly used would've evaporated.

[IanMazursky]

Could be either mineral oil or a paraffin based oil.
Mineral oil has been common for the last 30+ years in scanning. Its one of the best scanning fluids i have ever used but the cleanup sucks.
I moved to Kami because 1. the cleanup is easier, 2. MO tends to absorb into certain emulsions.
Cleaning the film should be easy, i would forgo Pec 12 because of the cost ad try something like Anchor Film Kleen.
Thats what the Hell guys used for years, still do. Id get a small developing tray and fill it just enough to submerge 1 at a time.
Swish it around with tongs to loosen the goo but not touch the bottom or edges, then use some Pec Pads or scanner wipes to clean the film of any remaining goop.
Do not soak it overnight or for more then a few minutes.

Just remember to take care not to scratch the film. If something wont come off easily leave it. Its probably stuck in the emulsion.
You can try to rewash the film but that open up a larger issue of damage to the soft emulsion.

In the production days of yore (10+ years ago) i remember stories of how the operators used to prep film.
If they had D&D clip holes and it wouldn't lie flat in the drum, why they would just cut them off! or smash them down.
If they were on a deadline, who cared about cleaning the film after scanning, they would just drop it all in an envelope and send the gooey mess back. Bosses orders.
I remember someone mounting with lighter fluid, i stayed the heck away from him. The things that were done would make your head spin.
The theory i guess was once it was scanned the film was expendable and no one would bother to sue?.
Lots of photographers would only send copies to a prep house because they knew the chance of having them ruined was to high.

Luckily i was trained by better folks but it did happen a lot. The industry has advanced and im thankful for that.