Marks and spots on my almost dry negatives

[neildw]

So yesterday evening I developed 1 roll of 120 and 8 pieces of 4X5 film of kodak portra.
Everything went well (but it was late) and I hung up those negatives to dry.

To day I went to check them but saw marks, drips and so on.... Not all yet dried up.
And then it occured to me... I think I missed the final rinse.

So.

I try to rinse them now (the day after development) to hopefully remove the marks

Just a reminder to you all to rinse.

I hope I did not lose them... But I'm afraid they'll be damaged.

[Doremus Scudder]

Try a soak in a weak alkaline solution, e.g., sodium sulfite or bicarbonate. This will swell the emulsion more than just plain water. Then re-wash and treat in a final bath of distilled water with wetting agent for a few minutes (not the recommended 30 seconds). That might help.

Doremus

[neildw]

Try a soak in a weak alkaline solution, e.g., sodium sulfite or bicarbonate. This will swell the emulsion more than just plain water. Then re-wash and treat in a final bath of distilled water with wetting agent for a few minutes (not the recommended 30 seconds). That might help.

Doremus

So for the future developements.

I do all the steps... and right before the final wash, I put a drop of washing soap in my Stearmann press, and then let the water run until the soap runs out?

[Huub]

So for the future developements.

I do all the steps... and right before the final wash, I put a drop of washing soap in my Stearmann press, and then let the water run until the soap runs out?

Use proper wetting agent and not some kind of soap. Soap might leave some nasty residues on your negatives and may lead to new issues.

[md-photo]

I had all kinds of stains on a 8X10 slide after developing in the SP-810 a few days back. Tried rewashing a couple times and just got different stains. Then I remembered I had some Kodak Photo-Flo and used a drop or two in water in the tank. The slide came out much cleaner.

[neildw]

Use proper wetting agent and not some kind of soap. Soap might leave some nasty residues on your negatives and may lead to new issues.

The thing is... in the past I have developed many negatives in the same way.
Ending with a normal rinse (no wetting agent or...) and never had that problem.
Now I just forgot the last rinse all togheter.

[Joe O'Hara]

Photo-Flo in distilled water for the final rinse. It only takes a minute. You will avoid many problems this way.

[neildw]

Photo-Flo in distilled water for the final rinse. It only takes a minute. You will avoid many problems this way.

Ok, for my final question.
When rinsing in distilled water. Does that mean I fill the spearman tank with distilled water, with photo-flo, and then just put the negative into it?
It must not be running distilled water, right? Because my tap water is not running distilled water. :-)

[md-photo]

My attempt (using photo flo) was after a failed attempt running tap water through the Sp-810 tank for several minutes. I am presuming you still do the normal wash (running water, or filling and emptying out a number of times), and then fill with distilled water one last time, add the photo flo and then just pull the negative out to dry after a minute or so.

In my case photo flo worked in the tap water to clear out the stains. But I am sure distilled water is better.

[Doremus Scudder]

Ok, for my final question.
When rinsing in distilled water. Does that mean I fill the spearman tank with distilled water, with photo-flo, and then just put the negative into it?
It must not be running distilled water, right? Because my tap water is not running distilled water. :-)

If you care about having pristine negatives, you gotta pay your dues and take time and care when processing AND use best practice. Otherwise you're courting disaster. So, bite the bullet and:

Mix a correct dilution of wetting agent (like Kodak Photo Flo) and distilled water. Don't use dish soap! Read the directions and dilute correctly.

For the last rinse in wetting agent and distilled water, you do not need running water. Just agitate gently.

For sheet film, I would remove the film from the tank and treat them with the wetting agent in a tray, agitating by shuffling. However, if you choose to use your tank, empty it completely, and then fill it slowly and carefully with the wetting agent solution. Agitate gently (you don't want foam) for at least one minute. If you have hard water, increase that to 3-4 minutes. Same for roll film in the tank.

Remove the film and hang to dry, with a corner down to facilitate drainage. Stand around for 10 minutes or so and blot the drops from the lowest corner with a tissue, paper towel or finger to keep the solution from collecting and drying there.

I squeegee my film between middle and index finger before hanging, but many don't like squeegeeing and claim it scratches their film. You get to choose based on your experience and the softness of your fingers. I find it speeds drying, but if you've mixed your wetting agent properly, it will sheet up and run off the film on its own; just takes a bit longer.

Best,

Doremus