Inkkjet prints yellowing

[John Rountree]

Today, a former student came to me to ask about prints made on her Epson CX7800 printer turning yellow. The prints were made with Epson ink and hung, unframed, no glass, on a refrigerator and in a bedroom. The paper was Ilford Gallerie, smooth gloss. The prints are less than a year old and there is a distinct and severe yellowing of the image and the borders. The yellow is about the same hue as a sheet of Post-it note paper. Has anybody experienced this? Any ideas whether this is caused by the paper or the printer? Since the borders are yellow too, I kind of suspect the paper, but not all of her prints have yellowed. BTW, the prints have not been subjected to direct sunlight. Help, please.

 

[Sparrow]

I agree, acidity is the usual agent when paper yellows, light and oxygen just speed up the process

 

[colyn]

Are there smokers in the house?? What about direct sunlight on the photos??

 

[kbg32]

It is the paper. The Epson CX7800 is an all in one printer/scanner/fax. It does not take archival inks and will not make prints that won't yellow. He/she can try the Epson Fine Art Rag paper.

 

[rbiemer]

The other thing that it may be: UV damage to the paper; I gave my mom a print of a photo she took(of my nephew--her grandkid). I used my usual printer and paper(Epson C-62 and Epson paper) but unlike other prints I've given to people(matted and framed with UV resistant glass), I put this one on a 4x6 magnet sheet. The print has lived on her refrigerator for a little less than a year now, almost directly under the fluorescent light in the kitchen and is very yellow.She has some other prints of mine that do get some direct sunlight but those prints are more formally framed so they aren't getting nearly as much UV as the kitchen light puts out. And don't have any noticeable yellow cast to them--to be fair though, I suspect that if I opened up the frame and compared the part of the paper exposed to light and the part of the paper under the mat, I would be able to see some discoloration.
Rob

 

[Swissmadepix]

Whisper (in BFE..hmmm...I might know that place) and Stewart have the most sensible answers when it comes to prints drawn with archival inks on archival paper; Colyn raises a billowing (smoke..yes, I know...cheap shot) and pertinent point and ultimately, Rob sheds light (fluorescent) on the matter.

That said, IMHO, it is a combination of it all - the most blantant culprit being the print being displayed "naked" (aka not being protected by ANY kind of glass). Combine that to the vapors usually found in a kitchen, to the wavelength of the light emitted by fluorescent tubes, to non-archival inks and - despite of a good choice of paper - you will eventually find yourself with yellowed prints in the shortest of times (not even factoring-in unknowns like smokers present, a cat-litter-box in the kitchen, etc..)

What I have experienced as an acceptable "midway" (aka keep pics up for 2-3 years in a hostile envoronment like a kitchen and not loose an arm and a leg in cost) is to find a lab that will print scans/negs on archival paper and frame them yourself with a tad of archival quality tape all around the mat and a UV-blocking glass.

Hope I was able to help.

 

[Kin Lau]

I've had a picture of a Red-Tail hawk printed on Staples glossy 8.5x11 by our Canon i860 sitting in the window to ward off pigeons from our balcony for almost 5 years now. It gets direct sunlight for about 2-3hrs every morning, and it's not even close to being yellow.

We don't smoke, and humidity in our place is often low.

 

[John Rountree]

Thank you all for the responses.