My paper developer changed colors when I wasn't looking

[f/stopblues]

I mixed up a couple liters of Ilford Multigrade paper developer about 4 weeks ago. It started out a clearish-yellow color (like urine!). Now it looks like iced tea.. all dark and brown.

Should I declare it deceased?

 

[f/stopblues]

That's what I was thinking Daniel. I've always printed in a college darkroom, so the chemistry was magically new every day. Haven't had to deal with this yet..

 

[Ariya]

I think I remember reading that developer leaches oxygen from the air and it's this oxidation that makes it turn brown. Daniel has it right - two days is about the max for open developer. I'd throw it out.

Peter

 

[Wayne R. Scott]

For what it is worth I have extended the life of my developer in an open tray by placing an equal size developing tray on top of the developer tray. This acts as a "lid" that slows the oxidation of the developer in the open tray. In time it will still become exhausted any way.

Wayne

 

[rolleistef]

if you keep it in a well closed, air tight bottle, it will just work fine. My developper is still very efficient after 2 weeks or even more because the contact with air is reduced (squizzable bottle).
Otherwise you need to buy protecting gas such as Protectan. It's an heavy gas insulating the chemistry for air/oxygen and it allows you to keep the liquid "clean" for months.
People used to use gases such as Freon but because of a couple of ecologist and a darn hole in the athmosphere somewhere above the South Pole, it's not possible anymore 😀

 

[ed1k]

I found Ilford Multigrade is badly oxidizing (I didn't try any other commercial developer to compare). I delute concentrat just before session (night in my kitchen). If I plan to spend next night printing I take developer out of tray and fill up plastic bottles (I usually have a lot of them of different volumes left from water in my recycle bin) to top in order to keep developer out of air. After second night in the morning, developer is like not a very strong black tea (or very strong according to american standards), and I found it colours my prints. I can't wash out that yellow colour out of RC paper (didn't try FB paper yet). So, after session or two sessions in a row I throw it away. Actually, I bought raw chemicals and don't use commercially available developers anymore. My home made developer is also oxidizing but I don't feel like tossing 8 bucks every time 🙂
Multigrade concentrate was not bad in this regard, half empty bottle didn't oxidized much in a month.

 

[danwilly]

The developer will still work fine even if it has started to turn a murky brown. No need to toss it just yet. The oxidation can be controlled by squeezing the air out of the container, but that is not always possible.

 

[tedwhite]

I use epoxyed wood lids in various sizes for various sized trays (8X10, 11X14, 16X20, etc.) and this allows me to use the same developer the nex day. Then I toss it. If I don't have any more work to do the next day I toss it at the end of my first day's work session.

However, Dektol, in a dark lightproof bottle stored in a darkroom keeps for a long time before its color changes. I notice that, as color changes, in-tray developing times increase, and at that point I dump it.

The special darkroom bottles that can be compressed as fluid volume diminishes are the best answer. I used year old D76 kept in one such bottle and it worked just fine.

Ted