Prints showing poor washing.

[Guest]

OK I have some BW FB paper prints that are about three years old and they are showing signs of orange spots and blotches in some areas.
Since I washed these I have purchased a serious $500 print washer. So my question is, can I re wash my old prints in the new washer and remove these stains, or is it too late.
I,was thinking of filling up a tub with fresh water, letting them soak for an hour and then putting them in the vertical print washer.
Any help advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Erik van Straten]

If the stains are caused by poor washing many years ago, there is no hope that they can be removed. The reason that gelatin silver prints must be washed immediatly after printing, is to avoid those stains. If this was different, then there was no need to wash the prints immediatly after printing. Then you could wait many years before washing them.

It is important to wash gelatin silver prints for about one hour in clean, running, lukewarm water immediatly after they are fixed.

Erik.

 

[Freakscene]

Re-wetting, re-fixing, treating with selenium toner (test one print first - Selenium toner can do weird things to spots, including intensify them) and re-washing and treating with a protectant like Adox Adostab can help prevent further marks or the marks getting worse, but won’t remove them.

Almost all the chemical processes that cause discolouration are self-catalysing, i.e. the spot that is there will tend to keep the reaction going that makes the mark. You can slow it, but you won’t remove it and once the reaction has started, it is often hard to stop.

Good luck, and do a before and after scan if you can and post here if you can.

Marty