Question about Microphen

[corazon]

I'm about to develop film in a darkroom, for the first time in a few years. This is my first home darkoom and my first time using Microphen.

I need a few things straightened out for me, because I'm trying to work off memory and I'm feeling a little lost.


I will work from stock solution = 1+0
Microphen box says 1 litre STOCK = 10x 135-36, meaning I an use this stock ten times (or for ten rolls)?

If I use 300ml to develop one roll, can I put it back with the stock solution or does it need to go into a separate container?

How many times can that 1 300ml be used for development?


After use can where should it be deposited? At my old darkrooms, they put the used up film developer into one container and it was picked-up/taken away and deposited specially. For at home darkrooms what do we do with it, where should we go? I called my local Henry's (photo store) and it was mentioned if I had a large enough volume, to call a place that takes paint cans. I know it's quite noxious and that the other chemicals can be poured down the sick with much water dilution, what do people do when they are only using a small quantity of it?





thanks.
I've been eager to start but not eager to mess up, so I stalled a few days after getting everything I needed and now I can't wait any longer.

 

[corazon]

Let me also mention that, certain films I will push-process.

I've just read that with Microphen you can re-use several times and place it back into the stock contents, however, only if you are not pushing. If you push-process then it's a one-shot deal?

Respond to these separately so I don't confuse myself. thanks 😉.

 

[Roger Hicks]

I will get hate mail for this, but:

Down the drain. It wasn't a problem when there were far more home darkrooms than there are today, and it's less of a problem now.

By the time it gets to the waste disposal facility, it won't even be measurable in parts per million.

Cheers,

Roger

 

[corazon]

I will get hate mail for this, but:

Down the drain. It wasn't a problem when there were far more home darkrooms than there are today, and it's less of a problem now.

By the time it gets to the waste disposal facility, it won't even be measurable in parts per million.

Cheers,

Roger

It's okay, that's the answer I was hinting at.

But what about the rest?
I seem to feel 1+0 can be be put back into stock whether or not it's pushed and used mixed throughout the whole 1L for a total of ten times, as prescribed by the box.

I won't ruin my film if I do this, right

 

[MartinP]

Am in a rush else would give more details, but the Ilford information is here.

The developer is not so nasty, but if you use dozens of liters of fixer then you should dispose of it more carefully to avoid damaging the sewage-works bacteria collection with the silver/silver-salts in the fixer.

 

[drewbarb]

I use Microphen at stock solution only. I keep it in two bottles. When I mix it up fresh it goes in a full bottle, labeled "fresh". When I run film, the dev goes into another bottle labeled "1 run". When the fresh bottle is empty, and all the dev has been used for one run of film and is in the "1 Run" bottle, the now empty "fresh" bottle is re-labeled "2 Runs". I increase my times by 10% and, use up the dev again. Once it's all in the "2 Runs" bottle, I re-label the empty "3 Runs", and again increase the times, this time 20% of the original time. I'll re-use Microphen this way several times; if I'm running a lot of pushed film, and can get through 10 runs within a few weeks, I will do 10 runs, (increasing the times 10% with each additional run, per the instructions); if I don't use it up fairly quickly, I'll dump it sooner. I always dump it at 3 months or 10 runs, which ever comes first. I get something on the order of 25 rolls processed in 2 liters of Microphen stock this way.

Like Roger, I dump Microphen (and most developers) down the drain, with plenty of water. I mix my used stop bath (I use distilled white vinegar and water for stop bath) in with the developers and dump them together- this basically neutralizes the pH- and always flush with water.

I hope my Microphen usage is clear as I've described it. I've been doing this for ten years, with no problems. It's a great push developer; I love it with HP5 and Tri-X especially- these two both push to 1600 really well in Microphen stock.

 

[Roger Hicks]

It's okay, that's the answer I was hinting at.

But what about the rest?
I seem to feel 1+0 can be be put back into stock whether or not it's pushed and used mixed throughout the whole 1L for a total of ten times, as prescribed by the box.

I won't ruin my film if I do this, right

Others' answers are spot on. I used to work with re-usables; now I prefer DD-X used one shot (DD-X is very close to liquid Microphen).

It's surprisingly hard to ruin film.

And for the toxicity of silver in used fixer, google 'CDC' and 'silver'.

It's nothing like as dangerous as some people would have you believe.

Cheers,

Roger

 

[charjohncarter]

But fixer will eventually ruin your drain pipes.

 

[corazon]

thank you everyone.

drewbarb, that is a fantastic system and equally well explained. i went out and got an extra container so I can do that which you have described.

thanks to all who chimed in. i'm ready to go now.
🙂

and.... i'll be back... 😀