Toxic chemicals

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I'm looking at all the hazards of various developing chemicals.

My current Arista Premum developer (phenidone based) looks to be the least toxic (moderately toxic). What surprised me is that D76 is listed as "highly/acutely toxic" and presents a long list of rather scary dangers. Carcinogenic, neurotoxic, blood poisoning, liver and intestinal damage, and a number of other effects. Blindness. Yikes.

I really like developing myself, but I'm not sure it's worth the trade-off since I have no reasonable space to work in.
 
If you take reasonable precautions the danger is negligible.
Work in a well ventilated place, If you are working in your bathroom or kitchen turn on the exhaust fan. I doubt than any room in the average home is air tight enough to worry about.
Keep your work area clean, store your chemicals properly, wash your hands etc.

If you are really worried then get yourself some surgical gloves to handle the chemicals.

I know several old professional photographers so I don't worry too much about it. But then again I work for the NIH at Ft. Detrick so photographic chemicals don't scare me much.
 
shutterflower said:
I'm looking at all the hazards of various developing chemicals.

I really like developing myself, but I'm not sure it's worth the trade-off since I have no reasonable space to work in.
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Are you going to drink it, bathe in it, or develop film with it??? Lots of things are toxic, carcinogenic or otherwise nasty, probably plenty of 'em around your home already.

The manufacturers have to cover all the bases, because of frivolous lawsuits. Throughout the history of Photography there is no indication that Photographers that developed their own film and made their own prints experienced shorter life-spans than the average person. Many famous photographers lived to ripe old ages, in fact most did, unless they were photojournalists in WAR zones, and that is not related to processing.

I have been developing my own film professionally for over 30 years, and as a hobby for 40 years. No health problems that can be related to photography at all.

So, don't drink it, don't bathe in it, and wash up after using photo chemicals and unless you have a particular allergy to something, you will be just fine.

Some people (quite rare, I think) have an allergy to Metol, a component in b/w film developers. Can cause a rash, or something.

If you are going to keep chemistry in a home environment with little inquisitive children, then you should take the same precautions you would for other household chemicals such as strong cleaners, detergents and drain cleaners, and keep all your chemicals out of their reach.
 
the dangers you listed could be read as the same for smoking and drinking beer ! Just dont breathe in any of the powders, and wear gloves when handling the chemistry and you'll be OK. Its like anything, just use a bit of common sense. Have fun
 
used improperly, marshmallows may cause asphyxiation.

I get the point. Buy some gloves and maybe a plastic liner to put down wherever I work.
 
MacCaulay said:
No, with most chemicals, a well-ventilated area and a no-contact technique are all that are needed.

Oh, and don't drink the stuff.
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ventilation is a given. I will probably use some sort of liner since I work on surfaces that are used for other things.
 
A couple books have been written about the particular hazards of various darkroom chemistry. For me the biggest concern is sensitizers and the cumulative effect of exposure over a long period. I'd consider modern darkroom exposure to be safer than, say furniture refinishing (ever see that Ghost Hunters episode where the family thought their house was haunted but all the investigators found was a whole lot of solvent-type products right next to the HVAC?). But a hazard's a hazard. I use the blue nitrile gloves and avoid powdered stuff if I can.
 
George, have you looked at XTOL at all?

Another one that comes up in threads about chemical safety is PC-TEA, which is an ascorbic acid (vitamin C) developer, if i recall correctly.

A quick look at the MSDS for XTOL reveals that it's fairly benign
 
I remember reading Edward Weston's fingernails were black because of the amidol he used in developing. I dont think many are using that anymore though.

I put my hands in some chemicals over time, only six years worth, and I don't develope much film at home anymore. Your probably fine, the advice I got in school was to keep my hands clean after each darkroom session.

They also told me to keep hand lotion in my locker because of all that hand washing, but umm my ego told me I was way too manly for that stuff.

A friend of mine at work is a bit of a hypocondriac. If I hand him a strip of negatives devolped in d-76 he would complain the next day of cramps light headedness.

-Mitch
 
Maybe I should add that school also had a book full of material safety data sheets, some OCEA regulation stuff. You might be able to find those OCEA data sheets on the web somewhere to see what you are dealing with.
 
tetrisattack said:
George, have you looked at XTOL at all?

Another one that comes up in threads about chemical safety is PC-TEA, which is an ascorbic acid (vitamin C) developer, if i recall correctly.

A quick look at the MSDS for XTOL reveals that it's fairly benign
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thanks, that's very helpful. Actually, I'm about to squish myself into a small place in Seattle (new job means moving closer since the car sucks). Might have to put home developing on hold until I can figure out a very efficient/safe/effective way of doing things.

Xtol - saw some today at Glazer's. I'll give it a second look.
 
derevaun said:
I use the blue nitrile gloves and avoid powdered stuff if I can.
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Powdered photo chemicals are of special concern, because they can be inhaled pretty easily, dissipate all over the place if you don't handle them properly and very very very carefully. This is something I was reminded of again when I used Diafine for the first time. Ventilation is ok, but think about drafts too.

This is why it's always better to just have a completely separate space than to do this at home, unless you *really* know what you're doing. YMMV.
 
shutterflower said:
Actually, I'm about to squish myself into a small place in Seattle
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Don't give up hope! I used to live in a very small apartment on Capitol Hill, and this is what my darkroom looked like:

168698156_35e9304e5f_o.jpg


Sorry to anyone who's already seen that shot -- I like to bandy it around now and then when people lament their lack of space. :)

By comparison, the kitchen shelf dedicated to developing film was trivial.
 
That laptop is about to get a very nasty input...

BTW, your bathroom is a penthouse compared to my bathroom. Mine was designed by a retro, grumpy Wizard of Oz munchkin hairdresser.
 
gabrielma said:
Powdered photo chemicals are of special concern, because they can be inhaled pretty easily, dissipate all over the place if you don't handle them properly and very very very carefully. This is something I was reminded of again when I used Diafine for the first time. Ventilation is ok, but think about drafts too.

This is why it's always better to just have a completely separate space than to do this at home, unless you *really* know what you're doing. YMMV.
Click to expand...

I did my mixing outside my house in a gentle breeze which kept the air before me clean. I was meticulous.

I like your setup, Connor. I'll have to devise some plan.
 
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