Madness: Photochemicals

[JamesD]

I was looking at my box o' stuff, particularly the bottles I've accumulated. It seems like a lot of stuff, more than it seemed like when I started doing just film with just four bottles...

Dektol stock, Dektol 1:2, Dektol 1:5, 2X TMax Concentrate, TMax 1:4, TMax 1:7, Indicator Stop, Stop working solution, Rapid Fix solution A, Rapid Fix Solution B, Mixed Rapid fix for film, Mixed rapid fix for paper, Mixed Kodak Fixer (from powder), Photoflo concentrate, Photoflo solution, Glenfiddich 1:12. Plus a pack of Dektol Powder, and four packs comprising two each Arista lith developer part A & B, and the box of Kodak Fixer powder.

That's 17 bottles of varying sizes and six packets of powder. Then there's the several gallons of distilled water under the kitchen sink.

How many bottles do you have in your darkroom?

 

[ThomThomsk]

Well, there's currently around 8 x 1 litre boxes of unopened Ilford ID11 in the wardrobe, and at any one time I could have up to 4 x 250ml and 6 x 150ml bottles of ID11 stock. Then there are the 500ml bottles of Ifostop and Ilford Rapid Fixer stock for film and 1 litre bottles of the same for paper. All these stock solution bottles are brown glass ones which I think are called Boston Rounds over there, but are known as Winchester bottles over here, and I use small glass marbles to keep them all filled right to the top.

Then there is whatever is left over in the original plastic bottles of Ilford stop, fix and Multi-grade paper developer, and I only mix that when I need it. They all have marbles in them as required to keep them brim-full.

I keep 2 x 1 litre plastic bottles of ordinary tap water to hand as well, so the air bubbles have a chance to come out of it before use and so I've always got some at room temperature for mixing chemicals, and one litre plastic bottle of pre-mixed Ilfotol wetting agent.

So, 20 bottles, not necessarily all of them full at the same time.

Did I mention that I like Ilford chemicals?

 

[Torus34]

I make up a gallon of Microdol and a gallon of fixer and then portion them off into individual bottles for 'throw away' single use. That's 14 'Snapple' bottles right off the bat. Dektol (stock and 1:2), stop and fixer for paper account for another 4. Plus a couple of one gallon and half gallon empties for mixing. Total: about 22.

 

[terri]

Good one....what's all up there?

Off the top of my head.... Dektol working solution (I mix ratios in the tray before I start), Selectol Soft, TMax developer, D76, about 4 Ilford rapid fix, hypoclear stock, a jug of Kodak fixer-hardener, a small bottle of 28% acetic acid, large jug mixed stop, 2 small bottles containing Farmer's reducer A & B, several bags of various powder chems waiting....

....and in the bromoil corner, there are 2-3 jars of plain hypo crystals, various graduated cylinders, working solutions of stuff like potassium bromide and potassium dicromate, and a 3 gallon jug of distilled water.

Maybe 20-21 bottles of stuff? I also have various dedicated toning bottles I keep under the kitchen sink, since I don't tone in the darkroom, so add about a half-dozen more to that.

I can't think of anything else off hand.