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  #1  
Old 1st March 2018, 09:28 PM
jeztastic jeztastic is offline
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Default Hypo Clear - problems

Hi.

Thought I'd be clever and instead of stumping up for Ilford Washaid I bought a kilo of Sodium Sulfate. I mixed up stock solution according to the Darkroom Cookbook, but had trouble getting it all to dissolve. Now a couple of weeks later I have a big block of what looks like ice in the bottom of the bottle.

I used tap water which was probably a mistake.

Any thoughts on what went wrong? I will probably end up stumping up for Washaid after all...

Jez
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  #2  
Old 1st March 2018, 09:34 PM
alexmuir alexmuir is offline
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I mixed a pack of Kodak Hypo Clear last year. It made around 5litres which I divided up into smaller bottles. The last ones to be used developed that big block. I've no idea how it happened, but I doubt the remaining solution is usable.
Alex


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Old 1st March 2018, 09:59 PM
Mike O'Pray Mike O'Pray is offline
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Never tried the stuff but as I don't use FB paper and thus have never felt the need for its use with film to remove fixer. Ordinary washing has been fine. I have never seen any problem as yet - some 15 years now since I started film developing.

I did a bit of research and it sounds as if Washaid is sodium sulphite(sulfite -US spelling) not sodium sulphate. Did you get the right stuff? I am not a chemist and you might have just a typo and mean sulphite?

Just a thought

Mike
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Old 1st March 2018, 10:16 PM
jeztastic jeztastic is offline
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Yes it was Sulphite!

Alex, did you mix with tap or distilled water?
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Old 1st March 2018, 11:11 PM
alexmuir alexmuir is offline
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Tap water, I think, Jez. I would normally filter tap water for chemical solutions. I buy distilled water for final rinse only.
Alex


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  #6  
Old 2nd March 2018, 07:39 AM
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Miha Miha is offline
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Same happened to me! I have mixed a bag of Hodak HCA double trength (to 1.9 l) a couple of months ago and forgot about it. Last week I found a crystal stone in the container. Strange.
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Old 2nd March 2018, 08:15 AM
Richard Gould Richard Gould is offline
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Just checked a bottle of HCA I mixed a while ago, it was fine a a couple of weeks ago, when I last used it, today while there is still some liqued there is a crystal stone in the container, very strange and never happened before that I can remember, I always mix it to 3.8 litres
Richard
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Old 2nd March 2018, 08:43 AM
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Miha Miha is offline
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Something in the air...
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Old 2nd March 2018, 08:46 AM
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skellum skellum is offline
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Water has a limited capacity to hold dissolved material in solution. Distilled water comes with no 'preloading' of minerals in solution, so has more capacity to accept the chemistry we want to dissolve.
In areas of hard water (with more minerals to start with) you'll find it harder to fully dissolve thing like Hypo clear. I think it comes close to being a saturated solution- that is, at the limit of how much dissolved solid material the water is capable of holding.
The solution can sediment out and form crystals if it gets cold (reduced ability to hold material in solution) or sometimes just by standing stagnant.
I'm in a soft water area, so have little trouble dissolving chemistry, but even so I find Part B of my PMK sometimes drops a little bit of crystallised sediment. I warm it up, shake, and usually it redissolves.
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Old 2nd March 2018, 09:02 AM
Paulographic Paulographic is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Richard Gould View Post
Just checked a bottle of HCA I mixed a while ago, it was fine a a couple of weeks ago, when I last used it, today while there is still some liqued there is a crystal stone in the container, very strange and never happened before that I can remember, I always mix it to 3.8 litres
Richard
I just checked some Kodak I made last year (I don't use FB paper in the cold months as tap water is too cold for efficient washing) and it's still all liquid even though kept in a fridge.
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