DIY options for standard paper developer

[BHuij]

I'm looking for the ideal paper developer to standardize around. Obviously the "perfect" developer probably doesn't exist, but the qualities I'm looking for are something like this:

• Inexpensive/economical (in a perfect world, economical enough to use one-shot per session)
• Strongly prefer liquid concentrate to powder
• If not possible to get something cheap enough to use one-shot, then something with the longest possible lifespan at working strength dilution becomes important
• Neutral or slightly cold tone preferred, I'm not interested in warm tone prints (I work exclusively with Ilford MG FB)
• Capable of producing rich blacks comparable to Dektol or Ilford MG
• DIY is a plus, since it tends to lend itself toward being less expensive
• Bonus points if it can be mixed up in hard well water from my tap instead of distilled without any nasty side effects (both Dektol and Ilford MG seem to work fine with my tap water)

I've used Dektol, but it's really inconvenient as a powder that has to be mixed up a full gallon at a time, and I'm never sure whether the working strength, 1+3 stuff I keep in DataTainers with the air squeezed out is going to give me consistent results. With the volume of printing I do, even the stock solution is likely to sit around for months before getting totally used up, so I end up throwing a lot of it away unused because it simply oxidized/expired.

I'm currently using Ilford MG one-shot per session. That means I usually mix up about 1.5 liters of working-strength (1+14) developer per printing session for an 8x10 tray. I'll print for 2-3 hours, producing maybe 5 8x10s, and then discard the developer. It's nice because the concentrate lasts more or less indefinitely, and I can be confident that I'm getting consistent results from session to session since the stuff in the tray is always fresh. Unfortunately it's starting to get kind of expensive, and I hesitate to go in for "short" printing sessions where I'm only going to make 1 8x10 or something, because I don't want to waste that much developer on a single print.

So it's pros and cons.

A few options I'm looking into:

Liquidol - bills an extremely long shelf and tray life at working strength of 1+9, but then in the documentation proper, it says working strength is best discarded after 32 hours. I'd like to be able to at least get a couple weeks of consistent results from properly-stored working strength stuff, I don't leave it in the tray. It also says it should be mixed in distilled water, and that the liquid concentrate, stored in tightly-sealed bottles, has a shelf life of "at least a year."

So in a worst case scenario, my concentrate goes bad after a year, and my working strength stuff, mixed in distilled water, has to be discarded after 2 days. But every single one of these caveats seems like they might just be overly-conservative, in the same way that Kodak says HC-110 concentrate only lasts 2 years. Is it possible I could actually keep my concentrate for multiple years, and working strength stuff mixed in tap water for 2+ weeks (in a full glass bottle), without seeing a noticeable loss of Dmax or contrast? If so, maybe Liquidol is the way to go.

I also looked at D72, which is a DIY option. I haven't strictly priced it, but I get the impression that all the ingredients are cheap and easy to source from somewhere like the Photographers' Formulary. Apparently it's more or less like Dektol, minus some ingredients that are only there to increase longevity and resist oxidation. If I could get all the ingredients needed for D72 for cheap, and then carefully weigh out powders to make 1 or 1.5 liters of working strength stuff, maybe just keeping them in a film canister or something, then I don't much care how long the working strength dilution lasts, as long as it will get me through a 4 hour print session. I could easily mix up one-shot from pre-measured powder containers at the start of each session, if it goes into solution as easily as Dektol in room temp water.

Any wisdom from people who have a similar darkroom workflow to me (which is... 1 or 2 print sessions in a good week, with the possibility for multiple months of no printing in between)?

 

[Petrochemist]

If you want DIY & cheap then Caffenol might be worth trying

 

[MattKing]

The squeezable Datatainers are the worst possible containers to use. They often leak air, and are impossible to fully clean. Glass Growlers are much better. Heavy PET bottles are also good. If you can't find a 1.5 litre bottle, two 750 ml bottles should be easy to find - e.g. wine bottle size.
That "32 hour" information for Liquidol refers to time in a tray. In a bottle it should be a lot longer. Don't get too concerned about the time estimates for the concentrate.
I used to buy and recommend Kodak Polymax T. The concentrate lasted very well. Who knows if we will see it again.
Ethol LPD in a replenishment regime has a reputation for very long life.

 

[relistan]

My printing scenario is pretty similar to yours and Ilford Multigrade developer concentrate lasts ages in a partial bottle. Well over a year. The price seems reasonable still to me. But that’s my judgment and obviously.

 

[ags2mikon]

I use D-72 and I pre measure out enough for 3 liters tray mix into small bottles. Pharmacy bottles are your friend along with plastic film cans. I measure out about 10-12 "kits" put them in a box and I can be up and running with fresh developer in minutes. D-72 and dektol are for all intents and purposes the same thing. It is not as convenient as liquid developer but it is less costly and it doesn't cause heartburn when I dump it. I have saved it overnight in bottles and it was fine the next day.

 

[albada]

I keep Liquidol concentrate in a glass bottle in the refrigerator. It lasted two years, so I can't complain about that.
I get two sessions out of the working solution, storing it in a PET bottle between sessions. One such bottle of working solution kept for months in the refrigerator.

Mark

 

[gone]

I use Liquidol too. It keeps very well. I also use Sprint developer, which is liquid. It's a "student" developer, meaning it's cheap, and you can order it in huge quantities at lower prices. It will keep at least 18 hours in covered trays too. My stuff that's developed in it looks exactly like the results from any other paper developer, and it develops the paper quickly.

I've used half of a plastic bottle of the Sprint developer, gone back to it months later, and it developed my prints in the same time as the first time.

 

[cmacd123]

I did try Liquidol working solution stored in a galss bottle for a week or two and found it nearly the same as freshly mixed. Seems to be hard to get these days.

My polymax T turned brown in the sealed bottle when I did not notice I had one in the back of the cupboard.

ANSCO 130 is known for long shelf life ONCE Mixed. one of the ingredients (Glycin) does not keep well by itself, unlike most dry powders. you can get it as a kit from Photographers formualry.

D72 is generaly considered equivalent to Dektol. all the ingredients keep well. You can mix whatever size you want. Freestyle sells a "legacy Pro version of Dektol.

 

[revdoc]

E-72. I make it up as needed, to match a 1+3 dilution. A small amount of prep is required: phenidone in about 4% solution in PG or alcohol, and potassium bromide 5% in water. 250ml looks like this:

200ml water
ascorbic acid 1/4 tsp
sodium sulfite 1/4 tsp
sodium carbonate monohydrate 1 tsp
phenidone 4% 0.5 ml (measured with a syringe)
potassium bromide 5% 1/2 tsp
add water to 250ml

Dev time is 2 minutes.

If I only process a couple of prints in a session, I'll put in a glass bottle for reuse. It generally lasts a few weeks like that. Really, though, this is just my laziness. it's very cheap, so single use is fine.

 

[GregY]

It seems hard to beat Ilford Multigrade @ $65/ 5 litres..... (free shipping over $99) from B&H. At dilutions of 1:9- 1:14.
Viz
LPD...which i really like 1:3
Ansco Formulary 130 1:2 1-3. (both favourite developers of mine which i use for important/paid work)

As mentioned after minimal use store the working strength developer in a stoppered bottle.
I've never had a 5litre jug of Ilford go dead even after the colour changes.

Neutol & Neutol WA (Now Compard) are economical developers too...but B&H won't ship them....& if you can't get them locally then shipping costs factor big in the economics of developers. ( @1:9)

 

[removedacct1]

I don't know how you're going to avoid using powder chemicals if you want a DIY developer.

ID-78 is currently the only paper developer I use:

ID-78 Ilford Warm Tone Developer

Phenidone	0.5 g
Sodium Sulphite (anh)	50 g
Hydroquinone	12 g
Sodium Carbonate (anh)	62 g
Potassium Bromide	4.5 g
Water to	1 litre

To use: Dilute 1+ 3 for warmest tones. Can be used at 1+1 for higher contrast.

 

[BHuij]

Really good stuff, thanks all for recommendations.

I continued my own research while waiting on responses and found E-72, an eco equivalent to D-72 that should otherwise behave identically. I'm in the middle of cost comparisons with that vs bulk-purchased Ilford MG syrup. I wasn't aware you could get the Ilford MG stuff in bigger quantities; I've been buying 500ml bottles.

Thanks again!

 

[GregY]

500ml bottles will kill any thoughts of economy
B&H prices. 500ml $15.85
5litres ...... 500ml $. 6.50
I never buy small bottles of any chemicals. Developer / fixer /
I've had the same gallons of glacial acetic acid (stop bath) selenium toner for years.

 

[BHuij]

Yeah, I feel a little silly for buying such small quantities. Not sure why it didn't occur to me to check for a bulk option.

Nevertheless, I just priced out the best deals on all necessary components for making E72, and worked out the price per print session (which doesn't change unless I somehow exceed 25 8x10s in one session; unheard of for me). It's barely more than $0.50 with E72.

Same math shows that a print session with Ilford MG developer purchased in 5 liter quantities costs just over $1. So E72 should yield identical results and costs half as much.

It looks like the "proper" way to make E72 is to heat up 750ml of water, mix the chemicals in order, one at a time, stirring until each one goes into solution totally, and then add water to the full 1 liter balance of stock solution. That then gets diluted 1:3 for normal contrast working solution. The stock solution will last in an airtight glass jar for about 6 months, which is fine.

I think I'm going to go this route. By my understanding, E72 is very similar to D72, which is essentially the same as Dektol. Dektol comes in a bag with all powdered chemicals combined, and you mix it up all at once. Perhaps there are good reasons I couldn't do this with E72. But it would increase the convenience factor a lot if I could simply weigh out several individual packages of all dry ingredients, in quantities ideal for making 250ml of stock solution, and then simply mix each container of powder up with whatever amount of water it takes to reach 1 liter of working solution at the beginning of a print session, skipping the "stock" concentration step altogether. Presumably the dry powders would keep even longer than the 6 months I'd get from the stock solution. Maybe this isn't feasible, but I'm going to give it a shot.

 

[cmacd123]

if you have purchased any of the Kit developers from Photographers formulary they is teh way they come, little envelopes of each ingredient. Only thing I can think of is that the packages might cost you more then the chemicals.

 

[albada]

It looks like the "proper" way to make E72 is to heat up 750ml of water, mix the chemicals in order, one at a time, stirring until each one goes into solution totally, and then add water to the full 1 liter balance of stock solution. That then gets diluted 1:3 for normal contrast working solution. The stock solution will last in an airtight glass jar for about 6 months, which is fine.

I think I'm going to go this route.

Warning: E-72 can suddenly die at an unpredictable time because it lacks protection against the Fenton reaction. Type this search into google:

Fenton reaction site: photrio.com​

That will search only the photrio site for threads on the Fenton reaction. Briefly, unless you add a hard-to-find sequestrant such as Na5DTPA, this reaction will eventually destroy all the ascorbate in the developer. E-72 is fine if you add the ascorbate (ascorbic acid) to the working solution immediately before each session, and discard it afterwards, as @revdoc does in posting #9. But if you store an ascorbate developer (stock or working solution) for a week or more with no suitable sequestrant, you are risking sudden death of the developer.

Instead, I suggest using ID-62 (for neutral tones) or ID-78 (for warm tones). The formulae for ID-62 and ID-78 are nearly identical, and both are easy to mix. The formula for ID-78 is in posting #11 by @paulbarden. Here is the one-liter formula for ID-62 (mix 1+3):

Sodium Sulphite (anh)	50 g
Phenidone	0.5 g
Hydroquinone	12 g
Sodium Carbonate (anh)	60 g
Potassium Bromide	2 g
Benzotriazole	0.2 g

The formulae for both ID-62 and ID-78 are suitable for distilled or DI water. If you use tap water, you should add 4 grams of Disodium EDTA to prevent precipitation of the calcium and magnesium ions in the tap water. I add EDTA because I'm a cheapskate and don't want to spend money on distilled water.

EDIT: Add the EDTA first to avoid creating precipitate as you are adding the remaining chemicals.

Mark

 

[MattKing]

My polymax T turned brown in the sealed bottle when I did not notice I had one in the back of the cupboard.

The brown stuff seems to work great for a long time.

 

[BHuij]

Warning: E-72 can suddenly die at an unpredictable time because it lacks protection against the Fenton reaction. Type this search into google:

Fenton reaction site: photrio.com​

That will search only the photrio site for threads on the Fenton reaction. Briefly, unless you add a hard-to-find sequestrant such as Na5DTPA, this reaction will eventually destroy all the ascorbate in the developer. E-72 is fine if you add the ascorbate (ascorbic acid) to the working solution immediately before each session, and discard it afterwards, as @revdoc does in posting #9. But if you store an ascorbate developer (stock or working solution) for a week or more with no suitable sequestrant, you are risking sudden death of the developer.

Instead, I suggest using ID-62 (for neutral tones) or ID-78 (for warm tones). The formulae for ID-62 and ID-78 are nearly identical, and both are easy to mix. The formula for ID-78 is in posting #11 by @paulbarden. Here is the one-liter formula for ID-62 (mix 1+3):

Sodium Sulphite (anh)	50 g
Phenidone	0.5 g
Hydroquinone	12 g
Sodium Carbonate (anh)	60 g
Potassium Bromide	2 g
Benzotriazole	0.2 g

The formulae for both ID-62 and ID-78 are suitable for distilled or DI water. If you use tap water, you should add 4 grams of Disodium EDTA to prevent precipitation of the calcium and magnesium ions in the tap water. I add EDTA because I'm a cheapskate and don't want to spend money on distilled water.

EDIT: Add the EDTA first to avoid creating precipitate as you are adding the remaining chemicals.

Mark

Great info, thank you! Seems like another argument in favor of trying to avoid storing stock solution. I really like the one-shot approach for having consistent results every printing session. If I could just keep packets of all-powder-mixed-together and do a "just add water" workflow to go straight from powder to working strength solution for a single print session, I shouldn't have to worry about the Fenton reaction. The only question there is basically whether the powders can safely be stored all together, and whether mixing everything at once instead of one at a time actually causes a problem. I'm hopeful that it won't.

If I do end up going with ID-62, how long should I expect a stock solution to last in a sealed glass bottle?

 

[grahamp]

D163 might be an option if you don't mind a Metol/Hydroquinone developer. Mix as much stock as you need.

1.5 litres or working solution seems a bit much if your session only produces 5 prints from it, or are you not including test strips and work prints? For 8x10 tray I'd go for 750ml.

 

[albada]

Great info, thank you! Seems like another argument in favor of trying to avoid storing stock solution. I really like the one-shot approach for having consistent results every printing session. If I could just keep packets of all-powder-mixed-together and do a "just add water" workflow to go straight from powder to working strength solution for a single print session, I shouldn't have to worry about the Fenton reaction. The only question there is basically whether the powders can safely be stored all together, and whether mixing everything at once instead of one at a time actually causes a problem. I'm hopeful that it won't.

If I do end up going with ID-62, how long should I expect a stock solution to last in a sealed glass bottle?

You could mix E-72 stock, but without the ascorbic acid (AA). When making a working solution of 250 ml, you could add 1/4 tsp of AA into the tray. @revdoc in posting #9 uses such teaspoon measurements with most of the chemicals. Then use it one-shot, solving the Fenton problem.

I suspect that stock solution of ID-62/78 will last 6 months, but I don't speak from experience. Perhaps somebody who has used it longer can comment.

Regarding mixing powders together, I recall reports that developers can be damaged when stored with alkalis, so some companies use two packets, one with developers, and the other with everything else.

Mark

 

[Mick Fagan]

I've been using E72 for some years now, I mix everything prior to using and never had a problem.

1:1 for high contrast, 1:2 or 1:3 for lower and lower again contrast. I use 1:1 pretty much always, really nice blacks.

I mostly use this developer in a roller transport print processor with elevated temperatures in the 30ºC range; which allows full development at that temperature in 45 seconds. This is RC Ilford paper.

I realise you are using FB paper, so a machine isn't going to work, but you may wish to entertain elevated temperatures in your summer.

 

[Philippe-Georges]

Here you have one, sorry but it's in Flemish/Dutch:

PS: the comments by Mick Fagan are correct, and for FOMA FB 111, I would like to advise 3 min @ 22°C and constant agitation...

 

[relistan]

If you want to make E-72 ahead of time and not deal with the Fenton sudden death Mark refers to, you can mix up the phenidone and ascorbic acid in propylene glycol and the rest in water. When it’s time to use it, pour the main volume from the water solution and use the correct few milliliters in a syringe from the glycol solution. Pretty nearly instant, and no Fenton issues. The glycol will preserve the developing agents for a few years if you keep it stoppered and out of the light. Or do as Mark @albada does and put the glycol solution in the freezer.

Propylene glycol is cheap and available

 

[koraks]

I suspect that stock solution of ID-62/78 will last 6 months, but I don't speak from experience. Perhaps somebody who has used it longer can comment.

It does, indeed. These are the only paper developers I currently use, and at this point it's actually only ID62 as I haven't bothered with ID78 for a while. Either lasts fine for a couple of months in a half-full bottle. I keep the working strength developer in an entirely full, glass bottle, replenish after every session to make up for the volume lost during processing, and both the concentrate and the working strength developer have been going strong for a few months in the current batch I'm using.

I think especially ID62 ticks all the boxes of the OP.

 

[Ian Grant]

PQ paper developers have a longer tray life than the equivalent MQ developer, add to that far greater capacity, so they are a far better option. If the OP looks in the resources section I've listed mixing a more concentrated version of ID-62 or ID-78, shelf life is significantly higher.

Ian