High Temperature B+W Processing

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Justin Thyme - 23 Aug 2005 11:58 GMT

It's currently winter here in Australia, and I'm having no problem
maintaining 20C for B&W processing. However we are fast approaching summer,
and last summer I had no end of trouble trying to keep temps down that low.
With room temperatures in the high 30s and tap water temp in the high 20s,
getting it down to 20C becomes a chore. Last summer I resorted to putting
large containers of water in the fridge, or using ice to lower the
temperature of my tempering bath. Even then, by starting at 20C, my
tempering bath would have climbed 2 or 3 degrees by the time I finished the
develop process (5 to 7 minutes). Last summer I found myself almost
completely stopping B&W as it was too much of a pain to control temperature.
It was far easier to maintain temp of my colour chemistry, so E6 and C41 is
what I mostly shot.
So... are there developers for B&W that are designed to operate at
temperatures in the order of 30-40C ? All the data I've seen indicates 24-25
to be about the warmest that they operate at. If it makes a difference, I
mainly shoot HP5 at 1600, Neopan 400 and a little bit of Neopan 100SS. Are
some films better suited to high temperature processing than others? Or
should I just shoot colour or chromogenic B&W during summer?

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Rod Smith - 23 Aug 2005 14:06 GMT

> It's currently winter here in Australia, and I'm having no problem
> maintaining 20C for B&W processing. However we are fast approaching summer,
> and last summer I had no end of trouble trying to keep temps down that low.

You should be able to do it by using a water bath that's a bit below 20C.
Just as when doing color work, keep the chemicals (in their bottles, of
course) in the water bath, and return the developing tank there after each
agitation.

> So... are there developers for B&W that are designed to operate at
> temperatures in the order of 30-40C ?

I'm not sure how well most mainstream developers work at those
temperatures, but there are so-called "tropical" developers. Also,
according to Anchell's _The Darkroom Cookbook_, 2nd edition, you can add
105g of anhydrous sodium sulfate to each liter of working solution. (Note
that's sulfAte, not sufIte). There's information on this on pp. 58-59. The
book also has formulas for three tropical developers (Agfa 16, Kodak
DK-15, and Kodak DK-15a), if you care to mix your own rather than buy
something commercial or add sodium sulfate to a commercial developer.

Since you mention that you find color development easier in the summer,
another alternative is to switch to C-41 B&W films (Ilford XP2 Super,
Kodak T400CN, etc.) during the summer. The Ilford doesn't have an orange
mask, so it presents no tricky printing challenges. Even if you don't
switch films for ALL your B&W rolls, it might be an acceptable solution
for some of them.

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Rod Smith, rodsmith@rodsbooks.com
http://www.rodsbooks.com
Author of books on Linux, FreeBSD, and networking

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Richard Knoppow - 25 Aug 2005 23:03 GMT

> It's currently winter here in Australia, and I'm having no
> problem maintaining 20C for B&W processing. However we are
[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
> processing than others? Or should I just shoot colour or
> chromogenic B&W during summer?

The main problem with high temperature processing will be
determining approprate developing times. The effect of
temperature on a developer depends on the developing agents
used. I believe Kodak has charts showing the effect of
temperature on their products.
Developer can be slowed down by dilution or by adding
some Sodium sulfate to it. I don't think the sulfate is
necessary for modern film. However, the right amount for
stop and fixing baths is 45 grams/liter. This is also
probably right for most developers but modern developers
like Xtol or even D-76 are fairly low in pH and have a large
salt content so do not cause much swelling.
Of course, you can also make a simple temperature control
bath using a plastic tray or tank and a fish tank pump and
regulator. These are often described for color work.

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---
Richard Knoppow
Los Angeles, CA, USA
dickburk@ix.netcom.com

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UC - 25 Aug 2005 23:10 GMT

You don't have air-conditioning?

Develop at 20C and use a rapid hardeneing fixer, then wash in
Perma-Wash at room temp.

> It's currently winter here in Australia, and I'm having no problem
> maintaining 20C for B&W processing. However we are fast approaching summer,
[quoted text clipped - 14 lines]
> some films better suited to high temperature processing than others? Or
> should I just shoot colour or chromogenic B&W during summer?

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nailer - 26 Aug 2005 09:57 GMT

*You don't have air-conditioning?

it would be totally silly to cool down the whole house to get 20°C in
a climate where day temperature can rise to 35-40°C (shade).

AC are usually installed to work in living areas, not kictens or
baths, garages, storeromms etc.

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UC - 26 Aug 2005 14:20 GMT

Keep your solutions where it is cool.

Duh................

> *You don't have air-conditioning?
>
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> AC are usually installed to work in living areas, not kictens or
> baths, garages, storeromms etc.

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