Typo: I meant "...an older Noritsu..."

My first question would be "how did you get it into your basement?!"

Not knowing what model/type minilab this is, I can only speak in
generallities...

1. You need to calculate your tank turnovers. What this means is how much of
each chemical does the machine hold, and how many replenishment's will it
take to replace the chems in each tank. Do you process that much material
within the shelf-life of each chemical. For example, let's say it holds one
gallon of chemical "X", and with every roll of film that goes through, it
replenishes one ounce. Chemical "X" has a life of six weeks. Do you process
128 rolls (the number of ounces in a gallon, right?!) in six weeks (the life
of chemical "X")? If not, you will have to go with longer life chemicals or
additives. BTW, for RA-4, I've switched to Trebla brand developer-- it's
cleaner, less tar and longer life than the Kodak version.

2. How about the rollers/racks? The action of the film or prints going thru
the machine helps to keep the rollers clean and turning. If the machine sits
for an extended period of time, the rollers can get crudded up. That crud
can work loose and deposit itself on the film or prints: tar in the
developer tank and sulfur in the Bleach-fix tank.

3. How long does it take to bring the chemicals up to temp? My older minilab
(a 1984 model Hope EP-2 machine converted to RA-4) requires about 30-45
minutes to get the 15 gallons of developer up to 87'F. OTOH, the small water
tempering bath (about one gallon) that I use to hold C-41 chemical
containers and manual stainless steel tank takes about 10 minutes to get
everything to 100'F-- less time if I fill it with warm water.

For me, it makes sense to run an RA-4 machine. I run enough prints to just
barely make the tank turnovers (using the Trebla developer). It doesn't
_yet_ make sense for me to run a C-41 machine.

If you're still looking to sell the machine, you might e-mail me privately
with details: price, model, location, condition, etc. I might be interested.