Splitting a 1L Tetenal C41 kit?

C

Carl Hall

Suspended / Banned
Messages
3,817
Edit My Images
Yes
I've decided to start developing my own C41 but I’m not entirely sure that I shoot enough film to make it worthwhile. Is it possible for me to get a 1L Tetenal kit and then mix half at a time? In the perfect world I’d mix half to make 500ml working solution which I’d use until it expired, then mix a second batch with the remaining concentrate, but I’m not sure if this is possible?

Also what’s the realistic amount of time before the working solution expires? There’s a huge amount of conflicting information on other forums, with some people saying it’s a couple of weeks and others say several months or even a year! I probably shoot about a roll a week, so if it lasts a month or 6 weeks then I’d be super happy. Would the now open concentrate last long enough for me to mix a second batch after this or would it have expired then as well? Would it make a difference if I decanted it into smaller air tight bottles with no head space?

Thanks muchly :)

Carl
 
That's what I do with my Tetenal kit. I think the concentrate will last a good while, not sure exactly how long as I'm not scientific enough to measure it, but so far with this 500ml batch I've devved about 7 rolls over the past 6-8 weeks and the last ones (which I did last night) seem to be perfectly ok... except for the subject matter ans skill of the phgotographer... :D

Andy
 
Andysnap said:
That's what I do with my Tetenal kit. I think the concentrate will last a good while, not sure exactly how long as I'm not scientific enough to measure it, but so far with this 500ml batch I've devved about 7 rolls over the past 6-8 weeks and the last ones (which I did last night) seem to be perfectly ok... except for the subject matter ans skill of the phgotographer... :D

Andy
Click to expand...

Ahh fantastic, thanks Andy. I have an AP tank which needs 590ml, and a Paterson tank which needs 500ml. Think I'll keep the AP tank for B&W and use the Paterson one for C41 as it's just the right size. Not sure how much solution I'll lose over 6-8 rolls though but I'm sure I can just try and get every drop out of the tank and add a drop of water to keep it at 500ml :)
 
I did it with a 5L kit...... although, once mixed if you haven't used it for say 6 months, then get rid of it. However, the concentrate can still be made up after that time.
 
Just a tip about the Paterson tank, when you fill it make sure that you just pop the lid to let out any excess air as otherwise the bl**dy stuff drips out.
 
Great, sounds like it’s worthwhile doing then :D Hopefully I should dev my first roll sometime this week if the stuff arrives quickly. I’ve decided not to use an aquarium heater like I originally thought; I’m going to use a coolbox as a water bath to try and keep the heat in, and I’ll use two cheap aquarium heaters (two because I don’t trust their accuracy and it’ll be interesting to see how different they are!) and then just add a splash of hot water every so often if the temperature drops. Seeing as C41 is a lot less time than B&W I don’t think the temp drop will be that high over the 3-4 mins for the developer.


All the documentation that I’ve read says to do inversions to agitate. Is it ok to use the twisty stick and just rotate the film in the tank instead? This way I can leave the tank in the water bath for the whole time the developer is in.
 
I do inversions for the first 30 seconds, then use the 'twisty stick thing' to do the rest, leaving it in the tank.
 
I tend to just do inversions for the whole time for all the stages, I find it theraputic.... but I am a little bit special. :confused:
 
But I am ... specially different... I know, my mum had me tested. :wideyed:
 
Back on topic ...Yes the tetenal C41 kit can be split as mentioned already.

Enjoy your colour deving!(y)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top