I’ll throw this observation into the mix, although it seems unlikely that this
is the problem:
Twenty-some years ago I noticed that every spring I would get a general, very
ugly, greying of my prints for a week or two. It seemed evenly spread across
all the light and white areas, including the borders. I cannot recall whether
the backs of prints (fibre based) were affected. Absolutely nothing would
clear the greying once it had occurred.
After two or three years I realized that this occurred immediately after city
work crews flushed the water line in front of my house. I contacted the
relevant city department and the following year they fixed the water line. Our
house was about 100 yards from a dead end. The line was capped off about 10
yards past the last house, and crud would build up in the dead space. Once the
dead space was removed, I never again had the problem.
My problem was an unusual combination of factors, but it is not at all unusual
for water “content” to vary, especially seasonally. This may not be obvious
with ordinary use - - - our house had been there for nearly 50 years without
anyone noticing a water problem.
I am now on well water, and at some point during or after the spring thaw the
water is slightly coloured. (I live in New Brunswick, Canada.) I have not done
enough darkroom work during that time to know whether it affects processing.
Myron
On Mar 6, 2016, at 8:46 PM, Tim Daneliuk <tundra@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
For some time now, I've noticed that the unexposed areas of a print
show evidence of a what appears to be selenium staining - say on the
borders of the print. I've changed nothing in my chemical formulation
or wash discipline.
Any ideas on what the culprit is here?
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Tim Daneliuk tundra@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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