Topic: Minor winge about leaking developer tank

[Kai-san]

I have an old type Paterson 4 developer tank that tends to leak from the top threads, especially during stop and fixing. Now I'm not complaining about value for money, I purchased this one in 1972. And a new one is rather cheap and probably better. I suppose it's just that I hate throwing things that works most of the time. I thought about putting some glue or filler in the groove of the lid, but are there any substances that does not get dissolved by the chemicals? Or should I just drill a hole in the bottom and use it as a flower pot? 

[Francois]

I guess the seal ring is probably gone by now.
I would be tempted to replace it by a ring made from proto-putty. It's an easy recipe that should work just fine for the task.
Just go to YouTube and search for Grant Thompson proto putty....

[Sandeha Lynch]

I have an old type Paterson 4 developer tank that tends to leak from the top threads, especially during stop and fixing. Now I'm not complaining about value for money, I purchased this one in 1972. And a new one is rather cheap and probably better. I suppose it's just that I hate throwing things that works most of the time. I thought about putting some glue or filler in the groove of the lid, but are there any substances that does not get dissolved by the chemicals? Or should I just drill a hole in the bottom and use it as a flower pot? 

Oh my god, so that's where old developing tanks go to die - the greenhouse!   

[Kai-san]

I guess the seal ring is probably gone by now.
I would be tempted to replace it by a ring made from proto-putty. It's an easy recipe that should work just fine for the task.
Just go to YouTube and search for Grant Thompson proto putty....

Well, the gasket looks ok, but it is made of rather hard plastic and it is not at all pliable. So you think I should just make a ring out of the stuff, put it around the edge of the tank and screw the lid on? Hopefully it will come apart afterwards.....
I sure hope that food colouring does not leak into the tank and turn my films GREEN! 

[cs1]

Kai, I have two Super System 4 tanks which are both less than a year old and they both are already leaking. So you might just as well keep your old tank.

[ManuelL]

All my Paterson tanks are leaking. I just use them over a tray.

[Francois]

I guess the seal ring is probably gone by now.
I would be tempted to replace it by a ring made from proto-putty. It's an easy recipe that should work just fine for the task.
Just go to YouTube and search for Grant Thompson proto putty....

Well, the gasket looks ok, but it is made of rather hard plastic and it is not at all pliable. So you think I should just make a ring out of the stuff, put it around the edge of the tank and screw the lid on? Hopefully it will come apart afterwards.....
I sure hope that food colouring does not leak into the tank and turn my films GREEN! 

I definitely would keep the tank. So far, I've never really found a tank that doesn't leak in some way.
As for the proto putty, you can always add a bit of corn starch all over the tank just to make sure it doesn't stick too much...
BTW, food coloring is optional... but why not make it a cheerful tank 

[cs1]

Has anyone tried to superglue the Super System 4 tanks (the ones with the red rim)? I read somewhere that you can turn them upside down and put superglue into every gap between the red ring and the black tank (or possibly all around the red ring) and it will stop the leaking.

[Francois]

Gap filling super glue might work. If the tank is made from PVC, you can also use some JB Weld WaterWeld. It's a plumbing epoxy that comes in a paste.

[cs1]

I have one spare. I'll try it tomorrow.

[Kai-san]

Has anyone tried to superglue the Super System 4 tanks (the ones with the read rim)? I read somewhere that you can turn them upside down and put superglue into every gap between the red ring and the black tank (or possibly all around the red ring) and it will stop the leaking.

It's difficult to know where the leakage is, but this might be worth a try, good tip. At least I know now that I can save my money and keep the tank going for another 45 years...........?   Sandeha, I've put the drill back on the shelf, so don't worry. 

[irv_b]

I have a Jessops dev tank that I use for colour development that leaked when inverted so I squirted a little silicone sealant around where the seal  let it go off and it's done the job.

[Indofunk]

I sure hope that food colouring does not leak into the tank and turn my films GREEN! 

Ok, well now, this has given me an idea! 

[cs1]

Don't superglue the red rim of the Paterson Super System 4 tanks. I tried it and it didn't do anything useful. It didn't stop the leaking. It also didn't do anything harmful either. It just looks ugly.

[Francois]

That's because CA glue really needs to be in contact to work.
You can remove the white residue with acetone, nail polish remover (which contains acetone) or better yet, some CA Debonder (you get this at hobby shops, I always have some in case of stuck fingers)

[cs1]

Thanks for the hints, Francois, I'll probably remove the glue again if it keeps bothering me.

My father gave me a Jobo tank that he never used, as far as I can tell. I like my Paterson tanks but I think I'll try the Jobo tank just for fun to see whether it's going to develop the same problem. Anyhow, I can live with using nitril gloves and paper kitchen towels with the Paterson tanks, so no worries.

[Kai-san]

I have revived this old thread in stead of making a new one. It's really just to ask a simple (silly) question: Has anybody tried to clean the Paterson plastic reels in a dishwasher? I wouldn't think it's a problem apart from a little wear over time. Mine has got quite blackened over the years......

[Francois]

I never did try in the dishwasher and for some reason I'm not sure it would work at bringing them to their former white.
I found that Paterson reels go through a variety of tones during their lifespan.

My reasoning is that if they work fine, no need to give them a special treatment.

But if you want to bring them back to white, you might want to look into a process called retro-brighting.
Check out the 8bit guy's channel on youtube. He does a lot of jobs like that on old computers with a pretty good success rate.

[cs1]

To be perfectly honest, I'd be reluctant to do it not because I'd be afraid to damage the reels but because fixer removes silvers salts from b&w film which is heavy metal. I wouldn't want it to come anywhere near stuff that gets in touch with food. Even if I dispose used developer and fixer at official special waste disposals and rinse the tanks properly after use, the risk is still too high in my eyes since the spools do seem to contain sufficient residue to make me worry. So neither have I tried it nor would I recommend doing it for the above reasons. Call me paranoid.

EDIT: Regarding retrobrite: it does seem work, however, I've heard voices warning to use it because the process may make plastic brittle which might damage the film or leave crumbles or residue on the film (or even break the reel). My initial answer was from what I read about retrobrite some time ago (if you have old consoles or computers that are affected by heavy yellowing you sooner or later read about retrobrite). After searching the net I think that since retrobrite is used to reverse the effect of the exposure of plastic to bromine and UV light, the question is whether the colouring of your reels has the same cause (chemically) and hence can be reverse with retrobrite. Furthermore, the ingredients of retrobrite seem to be rather nasty that's why I wouldn't use it.

If the problem is just a cosmetic one, I'd leave the reels be as they are.

[jharr]

It's like a meerschaum pipe. The more it is used the nicer it looks.   

[Kai-san]

I was not so worried about the whiteness, I was just thinking of giving them a proper clean once in a while. I just rinse them in cold water after each use, and I never had a problem with them. And using chemicals for whitening is totally out of the question, the less toxins released onto this poor planet the better.

[Pete_R]

I've put mine through the dishwasher a couple of times. Put them in the top away from the main heat and they're fine. It won't make them whiter but it probably helps to get rid of any residues. I did it when I was having problems with excessive foaming, probably due to continued use of wash agent in the tank. I don't use it in the tank any more ( I use Francois' tip of spraying it on when the film's hung up) but I do still get occasional problems with bubbles so not sure the dishwasher was 100% succesfull. I've just bought a new tank and a couple of reels to see if I still get problems.

[Kai-san]

I use 4 drops of Kodak Photo-Flo into a full tank, and have never had any problems with foaming. I have never tried any other make of wetting agent, so maybe there are differences.

[Francois]

I was not so worried about the whiteness, I was just thinking of giving them a proper clean once in a while. I just rinse them in cold water after each use, and I never had a problem with them. And using chemicals for whitening is totally out of the question, the less toxins released onto this poor planet the better.

When I do some retrobrighting on plastic parts I use some cream hair bleaching peroxide that I apply with a brush. Unless it creates some weird byproducts, it's pretty safe. The process uses so little that I'm not very worried.

[Kai-san]

I have no need for bleaching my hair, it's whiter than my Paterson reels.... 

[Francois]

There's quite a few here who would have no need for peroxide either 

[Kai-san]

Reviving an old thread here with some new info. It seems I have found a trick to prevent leakage from Paterson plastic tanks that might be useful for others as well. When I put the lid on the tank I simultaneously depress the center of the lid. This creates a small vacuum inside the tank which seems to prevent leakage. I can't guarantee that it is perfect, but it seems to help a lot.

[Indofunk]

Reviving an old thread here with some new info. It seems I have found a trick to prevent leakage from Paterson plastic tanks that might be useful for others as well. When I put the lid on the tank I simultaneously depress the center of the lid. This creates a small vacuum inside the tank which seems to prevent leakage. I can't guarantee that it is perfect, but it seems to help a lot.

I do this as a matter of course because especially for blix, it is a volatile liquid so it will release its gasses and nearly pop off the lid sometimes unless you "burp" it (burp terminology coming from my youth coinciding with the immense popularity of Tupperware )

[Kai-san]

Did you go to Tupperware parties as well?