[RobG]

I have a large number of negatives which I put into plastic storage sheets, thinking I was doing the right thing. However, this was many years ago and now the negatives are actually stuck to the plastic. Is it likely to help minimise the damage by soaking the whole lot in water? I'm hoping that the plastic might become unstuck by soaking the lot in water, but I'm also concerned about the water or the combination causing further damage to the negs. Or is there something else which would be more effective than plain water?

[tuco]

Are these archival sleeves the negatives are stored in? I've never seen that happen before with any of mine for over 30 years. Were they stowed wet, I wonder. But you can rewash a negative without harm. Pick one that's not so important and give it a test spin.

[RobG]

Are these archival sleeves the negatives are stored in? I've never seen that happen before with any of mine for over 30 years. Were they stowed wet, I wonder. But you can rewash a negative without harm. Pick one that's not so important and give it a test spin.

Thanks for your reply. They were storage sleeves for negatives but clearly not of archival quality. I have many others bought more recently which are fine. No, the negatives were not wet but the conditions were probably humid, since I lived in a sub-tropical area at the time. I'd already had the negs for years. Is there anything I could add to a water bath which might help detach the negative without damaging it? I'm wondering if adding some white vinegar may help - as a very mild acetic acid solution, given that it's used as a stop bath for B&W negs? FWIW the negatives in question are C41 colour not B&W.

While I'm asking - I have a stack of other negs which I had reprinted and the lab attached paper strips to the edge for some reason. I need to remove the paper strips so I can scan the negs in an LS30. I'm thinking I might just try to cut off the part of the paper strip not on the negative strip and leave the other part there. Again I was wondering what would be safest to use to remove any glue left behind if I try to remove the whole strip.

[photolady95]

I have one piece of advice. Use distilled water. No contaminants. Ok, another suggestion, a bit of non harsh dish soap. Not the kind made for dishwashers, but for hand washing dishes.

[tuco]

You can also wash them in Kodak's Photo-Flo 200 to minimize water streaks. And Edwal Anti-Stat Film Cleaner might help with the tape residue. But definitely experiment first on a not so valued negative with that stuff. I have some that I tried to clean some gunk off some negatives once. While it worked on one I ruined another FYI.

[RobG]

I have one piece of advice. Use distilled water. No contaminants. Ok, another suggestion, a bit of non harsh dish soap. Not the kind made for dishwashers, but for hand washing dishes.

OK, thanks! Should be easy enough to use cheap demineralised water from the supermarket. Mind you, when I was processing my own B&W I just used tap water and it was fine.

You can also wash them in Kodak's Photo-Flo 200 to minimize water streaks. And Edwal Anti-Stat Film Cleaner might help with the tape residue. But definitely experiment first on a not so valued negative with that stuff. I have some that I tried to clean some gunk off some negatives once. While it worked on one I ruined another FYI.

Agreed, I'll try to identify something unimportant for an experiment and separate one film strip to try.

[goatsNdonkey]

It seems to me, your are looking at three steps:


1) soaking a stuck negative however is long enough that it can easily slide free,
2) a second soak in fresh water with either Photoflo or the Edwal product recommended,
3) drying


Then the negative can be restored in better/archival sleeves.


I agree with the recommendation to begin by testing the process with a negative strip with the least valuable images.

[G and T]

Are these archival sleeves the negatives are stored in? I've never seen that happen before with any of mine for over 30 years. Were they stowed wet, I wonder. But you can rewash a negative without harm. Pick one that's not so important and give it a test spin.

This is certainly the simplest and best way to start, I have used this process to clean 300+ glass negatives that were poorly stored with tissue paper between them. Left to soak in plain cold water the paper turned to pulp and all the other dirt and gunk softened enough to wash off them
and all the negs suffered no further damage.

Glenn

[Sholom]

As long as the negatives were fixed in a hardening fixer, distilled water is your safest choice. If either the negatives were not hardened (B&W, all color negs are hardened as far as I know) or you know for sure that the plastic sleeves were PVC (polyvinyl chloride, which is definitely not archival), then 91% isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol, but 91% preferred over 70%) may be a better choice. Do test several drops of alcohol on an unimportant strip of negatives. Isopropyl alcohol should be fine on black and white films but might damage color negs.

[RobG]

It seems to me, your are looking at three steps:
1) soaking a stuck negative however is long enough that it can easily slide free,
2) a second soak in fresh water with either Photoflo or the Edwal product recommended,
3) drying
Then the negative can be restored in better/archival sleeves.
I agree with the recommendation to begin by testing the process with a negative strip with the least valuable images.

This is certainly the simplest and best way to start, I have used this process to clean 300+ glass negatives that were poorly stored with tissue paper between them. Left to soak in plain cold water the paper turned to pulp and all the other dirt and gunk softened enough to wash off them
and all the negs suffered no further damage.
Glenn

As long as the negatives were fixed in a hardening fixer, distilled water is your safest choice. If either the negatives were not hardened (B&W, all color negs are hardened as far as I know) or you know for sure that the plastic sleeves were PVC (polyvinyl chloride, which is definitely not archival), then 91% isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol, but 91% preferred over 70%) may be a better choice. Do test several drops of alcohol on an unimportant strip of negatives. Isopropyl alcohol should be fine on black and white films but might damage color negs.

Thanks for the additional suggestions!

[tuco]

... If either the negatives were not hardened (B&W, all color negs are hardened as far as I know)

Most likely a harden fixer if done by a lab. But the choice of using say a alkaline fixer solution in lieu of a harder is because of the developer being used. It is common for staining type developers to need a alkaline fixer. But that is FYI because I doubt any commercial labs work with staining developers but you never know.

And you have to have some really bad water to go through the effort of distilled water to re-wash a negative. I've done lots of times with tap water here in the Pacific NW of the US. No problem! BW film is more resilient than perhaps you think. I re-wash old negatives sometimes to scan them because it's easier to get all the micro fine dust off them that way which scanner will pick up.

[RobG]

And you have to have some really bad water to go through the effort of distilled water to re-wash a negative. I've done lots of times with tap water here in the Pacific NW of the US. No problem! BW film is more resilient than perhaps you think. I re-wash old negatives sometimes to scan them because it's easier to get all the micro fine dust off them that way which scanner will pick up.

I agree, but I think people were erring on the side of caution assuming that the negatives are precious. They're photographs I took at least 40 years ago, so some of them may be, at least to me.

[tuco]

I agree, but I think people were erring on the side of caution assuming that the negatives are precious. They're photographs I took at least 40 years ago, so some of them may be, at least to me.

Sure, and it's still good advice.

When I develop my negatives ( slightly different than other developers) I pre-soak the film in tap water. The developer is mixed with distilled water. I stop in tap water, fix, wash in tap water, hang and dry. We have pretty good water in my area but you can see the film sees a lot of regular water. And I'd add a filter to the tap water if I lived in some other parts of this country. But no need to so far.

EDIT: If your film is in strips, you may want to get film clips for hang drying. Or make some. I hang mine from the shower curtain rod in a small bathroom. I put a small fan on the floor blowing up to circulate air in the room to facilitate drying, shut the door and come back after a while.

[RobG]

The good news is that the first sheet separated from the negatives reasonably easily, and I didn't have to soak the film a lot. The plastic seems to have become brittle with age. Some of the photos are from my first visit to Europe and the USA in 1982, so fingers crossed.

---------- Post added 24-02-16 at 08:49 PM ----------

I spoke too soon - some other negatives are in slip sheets which are some kind of paper. One was stuck and I made the mistake of not soaking it - the paper came off with some of the emulsion. One end of that frame is ruined. I won't do that again! Into the bath for the rest of them. My photo of a San Francisco cablecar is lost.

[RobG]