Pointers about disposal of chems into septic system (or not at all)?

I'm not talking huge quantities- maybe 10 rolls/week.

I have the option of storing dead chems and taking them about 50 miles
every 6 months (or however long it takes) and paying a fee to dispose
of them.

However, if I don't have to and I'm not going to cause any
environmental issues, then of course it'd be easier just to dump the
stuff down the drain...

this is bw dev only. occasional pmk pyro but usually rod, tmax,
microdol and acufine...on top of that sodium sulfite ...usually huge
dilutions 1:100 and greater.

thoughts, opinions?


Thanks!

Cheers,
-sd
http://www.zoom.sh

Dude, you're gonna get a Dell !

Sorry Some Dude, I couldn't resist. Seriously, there are a lot of differing
opinions on whether it's safe to dispose of photo chemicals in a septic system.
The old school of thought was that as long as it was a small portion (maybe
less than 10%) of the total household waste each day, then it was safe. Others
feel any amount will slow down or even destroy the action of the bacteria on
waste and cause the tank to stop working properly and need to be pumped out.
The EPA doesn't like this anymore and it is not alowed for comercial users.

You just mentioned developer, but what about fixer, and are you planning to
make prints, resulting in more developer and fixer? You are probably safe if
you keep the volumes small, maybe a few gallons a week total and have a larger
family creating lots of other water flow for the septic system. Or, you could
just collect the used chemicals in a 5 gallon bucket and allow the water to
evaporate, resulting in a small volume of solid waste to pay for disposal
occasionaly.
Bernie

Some Dude wrote:
I'm not talking huge quantities- maybe 10 rolls/week.

I have the option of storing dead chems and taking them about 50 miles
every 6 months (or however long it takes) and paying a fee to dispose
of them.

However, if I don't have to and I'm not going to cause any
environmental issues, then of course it'd be easier just to dump the
stuff down the drain...

this is bw dev only. occasional pmk pyro but usually rod, tmax,
microdol and acufine...on top of that sodium sulfite ...usually huge
dilutions 1:100 and greater.

thoughts, opinions?


Thanks!

Cheers,
-sd
http://www.zoom.sh
I did some research into this subject awhile ago...
IIRC - Kodak _used_ to say a normal B&W d-room does not harm a normal
septic system... Apparently they do *not* recommend _any_ d-room use
with a septic system.
I came to the conclusion that most chemicals used in a darkroom are safe.
*However* , heavy metals (chemicals) are dangerous and hazardous to the
us and the environment. So, that includes used fixer - get it recycled,
hospitals, universtities and some labs will take your fixer off your
hands and get the dissolved silver out for free (they might make a few
cents off you ;-)).
Selenium toner, or any other metallic toner also poses risks to the
environment and our health... (These dodgy heavy metals again)
I use a Vitamin C based developer which uses a minimal amount of
chemical for paper and film too (sometimes now because of my new-found
appreciation for a certain staining-type developer ;-)). I also use a
water stop for all processes and vertical processors for paper printing.
For washing I use a variation of the Ilford system for film as well as
paper. This method uses _complete_ changes of water, rather than a
flowing system. This minimises water use and seems to work well.

In article ,
s (Jazztptman) wrote:

Others feel any amount will slow down or even destroy the action of the bacteria on
waste and cause the tank to stop working properly and need to be pumped out.
The EPA doesn't like this anymore and it is not alowed for comercial users.

I have been on several and am on a septic system now, I also worked briefly
as a plumber helper as did my brother. Anyway every septic system needs to be
periodically pumped. Usually but not all systems incorporate two areas. One is
the solids trapping tank, the other is an out flow drain field or hidden ditch were
liquids run off. So any water basically flows out the top/or side of the concrete
box. Once the tank is full its full. Chemistry is not going to stop the tank from working,
what they will do is back up noxious fumes into your house and perhaps kill
everyone inside.
--
Would you like to know the precise date of your own death?
What if anything is too serious to be joked about?
Do you ever spit or pick your nose in public?

For B&W only: I have heard that the worst offender is the exhausted fixer
due to silver concentrations. Probably the best way to deal with it is to
accumulate it and then dispose of it through a friendly lab in town. There
are also Kodak filters, but not suitable for very low volumes. There are
inexpensive electrostatic precipitators that bond the silver out of
solution, but they do leave some in solution. And I have heard you can just
pour old fixer into a can with some steel wool and a reaction will bond the
silver to the steel wool for disposal.

I'd love to see perspectives on this. I have a precipitator, but don't know
how effective it is.



"Some Dude" wrote in message
...
I'm not talking huge quantities- maybe 10 rolls/week.

I have the option of storing dead chems and taking them about 50 miles
every 6 months (or however long it takes) and paying a fee to dispose
of them.

However, if I don't have to and I'm not going to cause any
environmental issues, then of course it'd be easier just to dump the
stuff down the drain...

this is bw dev only. occasional pmk pyro but usually rod, tmax,
microdol and acufine...on top of that sodium sulfite ...usually huge
dilutions 1:100 and greater.

thoughts, opinions?


Thanks!

Cheers,
-sd
http://www.zoom.sh

On 12 Mar 2004 03:22:10 GMT, s (Jazztptman)
wrote:

Dude, you're gonna get a Dell !

Grumble, mumble, growl ! Pothead, grumble, grumble,
embarrassing my company ! GROWL !

Only good thing was that marketing ..... well lets say they
had their ears cleaned.

Regards,

John S. Douglas, Photographer - http://www.darkroompro.com
Please remove the "_" when replying via email

On Fri, 12 Mar 2004 00:44:55 GMT, Some Dude wrote:

I'm not talking huge quantities- maybe 10 rolls/week.

I have the option of storing dead chems and taking them about 50 miles
every 6 months (or however long it takes) and paying a fee to dispose
of them.

However, if I don't have to and I'm not going to cause any
environmental issues, then of course it'd be easier just to dump the
stuff down the drain...

this is bw dev only. occasional pmk pyro but usually rod, tmax,
microdol and acufine...on top of that sodium sulfite ...usually huge
dilutions 1:100 and greater.

thoughts, opinions?

Pour the developers in a bucket and top with a piece of wire
mesh. Put a brick or something on top and allow them to oxidize
outside and then simply toss it either down the drain or on the local
batch of weeds.

Save your fixer and take that to the local lab which will
gladly recover the silver.


Regards,

John S. Douglas, Photographer - http://www.darkroompro.com
Please remove the "_" when replying via email

On Fri, 12 Mar 2004 12:16:52 GMT, Silvio Manuel
wrote:

Chemistry is not going to stop the tank from working,
what they will do is back up noxious fumes into your house and perhaps kill
everyone inside.

If one pours a couple of gallons of Dektol into a septic, I
assure you it will kill all of the working bacteria in it. Between the
high pH and the hydroquinone, there won't be any oxygen in the tank.

Now as to fumes, this is usually not an issue. There isn't
much of anything in the common darkroom which produces such fumes
short of mixing pot. ferricyanide and acid.

Regards,

John S. Douglas, Photographer - http://www.darkroompro.com
Please remove the "_" when replying via email

In article ,
John wrote:

Chemistry is not going to stop the tank from working,
what they will do is back up noxious fumes into your house and perhaps kill
everyone inside.

If one pours a couple of gallons of Dektol into a septic, I
assure you it will kill all of the working bacteria in it. Between the
high pH and the hydroquinone, there won't be any oxygen in the tank.

Now as to fumes, this is usually not an issue. There isn't
much of anything in the common darkroom which produces such fumes
short of mixing pot. ferricyanide and acid.

I was not referring to bacteria, the mechanics of the system only.
Anyone with cast iron outflow pipes should reconsider pouring any
volume of acid down the drain. Perhaps I should also state
that I personally dispose of all chemistry using another method
rather just blatently pouring it down the drain.
--
Would you like to know the precise date of your own death?
What if anything is too serious to be joked about?
Do you ever spit or pick your nose in public?

"Pieter Litchfield" wrote

For B&W only: I have heard that the worst offender is the exhausted fixer
due to silver concentrations. Probably the best way to deal with it is to
accumulate it and then dispose of it through a friendly lab in town. There
are also Kodak filters, but not suitable for very low volumes. There are
inexpensive electrostatic precipitators that bond the silver out of
solution, but they do leave some in solution. And I have heard you can just
pour old fixer into a can with some steel wool and a reaction will bond the
silver to the steel wool for disposal.

I'd love to see perspectives on this. I have a precipitator, but don't know
how effective it is.

PERSPECTIVE

Fixer is loaded with thiosulfate. Thiosulfate might be thought of as
being sulfer sulfite. Oxygen being a stronger oxidizer than sulfer, the
sulfite will be converted to sulfate. So we end up with some sulfate,
silver sulfide, and sulfer. Silver sulfide is EXTREMLY insoluable.
If I could find the article again I'd point you to it. Kodak states
that some spent fix in the sewage is OK because the silver is soon the
sulfide.
As we all know the sulfide of silver is the silver to have in a
print for extreme print longevity. But sulfides can be oxidized to the
sulfate and silver sulfate is slightly soluable. Sewage systems
are aerobic.
I can only conclude that Kodak has reason to believe that there is
enough sulfer coming into the system to maintain the silver as a
sulfide. Kodak is saying that silver plus thiosulfate equals
no problem.
That may be true; Kodak is lax where pollution is concerned. Dan