anyone with experience with the shelf life of Rodinal/R09?

[nightwolf75]

i just had the unfortunate experience of destroying 3 rolls when using my 1+yr old R09 developer (supposed to be the same as Rodinal).

according to this, the R09 is supposed to have a long shelf life even when half used. anyone with more experience with the R09? :dunno:

i am doing everything the same way and had no problems until today. i threw out the old bottle. just want to confirm if the shelf life of the R09 is really as long as it is suggested?

 

[zguy]

What happened? I still have some left over and definitely more than 2years. It was OK the last time I used it.

 

[nightwolf75]

What happened? I still have some left over and definitely more than 2years. It was OK the last time I used it.

All i got was 3 rolls of clear plastic... haiz... irritating cos 1 of the rolls were pictures of my family outing to Gardens by the Bay.... >.<

 

[zguy]

Ai yoh..i only experienced that with C41 and E6 chemicals where it deteriorated without warning and ended up with blank film. Guess i will dump out the R09 too and stick to HC110.

 

[nightwolf75]

Ai yoh..i only experienced that with C41 and E6 chemicals where it deteriorated without warning and ended up with blank film. Guess i will dump out the R09 too and stick to HC110.

Frustrated... gah... :cry:

 

[paapoopa]

I am not sure about R09, but my bottle of Rodinal last me from 2010 till now and it still giving good result.
its not easy to finish using a bottle of rodinal

 

[lualua]

Same here. I've been using the same bottle of rodinol for the past 8 to 10 years sporadically and each time I used it, it's as good as new. The last time I used it was probably about 2-3 months ago.

 

[nightwolf75]

just my luck i guess... :mad2:

 

[kgston]

Even with expired developer you should still get some kind of image. But the contrast may be low. If the film is clear, it may be possible that you fixed the film first before the putting the developer.

 

[nstclicks]

Have to agree with kgston I'm afraid.

 

[nightwolf75]

Even with expired developer you should still get some kind of image. But the contrast may be low. If the film is clear, it may be possible that you fixed the film first before the putting the developer.

Have to agree with kgston I'm afraid.

Thanks for the opinion. I opened up another bottle of rodinal/r09. It works. Which means my previous bottle really died and not becos i poured in the fixer first.

Lesson learnt. now i transfer everything into a dark bottle.

 

[Scandiacus]

Haven't been developing film for 2-3 years. Just checked my R09 and it has crystals inside...kinda like shaking a bottle with ice cubes inside.

Is the chemical still usable? How do I go about testing it?

Do I mix a small volume of my typical 1+50 dilution and dip a small length of film?

 

[nightwolf75]

Haven't been developing film for 2-3 years. Just checked my R09 and it has crystals inside...kinda like shaking a bottle with ice cubes inside.

Is the chemical still usable? How do I go about testing it?

Do I mix a small volume of my typical 1+50 dilution and dip a small length of film?

you can try. but from what i gathered from overseas' forums, the rodinal/R09 of today is not exactly the same as yesteryear's. the rule of thumb from what i gathered is no more than 6 mths after opening for today's formula. you can try a test strip first and see what happens.

 

[DSolZ]

I remember seeing YouTube video saying rodinal can last for many years even when opened. Maybe they are talking about the older formula. Hmmmm

 

[vinyljunky]

From what I'm aware, the old formula can last 50+ years even after opening, however the new version expires between 6months to 2 years after opening.

I had the same experience with R09 one shot, both the Foma version (http://www.foma.cz/en/catalogue-fomadon-r09-detail-421) and the Agfa version (http://www.digitaltruth.com/store/cart/R09-One-Shot-Agfa-Rodinal-500ml.html). They both lasted around 2 years after opening, after which I would get a clear base with no image (or a very very faint image).

I did read that transferring the liquid to smaller bottles after opening might help prolong the life, as exposure to oxygen reduces the lifespan. Alternatively, I started buying the smaller 120 ml bottles of R09 made by Compard (http://www.freestylephoto.biz/9724-Compard-R09-One-Shot-Agfa-Rodinal-Formula-Film-Developer-120ml). It's slightly more expensive this way, but each bottle lasts me exactly 6-7 months, so I can be sure that it works.