Photo Chemicals and Septic Tanks
davidb
still need to develope my own B&W film. The house has a septice tank
and leech field, not a city sewer system. Are there any concerns or
problems I should be aware of with dumping D76 and stop down the
drain? I am environmentally friendly and concerned that I could harm
the area around the house.
maf
decompose the waste. Mix the developer and stop together when disposing. Mix
the fixer and HCA together as well.
"davidb" <dvd...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:a78fff9e.02111...@posting.google.com...
Q.G. de Bakker
Don't introduce those substances into the septic tank/leech field. Not even
when you have "neutralized" pH by mixing developer and stop. Collect the
stuff and dispose of it somewhere safe, like a chemical waste deposit.
Lassi Hippeläinen
Is there any other long-time dangerous stuff than metallic silver in the
fixer? All the rest is more or less biodegradable, right?
Metallic silver isn't actually too dangerous, but as a heavy metal it
isn't welcome in the nature. The amount of silver released in a short
time isn't that much, though.
-- Lassi
Q.G. de Bakker
> Is there any other long-time dangerous stuff than metallic silver in the
> fixer? All the rest is more or less biodegradable, right?
Maybe. But will the bacteria in the septic tank survive?
Lassi Hippeläinen
No. But I was thinking about pouring the juices in the ground as such.
Not into a lake, or close to a well, of course.
-- Lassi
Q.G. de Bakker
> No. But I was thinking about pouring the juices in the ground as such.
> Not into a lake, or close to a well, of course.
You'll kill everything in the ground where you pour the stuff. It will only
be a small patch, butstill. I think that even dumping it in a lake will be
less harmfull (dilution ;-)). But don't.
Is there no place you can take small amounts of chemical waste?
davidb
stop and the let the fix evaporate. The house that I will be staying
at, is on 7 acres of land and is heavily wooded. What if I dumped it
in the woods away from the home and the leach field?
I will be there for about 3 months and I certainly do not want to make
a mess or cause problems while I am there.
Thanks for all of the responses.
dvd...@yahoo.com (davidb) wrote in message news:<a78fff9e.02111...@posting.google.com>...
Jerry Gardner
Here's what Kodak has to say:
http://www.kodak.com/country/US/en/corp/environment/kes/educators/septicDis
posal.jhtml
--
Jerry Gardner
w6...@hotmail.com
John Stafford
Q.G. de Bakker wrote:
> You'll kill everything in the ground where you pour the stuff. It will only
> be a small patch, butstill. I think that even dumping it in a lake will be
> less harmfull (dilution ;-)). But don't.
> Is there no place you can take small amounts of chemical waste?
What bullshit. Y'all think that because something is called a
"chemical", and it smells and looks bad that it has to be some kind of
toxix waste. Not true. Look it up. Enough impressionism.
Q.G. de Bakker
> What bullshit. Y'all think that because something is called a
> "chemical", and it smells and looks bad that it has to be some kind of
> toxix waste. Not true. Look it up. Enough impressionism.
So have a drink!
PSsquare
davidb wrote in message ...
>I will be doing about 20 rolls a month. My plan was to dump the dev &
>stop and the let the fix evaporate. The house that I will be staying
>at, is on 7 acres of land and is heavily wooded. What if I dumped it
>in the woods away from the home and the leach field?
>I will be there for about 3 months and I certainly do not want to make
>a mess or cause problems while I am there.
>
>
ARRGH!!! You said you are environmentally friendly? This is unreal.
PSsquare
Ken
>
> You'll kill everything in the ground where you pour the stuff.
So, I can use it as weed killer?
--
Ken
--
Q.G. de Bakker
> So, I can use it as weed killer?
If you like bare patches of dirt, yes. ;-)
Bart van der Wolf
"Q.G. de Bakker" <q...@worldonline.nl> wrote in message
news:ar0190$hj7$2...@reader1.tiscali.nl...
> Ken wrote:
>
> > So, I can use it as weed killer?
>
> If you like bare patches of dirt, yes. ;-)
Don't be silly, it only kills animal life forms. ;-)
dr bob
The problem with all these collection schemes is that it adds risk to the
photographer due to the extensive handling required. At a rate of 20 rolls
a month, you would be disposing at a rate much less that the average
commercial firm. There should be no big problem in using a septic system
provided some precautions are used. The chemicals in most developers are
rather benign and readily oxidized or otherwise break down when exposed to
air and soil. We certainly dispose of much more dangerous household
chemicals daily.
Stop bath is usually dilute acetic acid, which you produce in your stomach
naturally. Again this is not an aggressive biological hazard in diluted
form. I think the concentration inside our local vultures is higher than
that used in the darkroom (???). Don't ever let one vomit on you or you
will find out.
The issue is that of concentration. Whatever method you choose to dispose of
your depleted chemicals, they must be well diluted. Any fertilizer used in
a concentrated area will temporarily cause "burn out". Properly diluted
developer and stop, especially if mixed prior to disposal, might even be
beneficial to acid-loving plants. There are lots of acid-loving plants in
deep woods. I put developer and stop bath in my septic system for years
without problems. I also maintained the system carefully otherwise. When
it was replaced with a county system, there was no evidence of any problems.
In fact, Erma was right, "The grass was always greener over the septic tank"
. A check with the local Government revealed that the small amount of
chemicals I use was no problem for them (including the silver from the
fixer).
That brings up the sore point. To dispose of fixer, you might think about
using the steel wool process suggested by others: Get a box of fine,
regular steel wool (not stainless nor with soap) and pour the fixer over a
few pieces in a proper container. In time the silver will displace the iron
forming a black precipitate. This will remove a lot of silver but never all
of it. Some say the precipitate can be collected by filtration and "sold"
to reclaiming processors. I doubt that the effort is very rewarding except
from a personal satisfaction point. Your idea of evaporating the water and
collecting the residue is commendable. You must realize that natural
evaporation will take a long time and requires proper equipment like large
shallow trays exposing a large area.
Truly, dr bob.
Steve Hamley
disposal in this way affect people? I agree that these small amounts
of silver are of no concern.
Thanks!
Steve
Lassi Hippeläinen <lahi...@ieee.orgies.invalid> wrote in message news:<3DD228A9...@ieee.orgies.invalid>...
John Stafford
saha...@netscape.net wrote on 11/14/02 6:10 PM:
> Silver is natural and came from nature.
So is uranium, mercury and lead. You just _gotta_ try uranium toning some
time. (They irradiated lenses, didn't they?)
Tom Thackrey
On 14-Nov-2002, saha...@netscape.net (Steve Hamley) wrote:
> Silver is natural and came from nature. The question is how will
> disposal in this way affect people? I agree that these small amounts
> of silver are of no concern.
> Lassi Hippeläinen <lahi...@ieee.orgies.invalid> wrote in message
> news:<3DD228A9...@ieee.orgies.invalid>...
>
> >
> > Metallic silver isn't actually too dangerous, but as a heavy metal it
> > isn't welcome in the nature. The amount of silver released in a short
> > time isn't that much, though.
The silver in spent fixer kills bacteria. In sufficient quantities it can
upset the digestion of your septic tank. (I had a home darkroom on a septic
tank, dumping all the chemistry into it, for many years without any
problems.) It has very little direct effect on humans, plants or animals
unless ingested in large doses. Some health food nuts advocate taking silver
as a dietary suppliment. Most sewer systems can handle the quantities
produced by the home darkroom without problems. Some areas (Palo Alto, CA
for example) are trying to reduce the amount of silver their sewage
treatment facilities are releasing into the environment and have a program
for photographers to dispose of their waste chemicals.
Ask your local camera store or call your sewage utility.
--
Tom Thackrey
www.creative-light.com
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John Stafford
wrote on 11/14/02 8:34 PM:
>
> [...]
> Ask your local camera store or call your sewage utility.
That's one thing I admire about our local camera and 'developing' shop: they
always took care of chemical disposal. They made a big effort of it, and
certainly not for the paltry $ they got from reclaiming the silver. Our town
is on the Upper Mississippi (it's practically an island in the river) and we
are painfully aware of the disgusting condition of the river, thanks to
dumping upstream and especially farm run-off. But I digress...
Castratta
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/environment/kes/educators/septicDisposal.jhtml
They don't recommend it.
Castratta
Pudentane
>
> On 14-Nov-2002, saha...@netscape.net (Steve Hamley) wrote:
>
> > Silver is natural and came from nature. The question is how will
> > disposal in this way affect people? I agree that these small amounts
> > of silver are of no concern.
>
> > Lassi Hippeläinen <lahi...@ieee.orgies.invalid> wrote in message
> > news:<3DD228A9...@ieee.orgies.invalid>...
> >
> > >
> > > Metallic silver isn't actually too dangerous, but as a heavy metal it
> > > isn't welcome in the nature. The amount of silver released in a short
> > > time isn't that much, though.
>
> The silver in spent fixer kills bacteria. In sufficient quantities it can
> upset the digestion of your septic tank. (I had a home darkroom on a septic
> tank, dumping all the chemistry into it, for many years without any
> problems.) It has very little direct effect on humans, plants or animals
> unless ingested in large doses. Some health food nuts advocate taking silver
> as a dietary suppliment.
"Nuts" pretty much sums it up...
http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/Central/10/02/candidate.blue.skin.ap/
--
I do not speak for any government, corporation or organization.
These are MY opinions. No one else is to blame.
John Stafford
no....@no.where.invalid wrote on 11/18/02 10:07 PM:
> "Nuts" pretty much sums it up...
>
> http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/Central/10/02/candidate.blue.skin.ap/
Some people will do anything to become an affirmative action candidate.
John Garand
<q...@worldonline.nl> WROTE:
If this is in the US or CA, the probability of finding a chemical
waste disposal site readily available to an area without central sewer
systems may not be high. Obviously this also depends on how large the
state, and the location of the relative's house. In some US states
distances are not great and the drive might only be 20 to 50 miles.
In other states one might have to drive anywhere from 1 to 300 miles
(or more) to find such a site.
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John Garand
>I will be doing about 20 rolls a month. My plan was to dump the dev &
>stop and the let the fix evaporate. The house that I will be staying
>at, is on 7 acres of land and is heavily wooded. What if I dumped it
>in the woods away from the home and the leach field?
>I will be there for about 3 months and I certainly do not want to make
>a mess or cause problems while I am there.
>
>Thanks for all of the responses.
I dumped this level (and more) of darkroom chems into my septic
system for 20 years - and it still works just fine. If you wish to
take an extra step, buy one of the commercial septic tank bacteria
booster products and add it to the septic system periodically.
Obviously there is a factor of the size of the system and what other
uses (e.g. how many people served, discharge of washing machine into
the system, etc.), but a single system for a house would normally not
be less than a 1,000 gallon tank and appropriate field size for the
soil percolation.
I've since moved my darkroom into a separate building and no longer
discharge into the septic system. Now I discharge into a dry well.
The weeds grow just fine over the spot. Guess it isn't all that great
as a weed killer (actually, the amount of wash water and clean-up
water amply dilutes the chemicals).
John Garand
> You must realize that natural
>evaporation will take a long time and requires proper equipment like large
>shallow trays exposing a large area.
I can tell you've never spent a summer in the Southwest. :-)
dr bob
the sweat won't evaporate over night. I love the southwest and will retire
there (somewhere near Tucson or Taos) as soon as my photograph sales reach
the level of the Weston's. ;-)
(not so) truly, dr bob.
"John Garand" <Garand_...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:p72utu81v7jfj3u4d...@4ax.com...