Dangerous chemicals...
Aug 2, 2022 15:49:06 #
TheShoe wrote:
You mean to say that the drums will not rust?
Yes, if exposed to the right conditions. I believe the sites are supposed to be sealed, like that will last forever. I'm saying we put chemicals which do not naturally degrade unless exposed to the elements (site designed to stop that, Right!) in the ground ,so a drum of carbon tet will be still carbon tet when disrupted sometime in the future. Maybe we don't still bury the stuff, but we still were after the Love Canal disaster.
The worse things when I was working were mercury compounds, no one recycled them in US, so you paid for storage; small lecture bottles of carbon 14 CO2, no one wanted them, drugs which were once used in lab, but now controlled substances, told I could not have it because it was illegal, so how could I want to dispose of something I could not possibly have; and things like Uranium nitrate (don't what it was used for, but we had it), no laws covered something both radioactive and possible explosive.
Aug 2, 2022 15:59:53 #
A little bit at a time in the drain , just when the washing machine goes to empty , or when you take a shower .It will be gone eventually .
Aug 2, 2022 16:18:25 #
Artcameraman
Loc: Springfield NH
Thanks. Neighbors said just mix with water and let it "avoraporate" Yup that is just how he said it. Not sure what he was sayin!
Aug 2, 2022 17:30:45 #
Artcameraman wrote:
Thanks. Neighbors said just mix with water and let it "avoraporate" Yup that is just how he said it. Not sure what he was sayin!
While that is probably not going to get a homeowner in trouble, the Federal fine for simply having an open bottle of waste, other than when one is adding more waste, was 11 yrs ago, $10,000 per bottle per day. It was one of the most cited violations during monthly hazardous waste inspections. Also, with some exceptions, treatment of wastes to make them no longer hazardous required special license(s), which even USDA labs did not have. For some like cyanide, dilution simply made a larger volume of waste. Anything with a pH less than 2 or greater than 12 was considered hazardous, acetic would be OK, sulfuric no, ammonia no, bleach no (pH and corrosive). Women's old perms would be illegal to dispose of do to pH and formaldehyde.
Aug 2, 2022 20:40:57 #
First of all, the fixer itself is not especially toxic and is actually much less so than other chemicals, such as developers. The problem is the silver salts dissolved in it. I have some used fixer that I have not disposed of since before COVID. Fortunately, COVID also cut down on my photographic activity. There used to be a facility in my city that accepted used fixer and would dispose of it properly. I have not checked on their status since COVID. One alternative you might want to consider is something I just saw online: to dry the used fixer in cat litter or dicalite powder and dispose of it at the landfill with regular solid waste.
Aug 2, 2022 21:00:59 #
Artcameraman wrote:
My stash of depleted darkroom chemicals has become a problem of late especially the fixer. I don't have a safe place to dispose of them in my area on New Hampshire. Does anyone know of a disposal company that will do this for a small fee?
It’s ridiculous that hazardous waste from homes isn’t excepted by a city run or contractor for free for everyone. Even our small isolated city of Juneau Alaska has hazardous waste drop off two days a week. No registration, no paperwork. Just take it and give it to them. The city takes care of it.
Aug 2, 2022 21:54:45 #
fetzler
Loc: North West PA
burkphoto wrote:
Stop bath is acetic acid. Fixer is a (sodium or ammonium) thiosulfate salt. It may contain a sulfuric acid emulsion hardener.
None of those is a problem, but the dissolved silver from the film or paper is an environmentally hazardous waste product.
None of those is a problem, but the dissolved silver from the film or paper is an environmentally hazardous waste product.
Sodium thiosulfate (fixer) is not a particularly toxic material. Indeed, it has medical uses as a drug and is used as a food additive. Do not hesitate to flush it down the drain with lots of water. Silver ions are also found in nature and with sufficient dilution will not pose a problem. Remember you are a hobbyist not a factory. Diluting the fixer with Salt water will precipitate out Silver chloride which could be filtered and sold if you would like.
For those with chemical paranoia ,I am collecting funds to ban Oxidane that contaminates nearly everything on Earth.
Aug 2, 2022 22:38:04 #
Aug 2, 2022 22:46:09 #
OldSchool-WI
Loc: Brandon, Wisconsin 53919
GreenReaper wrote:
Several years ago before I retired, we had a truckload of photochemistry to dispose of. I called the appropriate folks and I was told to put it down the drain with lots of water to dilute it before it reached the treatment plant. Unless you are on a septic system, that should work, but as already mentioned, call first.
Indeed this is the correct answer if the facts are examined---unless you are a far-left environmental non-scientific purist. i.e.---a nut.
Aug 3, 2022 08:22:58 #
fetzler
Loc: North West PA
JBRIII wrote:
While that is probably not going to get a homeowne... (show quote)
Acids and bases are easy to dispose of- just neutralize them. (e.g Hydrochloric Acid needs to be neutralized with sodium hydroxide (lye) to make salt water that can go down the drain). Remember again you are an individual with small quantities not a large company. My county has an hazardous waste center that disposes of such materials - usually those containing heavy metals.
Aug 3, 2022 11:07:18 #
rwww80a
Loc: Hampton, NH
No, don't mix it with other stuff, that makes it harder to dispose of properly. Take it in its original container to the local household hazardous chemical disposal day for your community.
Aug 3, 2022 22:09:18 #
OldSchool-WI
Loc: Brandon, Wisconsin 53919
Well you got the full range of answers like with any question posed to this group. Here is another one--why no offer your concentrated chemicals to someone who still does photography and not merely digital manipulative photography?------
Aug 4, 2022 07:40:02 #
Artcameraman
Loc: Springfield NH
Great ideas but the authorities won't cooperate so I'll do it the only way possible for me. It seams the more government we have the harder it is to take a crap.
Aug 5, 2022 15:25:41 #
Dilute in water and flush it, Depending on quantities. If your talking one or two 1 quart bottles, then just dump it and dilute it by running water. Any larger quantities, then I would do it over time, say once a week.
Aug 6, 2022 08:45:55 #
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