"Salox" luminous compound

H Dan,

Judging by the packaging and especially the glass vials and corks, I think it's most probably from some years prior to the 1950s, so it would be prudent to assume that it does contain radium and treat it accordingly. With a half life of around 1,600 years and having radon gas as one of its decomposition products, I'd leave it unopened!

Regards,

Graham

 

G'Day Dan!

Perhaps You can still check it for radioactivity without use of the Geiger counter. If You can still buy B&W film for 35 mm camera and have it processed, You can have a confirmation one way or another. If the film comes back exposed, it is radioactive. It will work even if the can is metal. It is worth paying few bucks just to make sure.

Cheers, Dushan

 

G'Day Dan!

Perhaps You can try at your dentist's or at the radiologist's at the closest health centre.

Cheers, Dushan

 

Most places that are readily available and do still develop film won't return your negatives.
It might be better to just do it yourself. It's not like you're looking to get real pictures or anything.
For developer, you can mix up a super strong instant coffee bath with a couple of tablespoons of washing soda (not baking soda)
8-10,000 mg of vitamin C in lieu of the coffee can be used, as well. Let the film soak for a half hour
For stopping, transfer the film to a mild concentration of vinegar and water and agitate for a minute
For a fixer (Not sure why you'd want to bother) make a strong saltwater solution.

Were I trying this, I'd extract a foot or so of film into a black film canister in a dark room, expose that to your Salox and then develop that strip along with another foot of film pulled off the roll without having been exposed to anything. To be sure the process works, pull the remainder of the film out in a lighted room and develop it with the other two strips.

 

As it will have to be disposed off as low-level radioactive waste, should it contain Ra, I would take to the nearest hazardous waste collection point. They are equipped for such cases. I gather such thing exists in Canada as well. If you can't find anything, I can ask a friend, who worked in this field in Ontario.

 

Good evening, Dushan!

You say that places that develop film no longer return negatives.

I am surprised to hear this. When did this start happening? I was under the impression that negatives are my property, and must therefore be returned to me, though they can, of course, be withheld pending payment for processing services. Prints, on the other hand, remain the property of the laboratory until they are paid for. I am curious as to when the change took place, having been in the photofinishing business more than four decades ago.

Best regards!

Tim Orr

 

G'Day Tim!

The origin of the statement can be located in the quote above, and I am afraid that it was not I who said that.

Of course, I agree with You, without exception. I wonder what is the explanation the processing places give to the customer, hopefully it is not another "pollution" issue.

Cheers, Dushan

 

G'Day Dan!

I have all of my negatives returned to me that were ever processed outside of my own place. Withholding negatives is a news to me, as well as it could be a kind of infringement of the copyright law. Apparently there are too many wackos in this world.

Cheers, Dushan

 

Negatives are your property, full stop.

I gather some places offer to retain them for you, in case you want more prints, but this is an optional service.

 

Developing Film at Retail and Drugstores - Film Return Policy - The Darkroom Lab

I assume things aren't significantly different in B.C.
I'm sure a good local lab will return your negatives. The trouble is finding one.

 

Good evening, all!

Sorry, Dushan, for misattributing the quote. I actually tried to "Reply with Quote" from Martin's post, but something got screwed up and I didn't get the quote I highlighted. Then, in trying to fix that, I named you as the originator.

I've read Martin's citation, and frankly, it is pretty astonishing to me. Of course, hardly anyone shoots film these days, but the cavalier treatment of other people's property is pretty shocking. With black-and-white film, they would, at least, be retaining a tiny amount of silver with each set of negatives. All color processes now remove almost all of the silver in the process, so it can be recovered from the bleach-fix. I suppose one could argue that there's a little extra profit in keeping black-and-white negs, but it can't be a lot.

Best regards!

Tim