Customer Reviews

Photographic Emulsion Cleaner 4 oz spray

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I learned about PEC-12 at a professional photo convention in Chicago, years ago, and have been using it ever since. It will take Sharpie marker off both the base and emulsion side of film and prints with little or no residue. Also, I have cleaned/restored what looked like serious old water marks off of the base side of film shot in the in 1944. This film was nitrate 6x9 format negs, so without PEC-12, they were dumpster fodder.
Since then, I have used it to take Sharpie off of lots of surfaces. So.. just about any place that Sharpie marks or labels are a problem, give it a shot and it probably will solve the problem. I bought a pint last time and that probably will be a life time supply. No shelf life problem.

I got this cleaner because it is the one I have seen recommended in numerous retouching forums, articles, and books. It is the kind of product you only use if you don't have a choice, if your original is unusable as it is. It's not something you would use on all photos you plan to scan, just when you must.

I have had pretty good luck with it using it on old slides and transparencies. It doesn't make them good as new (that would be impossible) but it does remove a lot of the mildew and fungus that would have made them totally useless. In the process, it saved me hours of retouching.

On prints you have to have a gentle hand. Pressing too hard or using too much solution can cause further damage. If used correctly, you do get improvement. If you can get them fairly clean with a blower, a microfiber cloth, etc., I'd try that first. If there is recognizable fungus or mold, you have no choice.

If it's a historic or essential photo, I would photograph it with a good, sharp, macro lens prior to attempting to clean it. Sometimes the damage that is there is so deep that simply rubbing it with anything at all makes it worse. Once you, at least, have a good photograph of it, then attempt the cleaning very gently. This is an extra step and extra work, but it is totally safe. (This is also the way to go if you have photos printed on honeycomb or other textured papers since they don't scan well).

Once you use the product, you can scan the image. I would never put an image full of fungus, mold, etc. on a scanner and risk contaminating successive images, so cleaning first is a must. (A good scanner glass cleaner is also a must. I recommend the Kinetronics Glass Cleaning Kit for Flatbed Scanners, also available at Amazon.)

Cleaning is not a substitute for restoration work, but it does take you to a point at which you can begin restoration work. I use Pec Pads that are lint free 4"x 4" little pads. This sounds small, but it's better for intricate work since you work on one area/problem at a time.

Another thing: this is a pretty strong smelling solution. I have asthma, so I use it outdoors wearing a mask. Between the mask, the lint-free gloves to avoid getting fingerprints on the slide or print, the tweezers or wooden skewers to hold the slide to the prepared work surface, working outdoors, and the fear of doing more harm than good, this process is a little tense and difficult.

But it is worth it. Anything that can possibly be rescued, has been rescued with this product. And, if you are gentle, don't rub, and don't press too hard, you (at least) don't further damage those things that can't be rescued with current technology.

It's recommended by pros. I used it on my vintage Ektachrome slides, and then scanned at 300 dpi. No damage, no scratches. Like they say, only a drop or 2 does it.

If you want to clean slides/prints. this is the only stuff I would recomend. Just make sure you have good ventilation. It evaporates fast and my office stinks for a while. It is a bit expensive (If you bought a gallon's worth with the small bottles it would cost you $370) but you only need a small amount.
Bill K

I purchased this cleaner to prepare scanning photos from at least 30 years ago. Generally, a small spray will clean the surface. Some photos had ink spots or water stains, and not all were cleanable. I haven't detected exactly what it will clean, but keep in mind it will not clean all ink spots or water spots. If you have a picture that has dirty marks on it, it will NOT come clean, even with extra swiping. Cleaning your photos is a gamble.

The spray bottle is small, use sparingly, plus instructions say not to go over the same spot too much. If you plan to clean many photos, it may be best to go for the larger supply. To go along with this spray, buy the PEC-PAD Lint Free Wipes 4"x4" 100per/Pkg. Rizzo

Works as advertised. A friend asked me to restore a photograph that had salsa on it. I decided to try this product to reduce the level of stain before I did my restoration scan. I'm glad I scanned one time before using the cleaner. It took off a little more than I wanted. My fault as maybe I used too much pressure. Read and follow the instructions

This stuff is just plain noxious. You can't use it in the house. I used it outside on the porch, spraying a tiny bit on a PEC Pad and wiping the slide. Some of the older (ca. 1963 Kodachrome) slides were damaged by the fluid. It worked well on newer slides. The best results were obtained when slides were so dirty that they were basically unusable any other way. Some had mildew on them and this cleaned them up pretty well. It also removes gummy deposits well. In most cases, just blowing dust off the tray-mounted slides using canned air, them blowing off the scanner platten glass and immediately scanning, was the best way to get clean scans. Also, light brushing with a lens brush can be helpful, as well as light rubbing with a PEC Pad. Using this photographic emulsion spray is definitely a last resort. After scanning several thousand slides, I still have most of the bottle left.

We use this to clean 8mm film that comes in to our studio. Other than the fact that we get high as a kite when we forget to turn on the fans while using this product (lesson learned: VENT WELL), this does a great job at removing dust and hairs from 50+ years of build up on the films.

Wish there was a better applicator for this product, just don't know what it would be. We use the lint free pads that the same company makes and rather than "spraying" it on the pad, we dab the cloth with the cap off.

Beware of this product. I used this with their Pec-Pad on my Kodak VC400 120 film. It was just regular film but left a streak when it dried. I try to wipe it off with the cleaner but every time it dries, it leaves a streak so its pretty much on there permanently.

I found some slides I took while in Service in France during 1956-69. They were in bad shape and it really cleaned then great.