Testing for Vinegar Syndrome

IPI Storage Guide for Acetate Film includes a wheel showing how storage conditions affect the onset of vinegar syndrome in fresh film. Under the cold storage conditions of 40 degrees and 50% relative humidity, vinegar syndrome does not begin for 350 years
IPI Storage Guide for Acetate Film includes a wheel showing how storage conditions affect the onset of vinegar syndrome in fresh film. Under the cold storage conditions of 40 degrees and 50% relative humidity, vinegar syndrome does not begin for 350 years

 
A handy way to test film for the presence of vinegar syndrome is the use of A-D Strips, small strips of specially treated paper that change color to indicate the severity of degradation. The strips are placed inside a film can for a day or so; their color is then compared to a color chart that is calibrated in stages of film deterioration. A-D Strips can detect vinegar syndrome before there is a noticeable vinegar odor. If a film is in advanced stages of vinegar syndrome, it needs cold storage or duplication in order to preserve it. A-D Strips won a Technical Achievement Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1997. They may be obtained from the Image Permanence Institute.