SHELF LIFE OF CHEMICALS

Salted collodion can go bad and the color gives an indication. "Old red"
collodion loses speed and gains contrast. It will either work or not, depending
on the formula. Cadmium-based formulas hold up the longest, ammonium the
least. If it works, OK then. If not, it may improve results with fresh collodion if
you add a bit (10% or so) to the new stuff.

Ether has a shelf life due to the potential formation of explosive peroxides.
Under ideal conditions, many institutions have 3-6 months listed as maximum
storage periods before the stuff should be disposed of.

The developer might oxidize over time. That could be a good thing. Try it. Or,
don't worry and toss it. It is the cheapest part of the process.

If any alcohol has evaporated from the varnish, you might have to add a little to
bring it back to the proper viscosity, but otherwise it should be OK AFAIK.

I'd suspect the Silver Bath would also hold up. Some strength may have been
lost if it plates out on the bottle, but otherwise get the specific gravity back to
normal and it should be OK. The silver nitrate is only light-sensitive in the
presence of organics, so filter it and bring it back to a 9% solution and you
should be good to go.

Chuck everythiing except raw chemicals, the varnish and your silver bath. I've
been using two silver baths alternately since 1999 (with sunning, AgNO3
replenishment) and they are fine. I have used varnish well over a year old - also
fine. Smi. is right about possible evaporation from the varnish- though mine was
sealed in a canning jar it it was ok. Old ether is the real hazard- peroxides may
explode. Old collodion can be used to age your new mix, but don't go crazy- I
add 50 ml to a 450 ml batch tops.