I'm reading everything I can about e-forming, and I'm with you FourPaws!
If my solution goes south, I'm just gonna get another bottle from Rio and start over...
I'm doing almost all organic pieces, but I've been over the top anal about coating them in laquer first and then two coats of paint to keep them "sealed" and not pollute my solution. I've been using the coffee filters, too, between sessions and also have the pinkish result that shines to bright - no crumbling. I've been keeping the solution topped off with a bit of distilled H20 and a few drops of brightener.
Hope you get your problem worked out, Kristy, and for sure try Safer Solutions paint. I think it's fantastic!
De