Darkroom sink - slope help

[Eric Woodbury]

I built mine flat and level in the stand with drain in the corner. Then I shimmed the stand as necessary. It doesn't take much. Mine is about 1" over 8 feet. Probably too much.

[Kevin Crisp]

You could always build it Kansas flat. Then shim it a little until it works the way you want. Less math....

[John Layton]

...but shims can work themselves loose over time and/or degrade - not too difficult to fix in the front row of feet, but the rear feet can be a pain. This is why I gradually shorten the leg pairs from left to right (or to whichever side the drain sits) - then shim the front feet very slightly for a backwards tilt if the drain is in the rear corner (as mine is).

[Kevin Crisp]

I must have sticky shims.

[Greg]

I’d like to expand this discussion to include various design priorities for the base, beyond the important job of supporting the sink. What has worked best for your darkroom?

Over the years I have constructed a number of darkroom sinks and adapted two SS troughs for use as sinks. Present one (image attached) measures inside 2 feet deep by 8 feet wide. I constructed it from 3/4 inch exterior plywood, plywood was pre-cut to size by the lumberyard for free. Their industrial quality table saw cut the pieces to within a 1/16" for all the dimensions of the separate pieces. Sheets of plywood attached to each other with SCORPION brand ceramic coated decking screws placed very close together (an overkill for sure). Since I was painting all the plywood with several coats of paint, they told me that I would be wasting money if I chose to use Marine grade plywood. Outside of the sink was painted with two coats of exterior paint. Inside of the sink was caulked at the seams (in retrospect I didn't need it). Paint used was RUST-O-OLEUM deck and concrete RESTORE 4X (4X thicker than ordinary paint) paint. Initially I think that I applied I believe four heavy coats of paint. Every first of the year I apply another layer/coat of paint. After two plus years the built up of the layers/coats of paint actually resulted in some "elasticity" to its surface and if a glass graduated cylinder tips over and falls on it, it doesn't break. Pitch of the sink is 1/8" per foot. Present drain is at one end of the sink which was dictated by where it was able to directly drain into a dry well on the side of the house. I have never drained into a septic tank or a sewer drain. I very slightly prefer to have the drain to be in the center of the sink, but this is not a game changer. Under the right section of the sink I built in a stack of dryer screens. They easily slip out and in. All the plumbing is attached to an easily removable 2x4 foot 3/4" board. Where the source PEX tubing is attached to the 2x4 foot backboard (upper left hand corner), I installed two lever shutoff valves so I can easily shut off the hot and cold water supplies to everything mounted on the board when I'm not using the darkroom. Darkroom lighting is with a recessed ceiling Thomas Sodium Vapor light with the veins down. Acquiring an OEM replacement bulb for it was a no-brainer and took me a year. A fellow photographer lit his darkroom with LED bulbs. Works 100% but after printing under the illumination of a Thomas Sodium Vapor light since the mid 1970s, just didn't like the illumination of his LED bulbs.
additional thoughts:
1. Initially I thought of using copper piping as I had done in my previous darkrooms, but used PVC piping, and it looked terribly to be amateurly constructed. Really bothered me every time that I used the sink. Soon thereafter I replaced the pipes with PEX tubing and never looked back.
2. Though I most probably will never print 20x24 inch prints again (though I still have a box or two of FB 20x24" paper), just make sure that printing that size is possible in the future.
3. In connecting the hot and cold PEX tubing to two (stuck in closed position) brass shutoff valves, I had a plumber replace the stuck brass shut off valves and connect up the PEX tubing.
4. FB prints did not dry completely on the screens under the sink. I added two vintage "computer" fans behind the screens and the FB prints easily now dry in a few hours.
5. If one of the plumbing connections leaks a drip or two over a minute's time, leave it alone and it will probably "self seal" itself after a while. One of the screw-in connections into my temp control unit drips a drip or two every minute or so into the sink. So be it... beats taking the time to take interconnected things apart to totally make it drip free.
6. Some people swear by using epoxy resin paint to coat their sinks. I've used it and swore by its smell. My RUST-O-OLEUM deck and concrete RESTORE 4X paint had absolutely no smell to it.
7. On a counter opposite the sink I have a wall vent that I use when coating and drying Platinum/Palladium paper. I wish that I had thought ahead to also install an overhead vent system over the sink.
8. Floors, walls, and sink painted close to 18% gray. Three 2x4 foot LED overhead lighting units provide plenty of light.

[Salmo22]

Thanks much for this information Greg. Looks like you have a wonderful darkroom.

Over the years I have constructed a number of darkroom sinks and adapted two SS troughs for use as sinks. Present one (image attached) measures inside 2 feet deep by 8 feet wide. I constructed it from 3/4 inch exterior plywood, plywood was pre-cut to size by the lumberyard for free. Their industrial quality table saw cut the pieces to within a 1/16" for all the dimensions of the separate pieces. Sheets of plywood attached to each other with SCORPION brand ceramic coated decking screws placed very close together (an overkill for sure). Since I was painting all the plywood with several coats of paint, they told me that I would be wasting money if I chose to use Marine grade plywood. Outside of the sink was painted with two coats of exterior paint. Inside of the sink was caulked at the seams (in retrospect I didn't need it). Paint used was RUST-O-OLEUM deck and concrete RESTORE 4X (4X thicker than ordinary paint) paint. Initially I think that I applied I believe four heavy coats of paint. Every first of the year I apply another layer/coat of paint. After two plus years the built up of the layers/coats of paint actually resulted in some "elasticity" to its surface and if a glass graduated cylinder tips over and falls on it, it doesn't break. Pitch of the sink is 1/8" per foot. Present drain is at one end of the sink which was dictated by where it was able to directly drain into a dry well on the side of the house. I have never drained into a septic tank or a sewer drain. I very slightly prefer to have the drain to be in the center of the sink, but this is not a game changer. Under the right section of the sink I built in a stack of dryer screens. They easily slip out and in. All the plumbing is attached to an easily removable 2x4 foot 3/4" board. Where the source PEX tubing is attached to the 2x4 foot backboard (upper left hand corner), I installed two lever shutoff valves so I can easily shut off the hot and cold water supplies to everything mounted on the board when I'm not using the darkroom. Darkroom lighting is with a recessed ceiling Thomas Sodium Vapor light with the veins down. Acquiring an OEM replacement bulb for it was a no-brainer and took me a year. A fellow photographer lit his darkroom with LED bulbs. Works 100% but after printing under the illumination of a Thomas Sodium Vapor light since the mid 1970s, just didn't like the illumination of his LED bulbs.
additional thoughts:
1. Initially I thought of using copper piping as I had done in my previous darkrooms, but used PVC piping, and it looked terribly to be amateurly constructed. Really bothered me every time that I used the sink. Soon thereafter I replaced the pipes with PEX tubing and never looked back.
2. Though I most probably will never print 20x24 inch prints again (though I still have a box or two of FB 20x24" paper), just make sure that printing that size is possible in the future.
3. In connecting the hot and cold PEX tubing to two (stuck in closed position) brass shutoff valves, I had a plumber replace the stuck brass shut off valves and connect up the PEX tubing.
4. FB prints did not dry completely on the screens under the sink. I added two vintage "computer" fans behind the screens and the FB prints easily now dry in a few hours.
5. If one of the plumbing connections leaks a drip or two over a minute's time, leave it alone and it will probably "self seal" itself after a while. One of the screw-in connections into my temp control unit drips a drip or two every minute or so into the sink. So be it... beats taking the time to take interconnected things apart to totally make it drip free.
6. Some people swear by using epoxy resin paint to coat their sinks. I've used it and swore by its smell. My RUST-O-OLEUM deck and concrete RESTORE 4X paint had absolutely no smell to it.
7. On a counter opposite the sink I have a wall vent that I use when coating and drying Platinum/Palladium paper. I wish that I had thought ahead to also install an overhead vent system over the sink.
8. Floors, walls, and sink painted close to 18% gray. Three 2x4 foot LED overhead lighting units provide plenty of light.

[Michael Rosenberg]

On the LF home page you can find my directions on building a sink with pictures using PVC sheeting covering the plywood. In 20+ years it has never leaked! I also placed pictures of the sink. I have processed 20x24 prints with no space issues. My only regret was not placing the drain in the corner instead of the center at the end. The total drop over the length of the sink is 1".