Plumbing for Water Temp Control + Darkroom Plans

[Ken Lee]

Who makes, or where can one get, the plumbing accessories which deliver a stream of water at a controlled temperature ?

I will be building a very simple darkroom. I've been developing film in a tiny bathroom for the last 6 years, and before that (in the 1970's) I used a small garden shed, erected in the basement, with with no running water.

Are there sites which show a variety of plans for darkrooms ? Someone mentioned APUG, but a quick search did not reveal anything for me. Perhaps I missed it ?

[Steve Kefford]

Hass Manufacturing (here). They make the intellifaucet. I have just had one delivered today, and the are avery helpful company.
Steve

[Michael Kadillak]

Who makes, or where can one get, the plumbing accessories which deliver a stream of water at a controlled temperature ?

I will be building a very simple darkroom. I've been developing film in a tiny bathroom for the last 6 years, and before that (in the 1970's) I used a small garden shed, erected in the basement, with with no running water.

Are there sites which show a variety of plans for darkrooms ? Someone mentioned APUG, but a quick search did not reveal anything for me. Perhaps I missed it ?

The devices are made my Wing Lynch or Intellifaucet. Getting the water into the unit is basic plumbing of soldered copper. I tried an expensive back pressure valve simiar in design to what they use for sprinkling systems for your lawn and it was a bust. Damn thing kept leaking because of the irregular flow I maintained through the water temprature control unit. Being able to evacuate your water flow lines and keep water from backing into your water supply lines is a good thing. Keeps mold from forming. I solved the problem by putting in a "T" with a valve and an open pipe on one side to allow it to open to the air. Allows air into the flow lines to drain them.

I would also recommend monitoring your filters on your hot and cold side to make sure that you understand when they should be changed out. I let mine go a bit longer than I should have and they got rather nasty. Now I change them about every six months. I can send you pics of what I am talking about if that would help.

You will love the system.

[ASRafferty]

Ken, in case it's helpful:

Ted had the temp control apparatus that he acquired with the Jobo installed when we adapted the space for his office and studio, along with a small hot water heater to take care of that and the powder room that we put in that space when we brought water over from the house. I know you've seen it before, but if it would be of any help in collecting your thoughts to come over and look at that again, you're most welcome.

[k_redder]

Who makes, or where can one get, the plumbing accessories which deliver a stream of water at a controlled temperature ?

I will be building a very simple darkroom. I've been developing film in a tiny bathroom for the last 6 years, and before that (in the 1970's) I used a small garden shed, erected in the basement, with with no running water.

Are there sites which show a variety of plans for darkrooms ? Someone mentioned APUG, but a quick search did not reveal anything for me. Perhaps I missed it ?

Here's a possibility:
http://www.rosyproducts.com/water_te...xing_panel.htm

[Allen in Montreal]

Ken,

if you want to keep the costs down but have an effective system for only a few dollars, buy three on / off values and one threaded water temp gage. use the hot and cold one off to set the temp and the third for an exit on off facet.

Solder the hot and cold together but not in a manner that could create flow back. Solder in a threaded brass section for the gage, then down along the sink the final faucet connected to a hose. You are set for 50 dollars or less.

There are issues to this inexpensive but effective system.
You should shut the hot every night to prevent flow back into the rest of the system.
You need to let it run to keep the temp constant. even if only at a trickle.
If you close the flow, and reopen later, it will come back but will take a minute or two to stabilize.

If you would like, I will take a few pix of mine tonight and post them for you.

[Glenn Thoreson]

Temperature controlled mixing valves are readily available at large plumbing supply firms. Probably at much more realistic prices than the stuff sold specifically for darkroom use. I do it the easy way. I just adjust the faucet until the temp is right and leave it run until I don't need it.

[Matt Miller]

Ken,

if you want to keep the costs down but have an effective system for only a few dollars, buy three on / off values and one threaded water temp gage. use the hot and cold one off to set the temp and the third for an exit on off facet.

Solder the hot and cold together but not in a manner that could create flow back. Solder in a threaded brass section for the gage, then down along the sink the final faucet connected to a hose. You are set for 50 dollars or less.

There are issues to this inexpensive but effective system.
You should shut the hot every night to prevent flow back into the rest of the system.
You need to let it run to keep the temp constant. even if only at a trickle.
If you close the flow, and reopen later, it will come back but will take a minute or two to stabilize.

If you would like, I will take a few pix of mine tonight and post them for you.

This is the system I have and it works great for very little money. Once you take a few minutes to let the hot & cold temps stabilize, it stays surprisingly constant.

[David A. Goldfarb]

The thread you probably want to look at on APUG is the "Darkroom Portraits" thread, which has photos of lots of different types of darkrooms--

http://www.apug.org/forums/forum43/1...portraits.html

Here's the rather simple, but effective, manual temperature control setup in my new bathroom converted to a darkroom--

http://www.apug.org/forums/forum43/5...tml#post667266

It won't automatically turn the knobs for me, but given the ways that I use water in the darkroom, I seem to be able to manage that myself. Maybe if I had to maintain an E-6 line at 100 F for hours, I'd benefit from an automated unit like the Intellifaucet.

The main thing is that I've got four outlets, so I can have one big hose for general use, one for the print washer, one for the film washer, and a thin flexible hose for rinsing when I'm doing local bleaching, or turning a film tank into a rinse tank, and other uses. To drain the hoses, I just open them all up, and usually one is empty to serve as a vent.

[Ken Lee]

Thanks to all. As always, this is the place to ask !

David, your solution seems appropriate for me, since I develop film and make platinum prints only a few times per month.

The Brass 4 Way Faucet Manifold GB9114A by Mintcraft Garden, hooked up to a Delta Water Temp II with Temperature Lock, available at B&H Photo, looks like a superb combination, and comes in at less than $100. Plus, it is modular, so each piece can be replaced with another affordable copy if necessary.