I use the Delta Water Temp II or a recent predecessor bought from Calumet for a little more money. You will also need a mixing tap. I screwed my Delta onto a $30 faucet for a utility sink with a hose thread. Once set, the faucet holds the outlet temperature very nearly constant. Of course in summer time the cold water inlet temperature here in Indiana is 71 - 72 degrees, so achieving a 68 deg developer temp requires a few ice cubes sealed in a baggie.
Tried one of those units in my darkroom and as long as you are willing to keep an eye on it regularly and can get by without any other water using appliance kicking in during a darkroom session they can be acceptable. I could not. I found myself watching and tweeking the dial so much I might as well have been cooking a friggin souffle'. All you have is a manual regulator value with a thermometer on it.Originally Posted by Ken Lee
It seemed like I went away for a few minutes and the temp dial was all over the place. Far to cold when the hot water heater was being taxed and then to hot when the washer, shower or dishwasher kick in.
I picked up a Wing Lynch for $100 used and used it for three years before I had to had to have it serviced to like new for $150. The beauty of it is that you know it is absolutely spot on at the temp you set ALL the time irrespective of anything else that is going on. I can walk away from the darkroom when prints or film are washing with confidence that all is well. I consider it a small investment in confidence or at the least the price of admission knowing that this variable is resolved for all the days remaining I am going to have a darkroom.
Cheers!
Last edited by Michael Kadillak; 15-Sep-2008 at 14:20. Reason: typo
Aha !
Thanks !!
Ken, none of the control units mentioned here have active cooling, which is a big problem if your cold water inlet goes above your desired operating temperature during the summer. In MA. this may not be a problem especially if you have well water at about 58 degrees F. The Intellifaucet has active temperature control, pretty nice too, but can only control above the incoming water temperature. Cheapest version is 500 bucks+ but will deliver hefty flows. I've used it in MA with my well water.
If you have municipal water the temp in the underground pipes is pretty stabile so you can even just use small mixing valves if you have a decent supply of hot water.
The caveat with trying to use hot water mixed with cold water is that as you use the hot water from your hot water tank the temperature gradually goes down as you draw on it. For manual control then you have to keep tweaking the valves - that can be OK
especially if you have a big hot water tank and use a low flow to the darkroom sink. Of course the Intellifaucet device adjusts automatically every few seconds I think via solenoid driven valves. However I would occasionally run out of hot water with the device so temp control would fail.
Now in Austin TX I have a worse problem. The incoming summer water temperature is 87 degrees so I need a source of cool water to mix with the incoming city water. As suggested above I use an ice bath with a copper coil imbedded within. With my manually controlled valves it's OK but still a bit of a hassle.
Currently I'm setting up a manually controlled Peltier cooler which can heat or cool depending on the polarity of the electrical terminals. It's rated at 200 watts at a flow of 1.6 liters/min. That's enough of a flow for my needs. The manufacturer also can supply an auto controller that will vary the 24 volt 16 amp DC input signal to the cooling unit. I might spring for that. The DC supplies can be got on ebay and I think a switching type supply (low cost) will work.
Best regards, Nate Potter
In our place--a three story building with four apartments--the water temperatures seem pretty stable. I'm guessing the hot water tank has to be big enough for everyone to take a shower at the same time, but in fact we're all on different schedules, so there seems to be an ample buffer of hot water. I haven't tried to process film, say, at 7:00 a.m., when there's likely to be a lot of demand for water in the building. City water in the summer sometimes won't get down to 68 F, but then I just adjust my development times.
The four-hose manifold I bought was a different brand that I found at our local Home Depot, but it's essentially the same thing (and possibly in fact the same thing rebranded) as the Mintcraft unit that I linked. I also needed a few odd and ends to connect to the shower outlet, and some barbs and tubing of different diameters for the different things I was connecting to.
Here is another 'inexpensive-but-functional' setup.
Temp is set with the handles on the faucet. Flow is controlled with the black valve. Quick-disconnects for the various gadgets that need water. Nothing to solder, everything screws together with 'garden hose' threads.
My darkroom setup may be different than others, but the only time I need the thermometer is to speed up the Jobo warmup by filling it with 24C water and keeping an eye on wash water temp. In both cases, nothing really critical.
Hey Ken. I just built what you are seeking. I bought a shower valve setup in the sale rack at Home Depot -one that had threaded, not sweated connections. I removed the shower valve, as I don't need the rest. The valve is activated by the same one handled circular control that every modern shower has and keeps temperatures within 1.5 degrees as well as preventing hot water spikes. You don't need exact temperatures for most processes and I use a separate hot and cold faucet to tweak the developer temp until it is exactly at 68 degrees. The valve cost me $50 and is very handy.
Good grief.
I continue to be amazed at how cheap people in LF photography can be when to comes to the darkroom, chemistry or fiilm nearly giving themselves medals when it come to the lowest cost expended and then turn around a drop a couple of big ones on a camera or lens. Come on guys.
I learned a long time ago that it is important to use the right tool for the task at hand.
Solid American companies designed and manufacture the right tool for this job.
Time for me to head to the field and make some photographs.....
I use Delta Eco 1 units that work amazingly well for long periods of time without fluctuation. I briefly considered the very fine Hass and Wing Lynch units, but opted for these after rigorous testing. The $350.00 price tag was one reason, but I also liked its simplicity. I bought two and stripped them down to the bare essentials, removing the unnecessary case and logo and replacing the ordinary fittings (elbows, nipples, etc.) with stainless steel to better fit my existing plumbing. I also replaced the ordinary shutoff valve with a stainless steel ball valve for ease of use.
It is more American to find a reliable and, if feasible, an inexpensive tool that does the job needed, while directing scarce resources to areas where they generate the greatest returns. To buy the best possible tool for a job that requires only a good tool is nonproductive and a waste of money (at least for most people on this forum). I suggest you put a hold on intemperate postings for 24 hours, then reconsider whether you want to submit them.
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