Everything But The Darkroom Sink!

[J. P. Mose]

Hello,

I am building a darkroom in my basement. I am done with eveything but the sink. All of your prior answers have been very helpful on other subjects. I want your opinions on what type of ABS sink I should go with. I am basically set on Delta based on my research and the variety available. I don't want to make a sink. I can comfortably go up to 72" in the space I have. What I am having trouble deci ding on is what type? There are convertibles, deep on one end, etc. I am confuse d about what I will need, and being an example of why "Murphy's Law" was written , I don't want to make an expensive mistake.

Although I currently don't develop color, I have in the past and I want to be ab le to expand into this. My primary will be B&W up to 16 X 20 prints and 20 X 24' s once in a blue moon. I process film (35mm, 120 and 4 X 5) in Jobo tanks w/o mo tor (I use the manual roller). I want to start C-41 and E-6 processing and color prints up to 16 X 20's. Usage will be light. In the past, I have always used a laundry tub or what ever was around for washing prints. I used larger trays fo r temperature of print/film trays. I am ready to have a darkroom as I've always dreamed of!

I have seached for recommendations on the web and haven't been too successful. T he folks on the Graflex website have provided me with some answers. I thought a posting here may also do the trick. What do you guys recommend? Thanks.

Best regards,

J. P. Mose

[Kevin J. Kolosky]

I recommend you be patient and kind of watch what comes along becasue more and more people are abandoning darkroom work and I see sinks coming up for sale more and more often.

[Chad Jarvis]

I recently installed a 6' Delta-1 ABS 6" depth. I've been very pleased with it. It will accomodate 3-16x20 or 4-11x14 trays.

[bob moulton]

A few years ago I experienced a similar situation. A friend/workshop teacher suggested I contact a local restaurant supply company and look for a used but not too abused steel sink or contact a local metal fabricator company about having one built. I print up to 16x20s process 35-4x5 in a Jobo/Uniroller combination. I decided I wanted an 8 footx2-3 foot by 8-10 inches deep sink. Ultimately I found that his suggestions produced better prices than I could get if I opted for a sink from a darkroom specialist--B&H, Calumet,etc. Leedal in Chicago often has seconds that are priced competitively, but they were still a bit high. The local restaurant supply house had nothing AT THAT TIME that I wanted. A local fabricator made the sink to my specifications, and I had a stand built for it.

So i would suggest you at least investigate thaqt possibility. You might be pleasantly surprised.

[Michael Feldman]

Delta-1 makes a wide variety of sinks, but unfortunately they don't have a website. You can contact them to get a catalog. B&H Photo also sells most of their sinks. I would recommend getting an ABS sink with a high back (about 13"). This makes it easier to clean with a spray hose without water spraying against the rear darkroom wall. It comes in a variety of widths. You can the buy drain kit from Delta-1, but all the other custom drainpipes can be easily made from parts at Home Depot.

Delta 1, 10830 Sanden Drive, Dallas TX 75238, (800) 627-0252, Fax (800) 627-0267

[Bruce Schultz]

Build your own sink. I used plywood and drywall screws to build a sink to my specs, then covered the inside with epoxy resin and fiberglass cloth on the seams. I cut a drain hole and used PVC pipe. It ain't purdy but it gets the job done for a fraction of the cost.

[Charlie Stracl]

I purchased a 7 foot Arkay fiberglass sink. If you use stainless steel 16x20 trays, you can get 4 in the sink. 3 trays really isn't enough for b&w processing, unless you have a separate out-of-sink holding tray. It was about $1000, and more than the Delta sinks, but I couldn't find any Delta that would handle 4 16x20 trays. One of them looked like it would, but it had a faucet mounting area that protruded into the sink, which cut down on the real working area.

By the way, if you have a SS sink fabricated used 316L steel. Kitchen grades of stainless will rust with some B&W photo chemicals.

[jnantz]

hi there i would second bruce's suggestion. while regular plywood is cheeper, i would suggest getting marine plywood. it will hold up better. good luck!

[Hank Pennington]

If you go the plywood/fiberglass route, consider topping all surfaces as a final step with GelCoat (spelling approximate). This is the product used as a final coat on fiberglass boats, etc., and it easily fills rough areas and sands to a nice smooth surface. Best of all it is available in basic white, which will considerably brighten up your sink area.

Hank

[John Elder]

I agree with Bruce: build it with Plywood. I built an 8ft sink that has not given me any problems during its 5 year life.