Lets See Your Darkroom

[Halide]

Thanks Gord for the complements on the darkroom. I haven't fabricated much shelving yet , I am waiting until I design and build some custom print drying screens that will attach to the wall opposite the sink. I attached a pic of the light proof fresh air intake I made (it fits in a window), a pic of my first test prints (made in my new darkroom) in a tray washing and a couple other pics.

[Halide]

Hi Fred,

That is an 11"x14" paper safe. I have a separate plastic 16" x 20" for larger paper.

[domaz]

Thanks Gord for the complements on the darkroom. I haven't fabricated much shelving yet , I am waiting until I design and build some custom print drying screens that will attach to the wall opposite the sink. I attached a pic of the light proof fresh air intake I made (it fits in a window), a pic of my first test prints (made in my new darkroom) in a tray washing and a couple other pics.

That looks really good and kind of makes me wish I would have setup my darkroom in a shed like you did. How did you attach the plumbing? That seems like for me anyways that would be the main issue.. my sewer line is 16 feet down.

[Tin Can]

I envy your revolving door

I never found one, always moments late

Very tidy!

Attachment 226757Attachment 226758Attachment 226759

Here is my basement darkroom after a renovation this past winter. I picked up a Sebastian sink, fully PVC plastic construction from an art school that was closing their wet darkroom down. I had to re-arrange everything to fit it in, so now I have a side for developing prints and a sink just for chemical preparation and film developing.

[Halide]

I envy your revolving door

I never found one, always moments late

Very tidy!

I have a rotating door that I squired used many years ago - I was going to install it when my darkroom was in my garage.....Since I rebuilt my darkroom in a dedicated tuff shed I no longer need it. I have never used it after I refurbished it . If you are in the San Francisco bay area you can come by and have it for free. I am about to call the city to see if they will pick it up for recycle. I am in San Jose Ca.

[Tin Can]

Thank you!

However I am 2000 miles away and no longer drive

I simply blacked out my entire home/studio/darkroom

Actually first was a condo and this one is a house

I have a rotating door that I squired used many years ago - I was going to install it when my darkroom was in my garage.....Since I rebuilt my darkroom in a dedicated tuff shed I no longer need it. I have never used it after I refurbished it . If you are in the San Francisco bay area you can come by and have it for free. I am about to call the city to see if they will pick it up for recycle. I am in San Jose Ca.

[Halide]

That looks really good and kind of makes me wish I would have setup my darkroom in a shed like you did. How did you attach the plumbing? That seems like for me anyways that would be the main issue.. my sewer line is 16 feet down.

I put my new darkroom together at my home in the Sierra Foothills - about a half hour drive from Yosemite's southern gate. I use a septic tank system system for the house hold water use. But my darkroom uses a different system I designed. Since water use in the darkroom is washing film and prints I capture the water from the sink in a 50 gallon plastic drum. When it is full of water I drop a submersible water pump (an inexpensive water pond pump) to empty the water out of the plastic drum with a garden hose. I use that water to irrigate the landscaping plants around the house. The pump is used to initiate a siphon effect. I will take a picture of the set up the next time I am at the house. The system works pretty well. I am also getting ready to store rainwater from the house roof for irrigation. California is always in drought mode!

[Pieter]

I put my new darkroom together at my home in the Sierra Foothills - about a half hour drive from Yosemite's southern gate. I use a septic tank system system for the house hold water use. But my darkroom uses a different system I designed. Since water use in the darkroom is washing film and prints I capture the water from the sink in a 50 gallon plastic drum. When it is full of water I drop a submersible water pump (an inexpensive water pond pump) to empty the water out of the plastic drum with a garden hose. I use that water to irrigate the landscaping plants around the house. The pump is used to initiate a siphon effect. I will take a picture of the set up the next time I am at the house. The system works pretty well. I am also getting ready to store rainwater from the house roof for irrigation. California is always in drought mode!

Is there any concern about residual fixer (continuing silver, an antibacterial agent) going into the ground and being absorbed by plants? Is it benign, beneficial or so slight that it's not an issue at all?

[Halide]

Is there any concern about residual fixer (continuing silver, an antibacterial agent) going into the ground and being absorbed by plants? Is it benign, beneficial or so slight that it's not an issue at all?

My has wife asked me the same questions ! The residual chemistry of print washing is not an issue. I've not dumped exhausted photo chemistry into my 50 gallon water recovery drum. Exhausted chemistry goes down the house hold drain - either to city sewage or my septic tank at my mountain house.

The active chemistry (sodium and acids) on the paper is at minimal measurements, then it is highly diluted during print washing. (I let my prints drip most of the chemistry back into the chemistry trays before they hit the washer tray or washer tank).

[Halide]

I put my new darkroom together at my home in the Sierra Foothills - about a half hour drive from Yosemite's southern gate. I use a septic tank system system for the house hold water use. But my darkroom uses a different system I designed. Since water use in the darkroom is washing film and prints I capture the water from the sink in a 50 gallon plastic drum. When it is full of water I drop a submersible water pump (an inexpensive water pond pump) to empty the water out of the plastic drum with a garden hose. I use that water to irrigate the landscaping plants around the house. The pump is used to initiate a siphon effect. I will take a picture of the set up the next time I am at the house. The system works pretty well. I am also getting ready to store rainwater from the house roof for irrigation. California is always in drought mode!

I have attached images if the water capture system.... it is pretty simple - the water from the print washer / sink passes through the wall and dumps directly into a 55 gal drum. I have a simple hatch on the side of the drum that I open when dumping water into the drum. When I am done washing prints I drop the "water fountain pump" into the tank, attach a garden hose to the brass fitting and plug the pump into an electrical wall socket. After the water is exiting the end of the garden hose I dissconnect the pump electrical plug from the wall socket and let the physics of "siphon" empty the water from the barrel to my plants.