Darkroom portraits

[Batiendo]

here is mine

not the best darkroom. but work's good for me

 

[John Jarosz]

My basement darkroom has evolved over 30 years. The only thing left from that period in time is the 6' sink along the far wall and the temp control water valve. I started with a little 6x6 enlarger (actually the Durst 606). Big changes came when I started carbon. The UV lightsource and the second sink on the right were needed for that. Newest addition is the 8x20 vacuum printing frame (yes it's wood -- I made it just like my aluminum one for more traditional aspect ratios. )

John

 

[langedp]

WOW Now THAT is an enlarger. How does she handle on the road ?

Handles like a fine sports car It's certainly engineered like one.

I just acquired my fourth 8x10 enlarger in a NY State surplus sale. It's a Durst 1840 vertical enlarger in extremely good condition. I'll probably be selling it in the near future because who NEEDS four 8x10 enlargers? It's a beauty though so I'm going to contemplate this one for awhile.

The 1840 came with a bunch of other commercial darkroom equipment they were selling on the auction site. What I really wanted in that sale is the subject of my next addition to the darkroom. I'll post pictures once I get things assembled. One hint however. How best to process 30"x40" RA4 color prints that you want to make from those 8x10 negatives?

 

[Dennis S]

I am going to start 120mm horizontal enlarging on my Bseler in the near future and I bet it is not quite as good as that one !!m 16 X 20 maybe 20 X 24 Maximum so I really think that size and using color is WAY out of my league.

 

[DeBone 75]

"I just acquired my fourth 8x10 enlarger in a NY State surplus sale. It's a Durst 1840 vertical enlarger in extremely good condition. I'll probably be selling it in the near future because who NEEDS four 8x10 enlargers? It's a beauty though so I'm going to contemplate this one for awhile."

So does that mean that nice John Deere tractor will have to spend the winter out in the cold.

 

[ic-racer]

Handles like a fine sports car It's certainly engineered like one.

I just acquired my fourth 8x10 enlarger in a NY State surplus sale. It's a Durst 1840 vertical enlarger in extremely good condition.

Any spare 8x10 color heads you would consider selling separate?

 

[langedp]

...So does that mean that nice John Deere tractor will have to spend the winter out in the cold.

Not a chance.

 

[langedp]

Any spare 8x10 color heads you would consider selling separate?

Spare color heads that just happen to come with the rest of the enlarger, sure

Seriously, I have two DeVere 1010 horizontals I'll probably be getting rid of and now this Durst 1840 CLS. Send me a PM with what you have in mind.

 

[Steve_7x]

Hmhhh... I have an extra Durst CLS1840 head and the ETL1000 (?) power supply. Both are working. Bought as spares... I need the space. PM me.

Steve

 

[Greg Heath]

gettin' there

I've been busy in my off time trying to build my first darkroom. Reading allot and looking at others setups here. I sure do love all the great ideas folks have.

I posted a couple pics a couple months ago and really want to get started but realized that to get better I needed to be organized and have a dedicated place that I could leave everything set up, so I could just pop down to the basement for a couple hours and start learning. So this is a first attempt.

4 walls studded, sheet rocked, mudded..(well almost...)
Electrical run, plumbing run (that was a B**** !), cutting into the sewer line.
I was so scared I was going to mess it up.. Measure 4x & cut once.
White pipe on 8' sink will be ventilation ducts for just above trays connected to
Inline Centrifugal fan (300CFM) and will be located to right and above PEX "SharkBite" plumbing Shutoffs, and vented outside of the house. Have to drill that out tomorrow...supposed to snow... Should be fun getting cold and muddy.

Still have to build light proof filtered intake from scratch. Will figure something out.

I didn't plumb the 8 foot sink. But I did install a drain.
The drain will drain into a 5 gallon bucket, if something is spilled.
Then I can just dump it into the sink. Saves time, is easy and is cheap.
Thank you Jim for the sink !

The reasoning is that the bottom of the sink is flat. I would have had to elevate one side after I built a platform, fill the middle hole with Epoxy, and redrill and fit a drain down by the sink. I then would have had to put some kind of elevation device (2x4) to keep the trays up out of the muck.. too much work. So I screwed the sink to a particle board table and cut out a drain area.. Bam..done..
I will wash prints in the small sink somehow.

The WINDOW will be painted over and sealed with insulation. Or something else I have yet to figure out.

On the opposite wall will be my Beseler 45M and 23CII. and dry cutting area.

The size of the room is 9x15 feet (3x5 meters).

I'm 80% done, with 90% to go...

Thanks to everyone with a darkroom that posts pictures. It helps seeing what others have done to work around problems and find solutions.

feel free to give me suggestions.

thanks..

Greg

 

[JBrunner]

Hi Greg,

I have a similar set up with a tub sink at the end of my 8ft darkroom sink. I have a print washer on a stand that drains into the tub sink, but for smaller jobs, sheet film, etc I set an 11x14 tray on an upside down dish rack at the end of the 8 foot sink so the end of the tray protrudes over the tub sink. I attach a tray siphon washer to the end that hangs over so it drains into the tub sink. Keeps most of the tub sink open and works like a charm.

 

[aparat]

I'm 80% done, with 90% to go...
Greg

Greg, you are going to have a fantastic darkroom. It looks like you have already taken care of the most difficult and cumbersome installations. Congratulations!

 

[langedp]

...I didn't plumb the 8 foot sink. But I did install a drain. The drain will drain into a 5 gallon bucket, if something is spilled. Then I can just dump it into the sink. Saves time, is easy and is cheap...

Why not just drain the big sink into the small sink? A small PVC pipe (1-1/2" or even smaller) in the end (not the bottom) of the big sink and then just hanging over the top of the small sink. Elevate the opposite end of the big sink a bit and things should drain OK. Not ideal but might be easier than the 5 gal bucket route.

 

[jeroldharter]

...

feel free to give me suggestions.

thanks..

Greg

Looks great. I agree with the suggestion to drain the big sink into the washtub.

I think you will want more water outlets, especially above the large sink. Ideally you would have some type of tempering device apart from the washtub faucet. Above the sink, I suggest some lab outlets (if the water is tempered, else just for cold) like the ones on this page:

http://www.plumbingproducts.com/chicagolabfaucets.html

For the light tight air intake, don't knock yourself out. Get one or two of these. they work very well and you can tape a filter on either side if you wish:

http://www.calumetphoto.com/item/DN3050/

For the window, is that an egress window? Might be against code to permanently seal it off. I suggest inserting some rigid insulation into the window opening and then building a simple, removable, plywood sheet to block out the light perhaps with some felt or flange material around the edges for a good seal. That way you could remove it easily if need be.

I have a nice darkroom. If you are ever in the Stevens Point area let me know and you can check it out.

 

[bobwysiwyg]

Greg,

Hope you plan to post updates from time to time. I hope to head down the same path this winter. I sure wish we could use PVC here for the pressurized side. My copper plumbing skills are OK, but my sweat joints aren't the prettiest.

 

[jeroldharter]

Greg,

Hope you plan to post updates from time to time. I hope to head down the same path this winter. I sure wish we could use PVC here for the pressurized side. My copper plumbing skills are OK, but my sweat joints aren't the prettiest.

You should be able to use PEX. I think you need a special tool for the fittings though.

 

[bobwysiwyg]

Thanks, I'll have to look into it.

 

[Greg Heath]

Thanks for all the responses. I appreciate your input. It's easier asking when you don't know. I do need more water lines for over the sink. With the "SharkBite" plumbing fittings and PEX pipe, I could do it in less than an hour. I found the Sharkbite fittings at Home Depot and they work GREAT. My copper skills are pretty bad...( I watched practice videos on YouTube) I had to do some to tapping into the lines so I could run the sharkbite to PEX lines and my copper ended up looking like Silver Pipes..Practice makes perfect and I didn't have time.. but they work ok...
I could plumb the sink and let it drain through some pvc..but it would drive me crazy. So probably I will drill the end and work out some sort of drain to the other sink. My thought in not making it a "true" sink, was that it was going to be mostly a table that held trays and in the event that something spilled, I would not have to worry too much because the water would just end up in the bucket, and into the sink eventually when I was done. Plus the expense of the other faucet...fittings, etc. I guess I should do it right and build it.

Thanks for the link to Calumet for the vents. Much appreciated.

One question I have.. Is it necessary to paint the wall behind the Enlarger Flat Black ? My intention is to do so, but can it ever make a difference?

I see some people do it and some don't. Is there a rule..or just what you feel like doing?

I will post some more pictures soon.

I feel a little like a clod, because of all the pros out here and serious Amateurs. But I have to start somewhere, and learning something new and from others is pretty great and I enjoy everyone's input.

Greg

 

[Greg Heath]

Plumbing Fittings

You should be able to use PEX. I think you need a special tool for the fittings though.

I looked into the Tools for PEX, and they were like $100 each.

One for 3/4" and 1/2" will run you $200 plus all the fittings etc...

If you buy the PEX tubing and use the SharkBite Connectors. Each Connector is like $6.00

I got 50 feet of white PEX tubing for like $15 and got the whole thing done for
about $100.

don't get the Sharkbite fittings at ACE hardware unless you have to, because they charge like 2x the price of the major stores. Ace and Truevalue are great in a pinch, but can't compete with the Depot and such.

http://www.cashacme.com/prod_sharkbite.php

I used mostly the Cash Acme Sharkbite fittings because I felt they were better built.

Wade manufacturing (Menards) have different fittings and they are good but they were not the quality I wanted. They were not as sturdily built (my opinion)..



My plan was to build a darkroom to process film, but in the process I have become an electrician, Plumber, Drywaller, Mudder (crummy one at that) and a carpenter. Someday I hope to be a good photographer.


Greg

 

[canuhead]

When I ran some pex in my darkroom, the fittings and clamp from HD weren't that much. I used the pinch fit type clamp fittings which are easier to remove if need be. The other ones which look like a continuous ring were more $ and those tools were in the price range Greg noted. A good copper joint is something to be proud of but pex is way faster and can run easy curves.

 

[Greg Heath]

Jerold thanks for the invite to see your darkroom. Many thanks for the ideas. The basement window is not an egress window. In Wisconsin, as long as you do not use your basement for a living area, you don't have to have one. The house was built in 1998 and at the time did not require one.


Greg

 

[jeroldharter]

...
One question I have.. Is it necessary to paint the wall behind the Enlarger Flat Black ? My intention is to do so, but can it ever make a difference?

...
Greg

I have gone both ways -- white and black. In the end, I painted the area around the enlarger black because it does minimize the effect of light leaks and stray light that is "bounced" off of walls adjacent to the enlarger while exposing a sheet of paper.

However, if you paint it black, use semi-gloss. It is somewhat more reflective than flat paint but certainly not ruinous. But it is much easier to clean and is less likely to attract dust than a flat surface. I would use semi-gloss pain regardless of the color you choose.

If you are ambivalent about the paint color around the enlarger, do this:
buy some large sheets of black Foam-cor and use Blue-Tack adhesive to attach it to the wall around the enlarger. That way you can do a trial and see if you prefer black. Then you can paint, or if you are sick of working rather than printing, just leave the Foam-cor up for 10 years until you get around to painting.

Don't feel like a clod for trying to sort through all of the variables. That is most of the fun and the fact that you are acquiring the skills to do it yourself is great. It will serve you well in the long run.

 

[CBG]

Remember that if you paint the surface black, you can repaint it white or yellow or whatever... Paint is pretty reversible.

C

 

[Greg Heath]

thanks

Good Point...

 

[Bob F.]

Though, covering black paint with a light colour afterwards can require several coats. I did not bother but would suggest black cartridge paper stuck to the wall with blu-tack or similar might be a reasonable compromise.