Darkroom Set up help needed! Surprise for my husband

[RalphLambrecht]

Well, if it's indeed a shopping cart I would use it to haul materials for a nice shed.

Some time back. Ilford announced the manufacture of an indoor darkroom tent! Don't know what came of it.

 

[eli griggs]

I've mentioned this before but a solar chimney will provide great convection ventilation, and cooler and dryer environment in Summer weather and a warm and comfortable space in Winter.

I suspect for cooling, a long, pleated, bellows like center feature that could lower a heavy muslin down and into a drainable, water filled reserve tank, where it could be wetted to soaking, and pulled up a small block and tackle, by a center cable, with four corner grommets at the bellows corners run through four, thin static cables that only guide the bellows up and down the inside of the tower/chimney.

Like the middle eastern buildings have for thousands of years, with long, wet cloths hung on projecting beams, designed to cool the rooms within by the natural effects of energy exchange, i believe the pleated folds, can make a similar contribution to cooling the darkroom below.

 

[Molli]

Calling @calebarchie
They've done exactly that - https://www.thecontainerlab.com/blog AND they're here in Australia ☺
I don't know which state you're in, but there are Aussies all about on Photrio and hopefully there might be one of us nearby who experience the same weather as you and will know local sources to help you get going.
Welcome to Photrio from the southern end of Australia!

 

[DarkroomWife]

A shipping container???

All I can say is "It's the thought that counts!"

Move what's in one of the rooms in the house OUT to the shipping container -- and turn that EMPTY room into a darkroom -- with insulation, drainage, ventilation, plumbing, electricity, heating, cooling, etc. etc.

I’m not 100% sure the kids would be keen on their new bedroom but thank you for the perspective ;-)

 

[DarkroomWife]

Tha

Calling @calebarchie
They've done exactly that - https://www.thecontainerlab.com/blog AND they're here in Australia ☺
I don't know which state you're in, but there are Aussies all about on Photrio and hopefully there might be one of us nearby who experience the same weather as you and will know local sources to help you get going.
Welcome to Photrio from the southern end of Australia!

Thank you so much!! What a great connection

 

[DarkroomWife]

My darkroom is in my garage with no running water or drainage. I bring in filtered water in gallon jugs. Washing film and prints takes place in a utility sink outside the garage, draining into a bucket or sometimes directly into the ground. Used chemistry is stored in jugs and picked up every few months by the city’s hazardous waste program. Make sure the structure you intend to use has some sort of ventilation.

Thank you that is really useful to know - how soon after do you need to rinse the prints? (Can they wait for an hour or need to be done immediately?)

Waste disposal is also something to consider and storing to dispose later is a great plan

 

[DarkroomWife]

probably also some sort of temperature control - it can be a hassle if ambient temperature is very hot or cold.

Great point! A black box room in Australia will need some temperate consideration - noted!! Thank you!

 

[DarkroomWife]

Back to your original plan, will the solar panels supply enough power for an enlarger, timer and safe lights? Will there be some sort of battery storage for cloudy, dark days or if he wants to work into the night? Also, if he is developing film in the winter, it is nice to have an electric kettle to warm water, and a frozen bottle of water to cool down water so he can work within a 5-10º range of 68º.

Room temperature control is good, too. My garage is insulated so doesn't get too hot. A fan helps on warmer days, but can blow dust around. I have an oil-filled radiator for chilly days. A ceramic and other similar electric heaters produce light that would most probably fog paper. If the weather is too cold or too hot, I skip darkroom work altogether.

As far as drainage is concerned, there is an alternate I have looked into but never followed though--an RV water tank on wheels that would fit under the sink and could be taken out and drained as necessary.

I was thinking a battery bank to provide power at night, I am getting some help with this from a friend of mine (who will be doing the fit out) but will need to give him as much direction as I can!

Is the equipment a huge drain energy wise? Maybe something I need to gauge first.::

There was me thinking this might be simple !! But I’m committed!!

 

[DarkroomWife]

Insulation must be first, the space has to be workable, and comfortable Fall, Spring and mild Summers, but you need to watch for too thickly insolated walls, which will limit internal space availability.


Secondly, the building MUST need to be secured to the earth, by do it yourself, concrete piers if able, not by a hill that water or debris can strike/pile up against the storage container, or winds lift it up off supports.

Equally importantly, elevated over all and pinned at 18 inches from and above the Earth to the door threshold so no flash flooding or snow fall, of moderate depth can prevent usage.

To help with drainage, both from nature and darkroom washing, make sure your "OUT" drain pipe is protected from critters taking home inside the vent or plants growing up and the drainage is able to run away from the darkroom, by digging and installing a trench filled with water rounded pebbles, in a square/rectangle surround of the building and external power supply which leads flowing water away from the site and not toward any other infrastructure, on property or off.

(For chemistry that needs disposal of, a plastic industrial barrel with a screened and rain protective cover, where you can allow the water portions of developers, fixers, etc to evaporate, before gathering the dry residue and disposing of it.)

Third is to make all electricals, boxes, etc, join up to a free standing, roofed, bulletin board, before a single line takes power into the building's electrical system.

I believe it is more safe to do this than hang the boxes and junctures onto a metal shipping container, only allowing safety outlets to run inside.

That's my personal starting up advice.

P.S., water usage can be done completely for film developing and black & white papers, by getting him to use the Ilford Methods for both.

Thank you SO much for taking the time to write this reply.
I’m going to go through all of these responses and take many notes so ensure we have considered everything we need to!
I’m really grateful for your input and knowledge. Thank you once again!

 

[DarkroomWife]

Tha

Welcome to Photrio!

I have a dry darkroom for the enlarger and drum print dryer, that was a bedroom. The wet darkroom is my master bathroom, where a put a board across the two sinks and place four trays. The bathtub holds the print washer.

That is a very nice thing that you are doing for your husband.

Thank you! I can envision this and can understand the process well when you explain it this way, thank you!

 

[DarkroomWife]

You are a very understanding wife. You are a treasure! I have a darkroom in my motorhome and water usage in a motorhome has to be closely monitored or you can't shower or use the toilet. I use the Ilford wash method for my film and only use RC papers in the motorhome. A 20 litre jug of water is enough for a session. I have holding tanks to catch the wash water and I save the spent chemistry and bring it back to my main darkroom.
Check your local regulations for waste disposal. Mine told me to just evaporate the water off and discard it into the solid landfill trash. I live on the topside of the world so it may be different where you reside.

Oh! Thank you - we will see if I can pull it off! I would love to surprise him but if it gets too complex I will loop him in… but you guys are all so helpful I might just give it a crack

That’s really helpful! thank you for taking the time to respond - it’s very much appreciated!!

 

[DarkroomWife]

Another guy as lucky in choosing a wife as I was. My wife not only never complained about photography expenditures, she often insisted that I buy camera, lens, whatever.
I used a small room without running water for several years by using jugs and buckets.
I agree with a previous suggestion: clear a room for darkroom equipment in the house and store contents in container. I could even see one side devoted to darkroom and other side to other activities, depending upon the size of the room. Long ago I cut down on space needed for trays by using a Nova print developer (Don’t know if these are still available new).

Thank you! It’s actually going to be based on our bush block which in future we will build on, but initially it will be there with our current basic set up!
Sadly our house has no options for him… otherwise I would love to have him do this at home! We are also very lucky to be blessed with all of the beautiful images he captures!
Plus it keeps him busy!

 

[guangong]

Thank you! It’s actually going to be based on our bush block which in future we will build on, but initially it will be there with our current basic set up!
Sadly our house has no options for him… otherwise I would love to have him do this at home! We are also very lucky to be blessed with all of the beautiful images he captures!
Plus it keeps him busy!

Yes, sometime we must just work with what we are stuck with. Good luck with your ptoject.

 

[DarkroomWife]

Maybe this could help you with setting up your "con-ex" dark space.

This US Army Portable Darkroom is For Sale for $2,500

Live near Hillsborough, North Carolina and have space in your backyard for a darkroom? Someone's selling a sweet US Army portable darkroom for $2,500. The

petapixel.com

I wish that ad wasn’t in 2016 USA! I would be pressing buy now!! great inspiration thank you!

 

[ags2mikon]

Off grid heating is easily done with Chinese diesel heaters. I use 2 of them in my main darkroom it is 8 x 34 foot. They are 12 volt and can be run off of a pair of golf cart batteries and a solar panel and charge controller. I also have 2 of then in my motorhome. They use outside air for combustion and exhaust to the outside so there in no smell or CO in the inside space. Quite safe. The price is very good and can be had on Amazon or ebay. The only thing that needs to be addressed is the led light from the controller. I have 2 cardboard boxes I cover them with when loading film and have a sheet of rubylith that covers them when printing.

 

[xkaes]

I’m not 100% sure the kids would be keen on their new bedroom but thank you for the perspective ;-)

When I was a kid, I would have loved it! Just sayin'.

We are assuming you don't have a basement, garage, shed, etc.????

 

[eli griggs]

Thank you SO much for taking the time to write this reply.
I’m going to go through all of these responses and take many notes so ensure we have considered everything we need to!
I’m really grateful for your input and knowledge. Thank you once again!

Good luck, an eventually show us the result, or progress.

 

[eli griggs]

As I recall,

I wish that ad wasn’t in 2016 USA! I would be pressing buy now!! great inspiration thank you!

As I recall, these units or it's predecessor included a incinerator to reduce film and paper to ash and recoverable silver, but I've never seen one in person, to verify that as a fact.

 

[calebarchie]

Calling @calebarchie
They've done exactly that - https://www.thecontainerlab.com/blog AND they're here in Australia ☺
I don't know which state you're in, but there are Aussies all about on Photrio and hopefully there might be one of us nearby who experience the same weather as you and will know local sources to help you get going.
Welcome to Photrio from the southern end of Australia!

Tha


Thank you so much!! What a great connection

Welcome to Photrio, sorry I only just saw this now. I'm surprised some people know what I am doing, it has been a very slow journey and I haven't posted updates in a long time.
Congrats on taking the leap which is often the hardest part! Whereabouts are you in Oz - I am happy to help with anything you may need just send me a message.

There is some great information on this thread already however not exactly suited to our unique climate here. Firstly, if its anywhere in the bush you want to make sure its protected against fire - that means using appropriately rated materials, cladding insultation, windows etc another issue is lightning... Unfortunately, it is very unlikely you will be able to insure anything either. Look forward to having a chat, there is just so much to discuss

Good luck!

 

[JParker]

Some time back. Ilford announced the manufacture of an indoor darkroom tent! Don't know what came of it.

You can buy it:

Pop Up Darkroom

The perfect solution for film photographers who want to print their negatives and struggle to convert existing spaces into suitable working darkrooms. 1.3m x 1.3m working space Light tight with attachable ground mat Drawstring 8" vent allows for fan inlet Additional smaller vent allows for...

www.ilfordphoto.com