Darkroom ventiliation- using dryer vent?

domaz · Mar 5, 2009

My darkroom sink is setup right next to my washer/dryer as this makes the plumbing quite easy. It works well but I still haven't setup any sort of ventiliation in my darkroom (which is located in the basement/laundry room). I'm not excited about the prospect of poking holes in the walls to setup a vent though. My idea was to find or make a "y" adapter for the dryer exhaust tubing so that both a darkroom fan and my dryer can vent out the same hole (not at the same time of course). Has anyone tried something like this before?

glbeas · Mar 5, 2009

You would need a oneway flap of some kind to keep the dryer from pumping lint laden air into the darkroom instead of outside. Sounds like it could work otherwise.

waynecrider · Mar 5, 2009

All dampered Y's or T's leak air to some degree. Might work out for you in the winter to heat the darkroom with the dryer but otherwise not. Besides who's to say the ventilation wouldn't come out the dryer. There's nothing in the dryer to stop it. Your best best is to poke a hole out. I've done a thousand and it's not that hard. Tap to find a hollow spot if your poking thru block and use a small sledge and chisel or run a long drill thru a wood wall and use a jig saw or better yet a sawzall.

MikeSeb · Mar 5, 2009

Whatever you do about ventilation, you don't want dryer effluent air spewing into the darkroom area--you will be knee deep in dryer lint and you'll never get rid of it.

jeroldharter · Mar 6, 2009

MikeSeb said:
Whatever you do about ventilation, you don't want dryer effluent air spewing into the darkroom area--you will be knee deep in dryer lint and you'll never get rid of it.

Agreed. Dryers are dust bombs. Every time you clean out the filter you put a huge amount of dust into the air. I would do that in another room, especially if you dry/load film in that area. Folding clothes in there is another problem.

I once had a darkroom in a woodworking shop. Dust does not help the photographic process.

domaz · Mar 6, 2009

Yes my darkroom is very dusty because it's in a basement with a dryer. Not much I can do about that right now though. Luckily the basement room is a good size so the enlarger is a ways away from the dryer. Thanks for the responses- it looks like I need to just punch a hole in the wall though, because finding a y-adapter with some kind of switching system is going to be difficult I think.

John Koehrer · Mar 6, 2009

For S&G look at dust collector systems used in woodworking. They use shut offs to isolate individual tools.
If nothing else you can modify the vents for the drying system you're using.
rockler.com is one supplier.

Darkroom ventiliation- using dryer vent?

domaz

glbeas

waynecrider

MikeSeb

jeroldharter

domaz

John Koehrer

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