Home made sink

Fintan said:

Can I bump this question, if I make a sink from some sheets of marine ply, how will it drain if its too level, can anyone offer some advice? Or am I worrying over nothing?

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Rainwater guttering is usually fitted with a run off of 1 in 500 so 2mm per metre (although I always fit it level).

That is only around 0.12 degrees. With woodworking tolerances you could come out with it sloping the wrong way.

I would go for an angle of around 1 degree which is around 8.75 in 500 or 17.5mm in a metre.


Steve.

My sink (a commercial ribbed plastic one) is level. I did this so the dishes/trays Nova etc would sit level in the sink. I use a sponge as a squeegee to move the water to the drain at one end. In retrospect, a small slope would not be a problem but on the other hand, I do not find that having it level is a problem. Either way you are going to get water beading on the surface that needs sponging off to avoid salt marks so it's a case of six of one, half a dozen of the other...

If I had a choice, I think I'd prefer the plug-hole near one corner - slightly easier to direct the water down it.

Good luck, Bob.

Thanks, the sink will be 11 feet long.

Síle said:

I've seen similar questions in this thread, but none that specifically deals with what I need to ask. so please forgive me if I'm being repetitive..

My darkroom/shed is coming along nicely and I've finally got a nice sink built from MDF. At the moment it's in it's raw state but I want to protect it so that it will last a few years. I have Yacht varnish for a protective coating, and am wondering if Blackboard paint be suitable to paint it with first or is there a specific paint finish that anyone would recommend?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated,

Many thanks,

Síle

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MDF wouldn't have been my first or last choice for building a darkroom sink but never the less I am in the process of replacing my darkroom sink with a new one and I have decided to line the inside of the new sink (which is constructed of CDX plywood built on a Douglas fir frame) with PVC sheeting.

Since the new sink will be longer than 8 feet long, multiple pieces of plywood will be required. At each joint a section will be routed out and replaced with a piece of PVC. As the top pieces of PVC are inserted they will be glued to the PVC inserts.

All of the seems will be welded together with a PVC welder and PVC welding rod making construction completely wet proof. So the bottom and sides will be solid PVC. The seets will be roughly 1/8 inch thick.

I've seen the application of PVC sheeting used in other darkrooms over the years and even Bruce Barnbaum has used this construction method (which can be viewed on the latest LensWork Extenced CD). The construction expense is higher but the result is superior in my opinion that coating wood with epoxy paint.

Good luck,

Edward Rios said:

... A basic rule in plumbing is to pitch a 1/4"/foot. That may be too much depending on the size of your sink and the location of the drain...

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I'm going for a slope just a mite less than 1 inch in 10 feet.

I'm not looking for the kind of perfect drainage seen in a waste pipe, more for a general trend to wander down to one end of the sink. I want it to be near but not quite flat.

I'm going to have a friend of mine who has a rotating laser level shoot a level line a couple of feet over the sink so I have a reference to work from.

C

You might check out this months version of Lenswork Extended which give a video tour of Bruce Barnbaum's darkroom. He has a huge custom sink built from wood framing and PVC sheets. Very nice.

Plywood + fiberglass is the traditional way to go, and I know several people who have used this sort of sink for years without trouble. I'm trying marine plywood with well caulked joints coated with several coats of epoxy for my new sink. Two things to remember: first, be sure the sink drains properly; second, be sure to reinforce the bottom so that is does not flex significantly under load. After leveling the sink, you can use epoxy finish to create a taper toward the drain to get good drainage. Just put extra coats in the areas that need to be higher. The reinforcement issue is important because flexure will weaken the joints and distort the shape of the sink. That can cause leaks and bad drainage. A few pieces of 1X4 (or 2X4) lumber running across the short dimension of the underside of the tray to the support structure should do. You should be aware that epoxy finishes are attacked by several different organic solvent, most of which you won't encounter in normal photographic use. Acetone is probably the most likely. They won't usually dissolve the finish, but the will penetrate slightly and soften or weaken it, especially if allowed to sit for a while.

I am in the process of building a 7 foot sink, covering the plywood structure with a 1/8 inch thick, gray PVC sheet. I have the cements to join the PVC to PVC, but does anyone know what is the best adhesive to bond the PVC to the plywood?
Thanks in advance,
Jim

Might check this out, it references an x-15 adhesive for that purpose.

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/sink-manufacturing.html

Jim,
Silicone caulk is probably the easiest to use. Contact cement will also work. If done indoors use water base contact cement.
I have built tanks of plywood/epoxy/fiberglass and PVC with bent front and backsplash and ends welded in. For home, I just checked out truck bed liner but think it is too expensive. $150 for a 36 x 48 x 6 tank. Still have not decided whether to use PVC again or plywood/epoxy/fiberglass. The costs will be similar.

Thanks,
I saw the X-15 in tha article already, but the stuff seems nasty for working indoors w/ it's fumes. I thought about the contact cement, was not sure how it would perform with PVC. Thanks for the confirmation. Anybody try the mastic used to apply vinyl flooring?

Thanks for the inputs.