Paint for darkroom?

Sparky · Jul 9, 2008

Not necessarily true, Stephen. An awful lot really depends on the room layout, etc... white is really great at making room lighting (and safelighting) more efficient and easier to see what you're doing. As long as there's no white within about the lens-to-paper distance of the paper, one should be safe. It really depends though. That's why I like my walls painted 'safelight yellow' - any reflected light is far less dangerous - but you can see half-decently.

The other thing I'd remark on is that just because a lab (or any entity) is 'pro' - it doesn't mean they have any idea what they're doing... in my experience anyway...!

Sparky · Jul 9, 2008

I'd add to the general discussion - that I think it's probably far more important that the paint around the enlarger be as matte as possible (something like velvet being fairly close to ideal) since specular highlights reflected (even off black paint) can be lethal to your print, since it doesn't lose much in intensity as it glances off the surface. Diffuse reflected light is far less of a threat.

Stephen Frizza · Jul 9, 2008

Well possibly 5 pro labs in sydney didnt know what they were doing. But having been involved in a comparative test ive seen the difference when it comes to horizontal enlargers white rooms and fuji crystal archive paper during mural printing and long exposures. Maybe it Isnt so critical for small scale black and white printers. im curious to hear from other pro lab owners or technitians as to what their darkrooms were coated black or white and is anyone here who prints colour murals using white walls? or anyone who prints large or with long exposures 1 minute and above using white walls?

Sparky · Jul 9, 2008

Probably go with black walls for confined space with colour materials for sure... I think we were talking about personal small rooms for B&W...

nsurit · Jul 9, 2008

Guess I could have been more specific in my original post. The darkroom will be approximately 9.5 ft by 15 ft with a 10ft ceiling. Thomas safe light. Enlargers (Zone VI 5X7 and Durst 1200 Laborator) along one of the short walls and sink on opposite short wall. I'm thinking black right around the enlargers and white on the other end. I am most interested in kind of paint, rather than colors, although the color discussion has been helpful. Perhaps I could use green board around the sink if that can be used in conjuction with sheet rock and assuming it will hold paint. Bill Barber

Stephen Frizza · Jul 9, 2008

use black board paint. its perfect

David Brown · Jul 9, 2008

nsurit said:
Guess I could have been more specific in my original post. ... I am most interested in kind of paint, rather than colors, ...

Use a good quality paint from a reliable source, just like in many other things. For maintenance purposes in a darkroom, it is not much different than a kitchen or bath. A semi gloss enamel will clean up better than a flat paint. It will also not absorb as much chemical smell as a flat paint will.

I would not suggest using a texture, per se. Use a quality roller to apply the paint, and that will give enough "texture".

This is only my opinion. I am not a "pro" lab owner, just the son of a house painter who taught me what he knew about paint.

jeroldharter · Jul 9, 2008

nsurit said:
Guess I could have been more specific in my original post. The darkroom will be approximately 9.5 ft by 15 ft with a 10ft ceiling. Thomas safe light. Enlargers (Zone VI 5X7 and Durst 1200 Laborator) along one of the short walls and sink on opposite short wall. I'm thinking black right around the enlargers and white on the other end. I am most interested in kind of paint, rather than colors, although the color discussion has been helpful. Perhaps I could use green board around the sink if that can be used in conjuction with sheet rock and assuming it will hold paint. Bill Barber

Green board is interchangeable with dry wall and can be painted just the same. It is simply more water resistant.

Use semigloss, especially for the black. some people worry about reflections but that is only an issue if you are reflecting white light. You want the safelight reflected and if you use black paint and some baffling on your enlarger, you should have minimal light leaks anyway. Semigloss is much easier to clean/dust and does not streak or mar like flat paint. I doubt the brand matters much.

I don't like the idea of blackboard paint which implies that chalk would be used and chalk is a bunch of fine dust which I do not want. I like the idea for including some "Frost White Board" or the grease board material. Very useful for jotting notes but might be difficult to join pieces neatly. I would buy a sheet of it and screw it to the drywall which would be much cheaper than a large grease board.

I don't think the brand of paint matters much for interior paint. It won't see much UV radiation and won't fade. Should last forever.

greybeard · Jul 9, 2008

mmcclellan wrote: Easy way to test for that, though, is to put a sheet in the easel, lay a coin or two in the middle of it, cap your enlarger lens, and turn it on for a minute or so, then develop the paper and see if the outlines of the coins are visible.

Easy enough, but possibly not critical enough. The "real" test is to make a series of step exposures on paper, so that the minimum exposure before detectable density can be seen (which will require that the test strip be dried before evaluation) and then perform the coin test on a sheet that has been fogged to just under minimum detectable density, again evaluating the paper after drying. This simulates the effect of stray light on the highlights of a print, which is where it will show up first.

Of course, stray light during film handling is a bigger problem, but compared to your dark-adapted eyes, even fast film is pretty tolerant. Just imagine trying to photograph the inside of even a fairly poor darkroom using "available" light.

Regarding the original question of paint type: go with semi-gloss; the main purpose of texture is to hide flaws in the drywall job, so it is mostly cosmetic, and gloss paint just makes every defect that much more obvious. If moisture resistance is really an issue, either chemical residues (dusts and fingerprints) or excessive humidity will probably cause more headaches than deterioration of the walls themselves.

CBG · Jul 10, 2008

I can't see the point of expensive brand name, high quality paints for a darkroom, unless your darkroom is a trophy space designed to show off. My pick is a cheeeep white. It's going to be used mostly in the dark, so I just don't care... I believe a darkroom is just a workspace and need not be too precious, unless that's one's preference. For me, much preciousness is a hindrance. I want to feel OK about spur of the moment improvisations to the walls etc.

A washably shiny finish makes sense although a flatter black nearest the enlarger could mitigate stray light.

If you are going to have the darkroom humid enough to ruin drywall, I guess you will want greenboard or blueboard as is known in some regions. But if you keep your darkroom that humid, maybe a lot more ventilation and some dehumidification might be a good idea. For areas around the sink prone to splashing, I vote to have a heavily varnished plywood or similar material not so prone to disintegration.

C

David Brown · Jul 10, 2008

CBG said:
I can't see the point of expensive brand name, high quality paints for a darkroom, ... My pick is a cheeeep white. It's going to be used mostly in the dark, so I just don't care...

The point I (and others, I believe) were trying to make about using quality paint was not for appearance, but "quality". Good paint is just easier to use, and it takes fewer coats to cover - especially with a white paint - and is therefore often not any more expensive. But the labor and frustration is reduced. It will also last a lot longer. Re-painting in a few years is never a pleasure, but in a darkroom could be an ordeal.

Again, just my opinion.

Sparky · Jul 10, 2008

I'd side with David on this for sure! You are just throwing away money using cheap paint. A high quality paint is ALWAYS justifiable. I use pratt and lamber at $38/gallon. I need LESS THAN HALF of the amount of P&L to do a superior job covering compared to cheapie $18/gal home depot paint (2 coats vs. 5!!). So it's a better deal and has FAR superior wear and maintenance characteristics. Looks a hell of a lot better too!

randyB · Jul 10, 2008

When I built my new darkroom in my new home I too wondered what color to paint the walls. Since it is a b&w darkroom I choose 18% gray. I took a brand new Kodak 18% card to Home Depot and said match it. I did buy the high grade paint, worth every penny. It is a semi-gloss so it doesn't collect dust, is dark under the safelights but not black. I do have white cabinets and countertops but none close to the enlargers. My sink is black (Delta) with alternating black and white tile backsplash. I have lain the 18% card against the wall after the paint dried and it all but disappeared, the paint match was that close. I am quite please with the way it turned out, the only thing I would change is make it twice as big. RandyB

jeroldharter · Jul 10, 2008

Paint brands

As an aside, which brands would be considered high quality?

It has been awhile since I looked into that. Some have mentioned Pratt & Lambert. To those who know paint, which brands are worthwhile and which are best avoided (interior semi-gloss)?

bobwysiwyg · Jul 10, 2008

Sadly, I've had to use a fair amount of Valspar paint (from Lowes). Seems quite good.

Sparky · Jul 11, 2008

I was the one that mentioned pratt & lambert. Benjamin moore makes a good interior paint also. I've tried everything at home depot and haven't found anything that comes close to either of these paints. I'm sure there are others out there though. Most are hugely overrated... there's a brand here in california that's really popular and regarded as a 'high quality' paint (forgot the name, sorry) - but it's another really overrated one.

Paint for darkroom?

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