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Mal Paso

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I wanted to add running water to my darkroom and went looking for a cheap sink. The Habitat ReStore had the board for my copy stand but the sinks they had were $155 and nothing I liked. I got home and was talking to my neighbor who just scored some beautiful cabinets from the ReStore and she asked if I wanted the sink she was replacing. It was perfect. I bought a sheet of 3/4" (23/32 for nitpickers) cabinet quality plywood, ripped it to size cutting the sides from the scrap. I routed the sides 3/4" x 1/4" deep to fit over the bottom then assembled it with Titebond glue and a finishing nailer. The groove in the end piece fits over the sink edge where I trimmed off the faucet holes. The whole thing was fiberglassed with 2 laminating coats and one finish coat. I should have left out the 6 oz cloth as I got bubbles and structurally it didn't need it but it will work fine. I topped it off with a genuine USA Lab Faucet with 2 Gas Valves that are plumbed with water for washing. Cost about $300 including the faucet. Size 25x88x4.375" with a 2.5" lip above the sink bottom. The stainless sink is routed in as well, 1/4" down.
 

rcphoto

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I'm always impressed with the other talents shown on this forum. Good work! The only thing I would change is I would bevel or chamfer around the edges for resting your arms.
 
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Mal Paso

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Ben 4 said:
Very nice!
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Thanks!
rcphoto said:
I'm always impressed with the other talents shown on this forum. Good work! The only thing I would change is I would bevel or chamfer around the edges for resting your arms.
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I broke the edges then used 6 oz cloth which rounded the edges further. I also made the height above the bottom just right for rocking the trays. LOL

This replaces a smaller one with 2" sides that was just Latex painted, no drain. I just checked and I can get 5 11x14 trays with the last a wash or 4 16x20 in the new sink. I was originally looking for a conventional sink that would hold 4 deep film tanks and not touch the Latex painted tray trough. The bar sink was too small for that but the new sink will store the film tanks at the far end and still allow 5 11x14 trays. I don't have to dump the film tanks to process prints now. That and running water makes it all good!
 

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On my big sinks I bought a couple window squeegees to run the water to the drain. Gets the darkroom dry quicker, saves the sink from stains.
 
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Mal Paso

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mshchem said:
It looks very nice. No substitute for a good sink!
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Thanks!
mshchem said:
On my big sinks I bought a couple window squeegees to run the water to the drain. Gets the darkroom dry quicker, saves the sink from stains.
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Yep! Got one! I'm also going to get a 1/4" hose to wash down the sink with the gas valve that's plumbed with water.
 
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Mal Paso

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Sorry, not a snazzy dresser but the drain and water are plumbed. I left room for drywall if I want. Got the Kodak Tray Siphon hooked to the repurposed gas valve and it works great! I'll use that for my hold tray.
 

MattKing

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Congratulations.
If it were me, I'd put something up to protect the insulation from splashes, and because a nice wall surface makes a darkroom more pleasant.
But the progress so far is definitely worth celebrating!
 
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Mal Paso

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MattKing said:
Congratulations.
If it were me, I'd put something up to protect the insulation from splashes, and because a nice wall surface makes a darkroom more pleasant.
But the progress so far is definitely worth celebrating!
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Don't want to rush things. I want to see if the prints are any good first. lol
Frankly it's nice to get more chemicals out of the house. I used to wash in the bathtub and kept the hypo clear and photo flo in the bathroom.
 

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I just re-read the thread, and my only nitpick is that you have the faucet mounted down in the main "tray" of the sink where it could see regular immersion in water/chemicals. Since you salvaged a lab faucet this may be ok (might be much better and/or thicker coatings on the base metal)?
Or, you may not have the available space to mount the faucet above the "rim" of your overall sink. Either way, I still think it's a simple and effective design.

I've been watching the beat-up used restaurant stuff at a few local spots lately. Pennies on the dollar compared to new but stainless steel is a bugger to work with.
 
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Mal Paso

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The faucet is a heavy USA Lab faucet probably made 20 years ago and never installed. It likely laid around in someone's shop and picked up a few dings on the threaded shaft which I had the tools to fix. If I had to guess the current price is probably above $300 and could sit in photo chemicals for years with no effect. It is sealed to the fiberglass with Silicone. The tray part is for developing trays and tanks and is never filled with liquid, just watertight for wash down. The stainless steel sink won't be filled with liquid either. I needed a place to mix chemicals and for the wash water to go. This is for B&W only and I use an immersion heater for tempering.
I had a similar but smaller tray for 11x14 developing trays and I was looking for a large sink to hold 4 Yankee deep tanks, no luck. The bar sink was free so I changed plans. The deep film tanks can sit off to the side when I use 11x14 trays, there is room now.
Restaurant stainless can be a great deal but usually takes more space as you have to go larger to fit your trays and tanks. With plywood I went wall to wall to wall with just enough room to open the door. I trimmed the bar sink with this tool. BAUER5 Amp, 14 gauge Metal Shears (977) It could work to reshape your restaurant finds. Also TIG welding isn't the only way to do Stainless, 57% Silver Solder (brazing) will also work. Oxy-Acetylene is ideal but Oxy anything will work.
 

David R Williams

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One thought - I know the hose to the gas valve for the tray siphon is well secured by friction with the tube stretch and ribs on the nozzle, but being paranoid when it comes to leaks (from many experiences), I'd likely put a hose clamp around that connection.
 

mshchem

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Yeah, these valves are solid brass with real old school chrome plating. As long as you don't expose it to elemental Chlorine gas you will be fine
 

Lachlan Young

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MTGseattle said:
Since you salvaged a lab faucet this may be ok (might be much better
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I'd be more worried about the salvaged sink (and more specifically the drain) not being up to suitable spec (304, ideally 316 stainless) - they will disintegrate alarmingly fast if they aren't.
 
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Mal Paso

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The barb is actually a serious piece of equipment and it's very hard to get the hose off. I also have a shutoff on the outside of the darkroom to shut off the water when not in use.
mshchem said:
Yeah, these valves are solid brass with real old school chrome plating. As long as you don't expose it to elemental Chlorine gas you will be fine
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No Chlorine!
Lachlan Young said:
I'd be more worried about the salvaged sink (and more specifically the drain) not being up to suitable spec (304, ideally 316 stainless) - they will disintegrate alarmingly fast if they aren't.
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The sink survived an artist's studio. Mixing and wash water is what it is for. I don't intend to dump chemistry here. I need the height of the faucet above the sink to mix chemistry. I was mixing in the kitchen and carrying it across the yard.

Like the 96 year old man asked if it was dangerous to date a younger woman "If she dies, she dies"
 

Lachlan Young

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Mal Paso said:
The sink survived an artist's studio
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If it had survived a professional kitchen, it would be more likely to be the right grade - if it isn't, you'll get a very rapid lesson in halide caused stress corrosion & cracking. Chemical resistant plastics have been the first preference for a great deal of printmaking and darkroom process sinks over here for quite some time as they effectively eliminate any chance of a weld or drain not being up to spec.
 
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Mal Paso

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No welds, it's a stamped, one piece. Drain is plastic.

The real worry is tourist started wildfires, that's what got me last time.
 

gordrob

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I have used the same type of lab faucet in my sink for the last 35 years. It was set up just for gas so it doesn't have your water valve, just three gas valves that are now plumbed for water. My sink is 8" deep and it is mounted on the end of the sink so it doesn't have contact with anything in the sink. I have the faucet plumbed through a Leedel Temperature Control unit because I use it mainly for print washing. The goose neck nozzle is connected to a Kodak Tray Siphon (with a clamp on the barbed nozzle), a second tap is used for filling developing tanks and the third is in the works of being converted to hook up a 11x14 Calumet Gravity Works Print Washer.
 

MTGseattle

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Yes Mel, your faucet will likely outlive everything else.
 

eli griggs

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Mal Paso said:
Sorry, not a snazzy dresser but the drain and water are plumbed. I left room for drywall if I want. Got the Kodak Tray Siphon hooked to the repurposed gas valve and it works great! I'll use that for my hold tray.
View attachment 375808
Click to expand...

I suggest you add some low, rounded molding to any exposed sink walls plywood cut face.

In other words, those areas shown here showing the plywood plys.

Abrasion and knocks and dings will eventually allow water, etc to soak in and swell those areas, which is not desirable, IMO.
 
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koraks

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Lachlan Young said:
you'll get a very rapid lesson in halide caused stress corrosion & cracking
Click to expand...

Let's not exaggerate. An ordinary kitchen sink will last quite a long time under the abuse of a typical home darkroom. I know - it's what I used in my previous darkroom and also my current one. I clean it rarely (every few months at best) and it sees relatively heavy abuse with pretty much any chemical you can imagine being used in a photographic darkroom. In my previous darkroom I discarded the salvaged sink after 6-7 years of heavy abuse not because it was faulty, but because we moved out of the house. It still had many years of use in it.

Keep in mind we use these sinks for photographic purposes. Not to dissolve corpses. They're way too small for that.
 

Lachlan Young

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Generally it's not the sink if it's kitchen derived - the main body is usually 304 or better (otherwise regular table salt would make pretty short work of it), but I've seen more than a few cases of people making a big song and dance about their fancy new stainless sink of one sort or another, then a few weeks later there's blue smoke about the drain having disintegrated or the welds going rusty - especially if they've been running colour chemistry through it. As is often the case, materials that are slightly off-spec for the job are often OK enough until they catastrophically aren't. There's an entire segment in the SPSE handbook, and Kodak etc used to (probably still do - there's usually a relevant segment within their cinema film process datasheets) publish factsheets on appropriate material choices for process equipment. The irony is that a great many plastics (which people like to deride as 'cheap' feeling compared to stainless) are far more resistant and resilient.
 
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