adam_klaum Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 Hello all, I am planning to build a darkroom in my basement in the near futureand have drawn up some plans to use for the space available. I haveposted the plans on my website here:<br><br> <a href="http://home.comcast.net/~klaumphoto/darkroom.html">DarkroomPlans</a><br><br> I have never built or really used a darkroom before so if anyone cantake a look at these plans and let me know if they see any fatal flaws I would greatly appreciate it. Any suggestions are welcome. Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_wadsworth Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 Adam, I think your plans look pretty good, however one comment. When I'm washing prints (RC mostly) at the end of the sink, I like to continually remove them as I'm working and hang them above the sink. In your plan you would have to exit the area into the work room. The reason I remove the prints as I'm working is that the edges of the RC paper will absorp water after being left too long in the wash. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m_p7 Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 What's the advantage of having the door between the workroom and darkroom? I would probably just put it all in one room, and switch places with print drying rack and dry mount press. Or, I guess you could frame it in to have some separation, but just not put a door on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronald_moravec1 Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 You are luckey. Many would kill for a set up like this. Mine is similar two room affair, but built at different times as space became available. My suggestions as follows: Change the location for the enlarger to where the print drying racks are. To facilate movement between the rooms, hinge the inner door on the opposite side still opening inward. The idea is to work with the inner door open. The paper cutter is near the enlarger and you can use it to cut larger sheets of paper to smaller size. Only stock the larger sizes. this gets your lenses and enlarger away from the humidity. The right side counter is then available for finishing operations like matting and framing. The drying racks should be under the right counter on slide out trays. Your plan is definately workable, I just prefer to isolate my enlargers more than across the aisle. Why do you have two doors? How about building in a film drying cabinet? Now is the time to plan it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mdanger Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 Hi! Just a few ideas: I don't know if I would "jam" up my enlarger space by putting it in the corner. I bolted mine down on the counter top in the middle of my dry side and it is great to have the maneuvering ability around it. Since my ceiling was limited, I cut out a square in the top counter and move it down onto wooden braces for large prints. I also built in a paper safe painted black inside and use wing nuts to quickly open and secure with. This is on the shelf to the right under the counter along with all my papers. Under the counter on the left are easels, contact printers, etc. I also agree that a door to your workroom is not needed. Mine is open to my large workroom which I keep lit with safe bulbs during printing and it makes it less claustrophobic. My prints are dried on screened racks mounted under the sink and pull out, but trays are stored upright under the other half of the sink separated by thin plywood. All painted with marine paint. I hope some of this may help. Mary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_cochran Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 The double door can be nice if both doors are light tight and you ever need to allow someone to enter or leave while someone else is working. Also, if neither door is completely 100% light tight by itself, the combination of two of them may be good enough. <p> What are you planning to do with the wall on the "top" of your plan, at the end of the darkroom? You could add more counter space there, or put some shelves to store various things, or maybe some pegboard for hanging things. <p> One thing to be aware of in a basement darkroom is to make sure you have enough height for your enlarger if the basement ceiling is low. Sometimes it can be helpful to put the enlarger on a lower section of countertop than the rest of the counter, but if you do this, you may want a place to sit down while working at the enlarger. <p> Consider plans for things like music and telephone, if you are so inclined. And consider ventilation and electrical wiring in any case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_starr3 Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 >One thing to be aware of in a basement darkroom is to make sure you >have enough height for your enlarger if the basement ceiling is low. >Sometimes it can be helpful to put the enlarger on a lower section >of countertop than the rest of the counter, but if you do this, you >may want a place to sit down while working at the enlarger. I can vouch for this! I just installed a D5XL in my darkroom, which has an 81" ceiling! This puts the easel 20" above the floor. I'll have to get a 12" tall stool, or a set of kneepads! :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leo_maniace2 Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 Have you considered using pocket doors instead of doors on hinges. You don't have a door swinging into your work area and pocket doors are better at keeping out light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_megargee Posted October 1, 2004 Share Posted October 1, 2004 A few things - For your set up, I would also highly recommend pocket doors for the obvious reasons. Also think about making your sink 10' long rather than 8'. The 2" between trays is really asking for contaimination between trays and will make working with the larger trays much more comfortable. I not clear on how deep the sink is but I would also recommend that it be 26" - 30" inside measurements to allow for moving these trays easily and for setting aside graduates, etc as you work. If necessary rob the space from the center space, the fewer steps between the counter and sink the better. Instal two water outlets, one at each end of the sink. e.g. one for your washing set up and one to keep free for mixing chemistry. Your drain should be at the end of the sink where your washing takes place so as to eliminate carrying wet prints through the dry area. Even if this means reversing your design and putting the finishing area where your print area is at present. Lastly - you can never have enough electrical out lets of shelves Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul moshay Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 You have been given a lot of great ideas Adam, listen well and you will have a world class darkroom. I built mine the same size as yours, into my garage, insulated and air conditioned to 64 degrees 24/7, it works great. The only thing I now wished I did was not to place the enlarger against the right wall. Put the enlarger in the center of the counter to allow space on both sides. Also, make sliding, pocket, doors. When I built my sinks I did not know about ten foot plywood and made an eight foot sink, go for the ten foot stuff. Make sure you have good ventilation across the sinks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrileystewart Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 I built one in my basement and have been using it for over a year. Mine is a bit bigger: 14 x 14. Recommendations. Have one door not two.. gives you flexibility to rearrange the layout and you don't really need the second door (most basements are pretty dim anyway). Provide air movement by either routing a basement vent on your HVAC system to the darkroom or install a simple bathroom ventilator in one wall (mine is switched with the fan assembly at the bottom of the inner part of the wall and the exit at the top of the exterior side of the wall). Install both a safelight and white light circuit. Hope this helps Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam_klaum Posted October 2, 2004 Author Share Posted October 2, 2004 Thank you all for the great and fast responses! I made these plans mostly from reading Ansel's "The Negative" and "The Print". He mentions a separate workroom which is why I set it up this way. I had originally had a 10ft sink in the plans but then thought I could only get 8ft plywood. I liked the 10ft better as it theoretically gave me much more room for trays. That being said, I would have to nix the inside wall and door for the larger sink. Can anyone think of a reason why I couldn't just make this one big room instead of two smaller ones? This would also effectively put my enlarger in the middle of the counter space instead of against a wall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam_klaum Posted October 2, 2004 Author Share Posted October 2, 2004 Here is a reworked plan based on what I said above. Also, I have not begun planning the vertical space (i.e. shelves) yet. There are certainly some vertical options here. Like the Print Drying Racks could be on the floor under some additional counter space next to the sink. At this point I am trying to take the first step and decide what needs framed in and how large to build the sink. Thanks for the good ideas all of this is very valuable information. I'm going to print out this thread and keep it handy throughout the process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akocurek Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 Excuse me, I'm digital now, but you might consider mounting the enlarger to the wall. I had a wall mounted D2 which was solid enough to climb onto. I did not use the baseboard and this left me with an unhindered counter where I loaded 4x5 film, etc. I do miss it from time to time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerold_harter Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 I would move the print drying rack to the dry side and use the wet side space for a print washer. You need a solid cart (on casters?) that is low so you can put the print washer on it at an ergonomic height. It would be nice to have a floor drain but that might not be possible in the basement. Maybe you could configure some way to drain a print washer into the plumbing rather than through the sink. Consider wall mounting the enlarger and designing a drop table into the counter top. But beware if you have a washer/dryer in the basement because of vibration. Put some verticle dividers under the counters for storing large boxes, framing glass, large mat board, etc. Be mindful of ventilation and allow for fresh air intake into the room. Put electrical outlets above and below counter height. Use halogen track lights for task lighting over wet side and dry side. Use incandescent lights in the middle of the ceiling for general lighting. Keeping the halogens on can build up heat. Plan for appropriate safelights for your setup. For the amount of money you are putting into this, consider a Nova Quad 16 x 20 slot processor which will save you a ton of sink space. I have mine on a cart right next to the washer using about 4 square feet of space. While you are at it, get a used Jobo CPP processor on Ebay. Consider some antifatigue matting from an industrial supply store (prices vary alot). Put a stainless steel ledge above the sink or some sort of drying shelf. Think about the plumbing above the sink. I have hot and cold water filters feeding into a Hass Intellifaucet valve that branches into 3 different valves that have metal nipples attached to flexible hoses. One feeds the print washer, one the film washer, an one free. Think about where to put a trash can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerold_harter Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 I would not use a pocket door. Much more difficult to make light tight. I would use a flush panel steel exterior door with an aluminum threshold and magnetic weather stripping . Much easier to make light tight and keep locked. Also relatively inexpensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerold_harter Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 Also, something to think about: 30 inch deep cabinets + 36 inch door + 30 inch deep wet side = 8 feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now