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View Full Version : Off topic but not far off.



Jesse Hoover
08-26-2011, 7:59 PM
I am an amateur photographer. Several years ago I had the opportunity to purchase an entire darkroom setup.Now that I have a place to start it up I am lacking in one or two major components. Sinks.I know it is not boat building but I think i have decided on building the sinks instead of purchasing steel or fiberglass purpose built sinks.Cost is a factor .I will be using cabinet grade oak plywood .And I have a general idea on how the sink is going to look.My question is how would I go about waterproofing the plywood? It most likely won't be submerged in water or holding large quantities .But more or less to contain spills. I would like to retain the look of wood but if I have to paint it I am not opposed to the idea.

ray hampton
08-26-2011, 9:52 PM
what effect will the acid that are use in darkroom have on the plywood and paint

Robert Meyer
08-26-2011, 9:56 PM
I suggest you pick up the literature and visit the web sites of the major epoxy manufacturers such as West, System 3, MAS, etc. and study them carefully. If you build plywood sinks they can be coated same as a boat with epoxy and fiberglass. The drain hole should be bored oversize, filled with epoxy, then bored to the drain diameter so that the drain pipe only touches solid epoxy. Not sure what chemicals might splash into the sink, so contact the epoxy manufacturer you choose to help you determine what type of paint or surface coating you might want to apply. Have you thought about having the wooden sink sprayed with vinyl truck bed liner gunk? Not sure how it would hold up to chemicals but plain water should be ok. I know of several workboat interiors sprayed with this liner stuff which have held up well in a saltwater environment. Let us know how it turns out.

Jesse Hoover
08-26-2011, 10:04 PM
Normally it would be acetic acid but a milder solution than vinegar. But the developers I use can use a water stop instead.And the fixer does not require and acid stop .And as far as paint the idea has been tossed around about using a 2 part epoxy garage floor paint.As for the truck bed liner the idea has also crossed my mind.But not sure about how it would hold up to the occasional chemical spill.

Bob Smalser
08-27-2011, 5:55 PM
I'd go find an architectural salvage business. Besides the commercial operations, Habitat for Humanity offers that service here.

Here's a selection of 203 SS and porceline sinks from $15-50 bucks:

http://www.seconduse.com/catalog/results/none-none-norm-sink-469243-1

Joel Goodman
08-29-2011, 3:59 PM
I assume this is for developing enlargements. Why do you want to use sinks instead of trays? The plastic trays made for the purpose (usually 3 -- one for developer, one for stop, one for fixer) are not expensive. I'm sure lots of folks are getting rid of darkroom equipment due to the digital thing and you may be able to get free trays. For washing you want a sink but I would be hesitant to use anything that may react chemically and possibly leave a residue on your enlargements.

ray hampton
08-29-2011, 6:48 PM
do you use tap water in the darkroom to wash photos

Jesse Hoover
08-29-2011, 11:39 PM
The enlargements and film would be developed in trays and tanks . The sinks are mainly to contain any spillage and to make clean up easier.One of the 3 darkroom sinks will be used to hold a print washer.While the print washer will drain directly into the plumbing should I experience any leaks I need something to be able to contain the water .Also tap water would be used but it would be filtered before use in mixing the developers ,stop baths and fixer.The wash water will be filtered to prevent any sediment in the water from adhering to the print or film.

Bob Smalser
08-31-2011, 6:51 AM
...I will be using cabinet grade oak plywood...the question is how would I go about waterproofing the plywood?



The plywood is joined using rabbet joints and marine epoxy with thickened epoxy fillets in the corners to smooth the transitions. Then the inside is covered with one or two layers of fabric and enough epoxy to fill the weave, the fabric being there to both reinforce the joints and provide a weave to hold the epoxy layer in place.

The Gougeon Brothers (West System epoxy) have a book on how to do this. There is a sequence for gluing and thickening you want to insure you get right.

Your problem is that White Oak doesn't especially glue well, or like epoxy in particular. If the lams of your plywood are something else that likes glue (like poplar, birch or fir) and the oak is merely a surface veneer, then no problem. Gluing the oak surface however, is problematic. Again, refer to the Goo Brothers' book.

raul segura
09-05-2011, 1:21 AM
Iv also seen some water heater trays plastic not pretty but light and may work.

Thom Porterfield
10-02-2011, 2:30 AM
Jesse, I don't know if this is too late for you or not, but a friend of mine, an avid photographer, once build a darkroom in a closet of an apartment he rented. He built a rather elaborate sink out of ordinary plywood that he coated with epoxy paint. Several coats IIRC. He supplied water and drain through hoses to a bathroom across the hallway. It had places for developer, stop and hypo trays and even a print washer. Below the sink he had plastic screens to dry prints (RC paper). I was so impressed with it that when a client asked for a darkroom in her basement, I duplicated the thing. This was nearly forty years ago, and last I heard, the sink for my client is still in use (I lost track of my friend), hasn't needed anything but a refit on a drain coupling that was poorly installed. The joinery was straight forward, simple butt joints that were glued and screwed. In the corners, we put in a fillet of putty, smoothed out with fingers.

I have plans for a similar one for myself, and would have built it already if the room designated "darkroom" wasn't full of several cases of wine. :D I think I would use dados this time around only because I now possess a table saw and dado set.

If I were you, I'd build the thing, paint it and make prints.

Roderick Gentry
02-15-2012, 10:24 PM
I have made a bunch of containers out of epoxy ply, I always glass them even if only with light glass, it ads a lot of durability, and once you know how the time to do it is well worth it for the time saved down the road. You can use pretty light material like 4mm doorskins and it will be very durable with the fillets and glass. OnE can use hot melt glue, or 5 minute to freeze the shape, then fillet, then glass right into the wet fillets, all in one go.223870

The pic is a plywood pannier system I made for my mom 20 years ago, still going strong, and in this case I only used a little glass on the corners.