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  #1  
Old 14th June 2014, 10:57 PM
EdBray EdBray is offline
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Default Converted Darkroom(film) / Dimroom

I have almost finished my Darkroom(film)/Dimroom, all that is now left to do is to reinstate my 950nm IR lighting, this will need a little moving around as the shelving for chemicals and equipment have encroached on to their previous mounting areas.

Lots of pictures, but basically it is a 8ft x 8ft x 9ft high room with a 7ft Sink with 3 pairs of taps and an additional washpoint. There is a film/tissue drying cabinet at one end with a portable (not any more) air conditioner mounted above it. The Actinic UV Light Bank has 12x 2ft tubes and give a useable exposure in 6-10 minutes depending on the density of the negative used.

I have tried to use my limited Carbon Printing experience to adapt the room to be most suitable for me, but it is inevitable that I will make changes as my Carbon Printing journey continues.

I have mounted the CPP2 into what was the window recess and plumbed it in although I have made it possible to lift out the CPP2s waste pipe to be able to place it in a bottle if I am planning on reusing a chemical.

View left from door showing end of sink and CPP2 in window recess:



View right from door showing dry side bench:



Above dry side showing materials and Aircon:



Extraction hood above sink to remove acetone fumes when sensitising tissues:



End of sink inside door with storage above and trays stacked for use. Just inside the door is a humidity meter and thermometer:



Chemical and TPE (for Glop making) storage:

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Old 14th June 2014, 10:59 PM
EdBray EdBray is offline
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CPP2 Plumbing:



Tissue making and Transfer Bench also showing Actinic Lightbank and Film Fridge:



Tissue Making and Transfer station, this is perfectly flat and I use 1.5mm strips of wetted Acrylic sheet to make the frames for my tissues. There is also another sheet of 12mm Float Glass which sandwiches the exposed tissue and final support medium, this then has 4x 5 litre bottles (20kgs in total) place on it to compress the sandwich:



Dim light as it will look during use, this extractor hood has 2x 25w Tungsten lamps in it which provide the light:



Additional light for use in an emergency or if I need to find something I have dropped. This is a clip on lamp with a 25W Tungsten lamp installed:



The UV light source for my Carbon exposures, I am planning on attaching another piece of lightproof material (removed from the window area during the conversion) across the front of the UV light source which will then be sealed with Velcro:



So all in all, I will be able to start using the room soon (have another couple of jobs to do for the wife first though) but do have to make special mention of the anti-fatigue flooring laid in the middle of the room and also the stainless steel wire (curtain wire from Ikea) and clips that do a fine job.

Thanks for looking.
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Old 14th June 2014, 11:22 PM
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skellum skellum is offline
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Phwooaaarr!! Darkroom porn! I love it. I'm stuck using the kitchen at the moment, so seeing a real dark(dim?)room is great. Well planned and looks well executed. Only problem is the Budweiser fridge- don't see any Buds in there, Eddie.
Good luck with the carbon printing- never seen it in the flesh so I have no idea what it looks like, but I have to assume it has some particular magic.

ps- Is that a big bottle of Thymol? Speaking as a Dentist, isn't that a load of mouthwash . . ?
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Old 14th June 2014, 11:51 PM
EdBray EdBray is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skellum View Post
Phwooaaarr!! Darkroom porn! I love it. I'm stuck using the kitchen at the moment, so seeing a real dark(dim?)room is great. Well planned and looks well executed. Only problem is the Budweiser fridge- don't see any Buds in there, Eddie.
Good luck with the carbon printing- never seen it in the flesh so I have no idea what it looks like, but I have to assume it has some particular magic.

ps- Is that a big bottle of Thymol? Speaking as a Dentist, isn't that a load of mouthwash . . ?
Yep, Thymol, its used as a preservative to stop the gelatine growing mould if you don't use it right away. Bloody horrible stuff though, stinks to high heaven and is a right bugger to get it into solution. I had to heat water to get a 2% solution, but every time I go to use it it is growing crystals and I have to mess around with it again. We only use a couple or three drops per litre.
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Old 15th June 2014, 05:34 AM
RichardWarom RichardWarom is offline
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you've done a really smart job Ed, it looks great and makes me pine for my darkroom which is still in storage as I've just moved and have to convert the garage first. (How many years of slavery did the wife charge?)
I wish you success with your carbon project.
Richard
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Old 15th June 2014, 07:09 AM
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CambsIan CambsIan is offline
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Hi Ed,

WOW, looks like all you hard work has paid off.

Ian
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Old 15th June 2014, 07:43 AM
EdBray EdBray is offline
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Thanks for all the positive comments.

I did have to make a couple of concessions in that I have to store my lighting equipment and backgrounds under the dry side table, and all other bits and bobs under the sink. Thought it would be worse than it actually is though.

May consider selling some of it as I have not done any professional portrait stuff for years and it is quite bulky stuff.
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Old 15th June 2014, 09:52 AM
ymgandy ymgandy is offline
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Wonderful, makes my darkroom look like a dog kennel. Green with envy. Tiny word of caution, get some foam or something soft on the corners of the extraction hood. Similar to the one in my kitchen & I catch those sharp corners regular, & that's well lit.
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Old 15th June 2014, 10:16 AM
EdBray EdBray is offline
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Originally Posted by ymgandy View Post
Wonderful, makes my darkroom look like a dog kennel. Green with envy. Tiny word of caution, get some foam or something soft on the corners of the extraction hood. Similar to the one in my kitchen & I catch those sharp corners regular, & that's well lit.
Thanks for the tip, good idea, will do that.
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Old 15th June 2014, 07:13 PM
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MartyNL MartyNL is offline
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Good to see that things are progressing Ed. Please keep us up to date with any and all developments. It's always inspiring to hear the story's of others.
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