My new darkroom - in a log cabin

[jeztastic]

Hi,

Currently in the middle of the build, I would value people chipping in. I've built a log cabin with the help of the father-in-law, more power to his elbow... And put a stud wall in the middle. The front part is an office and behind the darkroom.

Turns out this is a complicated way of doing things - you can't connect two levels of log together or they can't settle and you get cracks. Light proofing is a challenge!

Would welcome thoughts of getting hot water in. Water heaters seem like overkill as all I really need is to keep water at a steady 24 degrees. (No colour work, maybe some E4 but that's it.)

After earlier consultation here I'm going with a soakaway for wash water, used chemicals will be collected and disposed elsewhere.

I would also value tips on how to light proof the extractor fan...

Thanks all,

Jez

P.S. The smaller diagram of the darkroom is the latest and most detailed.

[Lostlabours]

First thoughts put the water on the far right give yourself room for the processing trays you need water last for washing. Plasterboard the walls and insulate well.

It's quite easy to make baffles to light proof a fan. Run the enlarger bench to the wall then have a narrower bit of formica to the wall by the door with shelves underneath to store paper etc, that'll give you more room. also shelves under the sink for chemistry.

Ian

[M Stewart]

In my darkroom, I made a short labyrinth for the extractor fan - with the sides, roof and base painted black.
I found it was more difficult stopping light from creeping under the door and around the sides of the door - I settled on a narrow fabric strip fixed close to the edges of the door. At the floor, it sweeps along the floor, and collects dust as well.

[Svend]

Jez, is that what you call a log cabin in the UK? To a North American (and I include our US neighbours in this), a log cabin is made from whole debarked logs (see attached picture). What you have there is a cabin made from milled lumber. And a very nice one too, I must say . Well done! Very solid looking.

Now that we have that straightened out, on to your questions...

Ian is right on -- you need to stop drafts and insulate the place. Apply studs or lath strips to inside surface of exterior walls, insulate with fibreglass or equivalent, cover with 6 mil polyethylene vapour barrier glued with sealant, and then drywall over that. Do the same for the roof/ceiling. If you already have light leaking through gaps between the planks, then you will get drafts and moisture leaking in - not good. Mould will grow on the insulation. Not sure how you can seal those gaps after the fact (shoulda been done when they were fitted together), but some sort of plaster or packing will be needed, then coated with exterior varnish. Or consider adding a siding overlay like cedar boards laid clinker style to keep the rain, wind and bugs out.

Re. hot water, it depends on how deep the frost line goes into the ground in winter as to whether an insulated, buried line is feasible from the main house. Here in southern Ontario, Canada, we need to dig at least 4 feet to ensure we're well below the frost line during a cold winter. No one here would ever bury a hot water line, but it may be doable for your area if the run is short and winters are mild. Otherwise, a small flow-through or electric tank heater should be an easy install for the cabin. If the cold water pipe is at risk of freezing, then consider wrapping it with an electric heater cable and insulating over that.

Hope this helps. Great project you've got going! Wish I had a hide-away like that for all my hobbies.

Cheers,
Svend

[jeztastic]

Originally Posted by M Stewart

In my darkroom, I made a short labyrinth for the extractor fan - with the sides, roof and base painted black.
I found it was more difficult stopping light from creeping under the door and around the sides of the door - I settled on a narrow fabric strip fixed close to the edges of the door. At the floor, it sweeps along the floor, and collects dust as well.

Any chance you could post a drawing or photo of the labyrinth for the extractor fan?

[jeztastic]

Originally Posted by SvendN

Jez, is that what you call a log cabin in the UK? To a North American (and I include our US neighbours in this), a log cabin is made from whole debarked logs (see attached picture). What you have there is a cabin made from milled lumber. And a very nice one too, I must say . Well done! Very solid looking.

Now that we have that straightened out, on to your questions...

Ian is right on -- you need to stop drafts and insulate the place. Apply studs or lath strips to inside surface of exterior walls, insulate with fibreglass or equivalent, cover with 6 mil polyethylene vapour barrier glued with sealant, and then drywall over that. Do the same for the roof/ceiling. If you already have light leaking through gaps between the planks, then you will get drafts and moisture leaking in - not good. Mould will grow on the insulation. Not sure how you can seal those gaps after the fact (shoulda been done when they were fitted together), but some sort of plaster or packing will be needed, then coated with exterior varnish. Or consider adding a siding overlay like cedar boards laid clinker style to keep the rain, wind and bugs out.

Re. hot water, it depends on how deep the frost line goes into the ground in winter as to whether an insulated, buried line is feasible from the main house. Here in southern Ontario, Canada, we need to dig at least 4 feet to ensure we're well below the frost line during a cold winter. No one here would ever bury a hot water line, but it may be doable for your area if the run is short and winters are mild. Otherwise, a small flow-through or electric tank heater should be an easy install for the cabin. If the cold water pipe is at risk of freezing, then consider wrapping it with an electric heater cable and insulating over that.

Hope this helps. Great project you've got going! Wish I had a hide-away like that for all my hobbies.

Cheers,
Svend

Heheh... It is what it is... It's sold as a log cabin, but I appreciate the distinction... There is much debate in the house as to what to call it. Log cabin is too grand, so I think it will always just be "the shed"... It's sold by tuin.co.uk as the Rorick log cabin if you are interested.

I will attach some time lapse footage of me putting it up. It is properly roofed and insulated (roof and floor) and the "logs" are 58mm thick and interlock so no chance of light or water ingress through the walls, especially when it has 4 coats of very expensive timber treatment applied. Sealing light from where the roof meets the walls has been tricky, but a thick bead of brown silicone seems to have done it. It has yet to pass the midday in midsummer test though.

I should clarify, the difficulties with allowing for movement of the logs/planks has been in attaching the internal stud wall. We have an arrangement where it is attached at the top with screws in slots, so the shed walls can rise and fall independently of the stud wall. The top of the stud wall is not touching the ceiling at all, a system of skirting is attached to the ceiling and forms a sheath for the top of the stud wall. We were struggling to light proof this, but I think the father in law managed it today. I'll post some interior shots when I get the chance.

As to hot water, I am in the south of England, so deep frost not too much of a problem, although in the recent cold snap my north facing garden on the northern slope of a hill did not see any sun at all, and everything froze for about 2 weeks. Plus I have a 30 year old boiler I don't want to replace yet. Water at a steady temperature is not going to happen.
I do hate the idea of heating water up to near boiling just to cool it down to 24 degrees again, it seems a waste.

https://youtu.be/MVFMq7zv2pc
https://youtu.be/hhgp_cEz-1c
https://youtu.be/B-0rhDT7v6w
https://youtu.be/YKTK-rZIaMI

Thanks for the advice everyone!

[M Stewart]

Originally Posted by jeztastic

Any chance you could post a drawing or photo of the labyrinth for the extractor fan?

Here goes:
I used the utility room (1.4m x 3.0m) because water was supplied, and it had one window and no door. The window was blacked out using hardboard, and black plastic sheeting - which created quite a smell for many years when the sun shone on it. (SE facing)

The space for the door was without any frame, so I built my own frame to suit a door from a local shop; and finding a pair of very low cost 120V fans in an army surplus shop seemed too good a chance to pass over. (~£8 in 1982)
My photos show how it's been for 30+ years, functional but slightly noisy - one of the fans has poor bearings. In use there's no doubt the benefit of having fresh air as I've always used open dishes when printing B&W. The balanced pressure from using two fans together has hopefully stopped any air entering from more dusty routes at floor level.


Sketch


View from outside darkroom


View from inside darkroom

Big changes in a day or two as I'm collecting yet another enlarger tomorrow...

[big paul]

Svendn here in the uk a family of four could live in Jeztastic log cabin ,most houses are not much bigger :-) I am lucky I have my own darkroom in my house ,but I take my hat of to people who not only build a darkroom but also build a place to put it in ,that's dedication .good luck with your new darkroom and may you have many good years producing exhalent works of art :-)....



www.essexcockney.com

[Svend]

Too funny about the log cabin thing. I didn't want to mention that in this country one usually builds a log cabin in a remote forest 100 miles from the nearest neighbour, not counting the bears and moose .

Regardless what we should call it, Jez's building looks wonderful. And with 58mm thick solid wood walls, it's clearly earthquake proof too.

Jez -- sounds like the exterior walls are well sealed. Sorry, I got the impression that's where the gaps and light leaks were. Re. hot water, does your boiler not have a thermostat? Can't dial the temp down to a more reasonable level? Alternatives are small mini tank heaters or point-of-use flow through heaters -- both are less than £200 here.

I still think you should insulate the walls and use vapour barrier. It would certainly keep it warm and (esp.!) dry in there, and cooler in summer. With those thick walls you may not need a high R-value, so could use thinner styrofoam sheeting to save a few inches of interior space.

[jeztastic]

Indeed, log cabins!

https://youtu.be/_3J5wkJFJzE

This video has been a major source of inspiration... I think the Finns have us all beat when it comes to log cabin purity! :-D

I've attached more pictures so you can see how the stud wall works. Also to show my attempts at sealing with mastic. May need a bead on the inside as well.