Darkroom size

"Michael Creem" wrote in
:

That is the size of the darkroom that I have used for years with a
Beseler 45mcr in it. My biggest problem was the height of the ceiling.
The Beseler when raised to the top required a lot of space.
I made a wooden sink for the wet side and could easily do 16x20s.
Michael


Thanks Michael,

When I get closer to an actual decision I'll draw up some plans and solicit
comments on the design.

Bob

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Tom Phillips wrote in :

I think you have enough room. My 45MXII sits on a
32 inch counter allowing me a good 2 feet of space
for working. I find the 2 feet of standing space
more than adequate for 16x20 printmaking. 20x24 is
a bit tighter, but doable. In an 8x8 space you
should have room for that on the dry side plus room
for a large 2&1/2 by 8 foot sink opposite on the wet
side with about 3 feet of standing space inbetween
separating the two sides, if you use a conventional
design, that is.

OTOH, you don't need 8 linear feet for the enlarger
plus the planned sink size may vary. You could put
the wet area along one wall and the enlarger area on
the perpendicular wall at a right angle. That might
give you more standing space and a feeling of openness.

I know a photographer who shoots and enlarged 11x14
and has a space no larger than yours. It's all in the


Thanks Tom,

Do you think 2 1/2 (30 inches) is good for the sink? The biggest prints
I've been contemplating are 16x20 -- a 24" sink would leave an inch or so
on either side of the tray.

My preliminary concept was for two counters (dry & wet) with the door and
an aisle down the middle, because it maximizes work surface and storage
space. I hate the idea of corner cabinets.

Bob

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bob wrote:

Tom Phillips wrote in :

I think you have enough room. My 45MXII sits on a
32 inch counter allowing me a good 2 feet of space
for working. I find the 2 feet of standing space
more than adequate for 16x20 printmaking. 20x24 is
a bit tighter, but doable. In an 8x8 space you
should have room for that on the dry side plus room
for a large 2&1/2 by 8 foot sink opposite on the wet
side with about 3 feet of standing space inbetween
separating the two sides, if you use a conventional
design, that is.

OTOH, you don't need 8 linear feet for the enlarger
plus the planned sink size may vary. You could put
the wet area along one wall and the enlarger area on
the perpendicular wall at a right angle. That might
give you more standing space and a feeling of openness.

I know a photographer who shoots and enlarged 11x14
and has a space no larger than yours. It's all in the


Thanks Tom,

Do you think 2 1/2 (30 inches) is good for the sink? The biggest prints
I've been contemplating are 16x20 -- a 24" sink would leave an inch or so
on either side of the tray.

Trays are larger than the actual print sizes. My
16x20 trays are 22.5x18.5 so would fit in a 24"
deep sink (patterson trays.) My preference/advice
would be to have a sink as large as possible for
the space. Keep in mind actual standing room to
work over a sink doesn't take as much room as
the sink itself.

My preliminary concept was for two counters (dry & wet) with the door and
an aisle down the middle, because it maximizes work surface and storage
space. I hate the idea of corner cabinets.

I'd consider the perpendicular design. It might
leave space for future needs. Cabinets/storage
shevles can be put above and below the sink or
if space is an issue even outside the darkroom.

A good idea is to draft 2-3 spatial designs before
deciding. You only get one chance

Bob

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In article ,
Tom Phillips wrote:

I'd consider the perpendicular design. It might
leave space for future needs. Cabinets/storage
shevles can be put above and below the sink or
if space is an issue even outside the darkroom.

A good idea is to draft 2-3 spatial designs before
deciding. You only get one chance

I agree a plan is a very good Idea, I built my first
two darkrooms without one.

I use a horse shoe shape or U shape, big wooden sink
on one long side, counter with enlarger opposite side and
counter and second smaller stainless drain sink on the
third side. The open side I enter at and I share the room
on that side with the houses water treatment apparatus.

Under the third side counter I have a shelf
for large cubietainers, under the big sink is a
kitchen sink stand that I removed the top from
and mounted my homemade wooden "larger" sink,...
gives me shelf space with doors. I have a lot of stuff
including a MXt jammed into the room its about 8x12.
At the amount of business I am doing, I have out grown the
room. Luckly as I told you before I'll be moving into a new house
and building a darkroom close to 2x the size.


I'll put some pictures on my site, at www.gregblankphoto.com/darkroom.
for the OP to view.

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"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President,
or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong,
is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable
to the American public."--Theodore Roosevelt, May 7, 1918

In article ,
Gregory Blank wrote:

I'll put some pictures on my site, at www.gregblankphoto.com/darkroom.
for the OP to view.

Should be http://www.gregblankphoto.com/darkroom.html

smaller images are linked to bigger ones just click on them.

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LF Website @ http://members.verizon.net/~gregoryblank

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President,
or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong,
is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable
to the American public."--Theodore Roosevelt, May 7, 1918

I have a darkroom that is 8' x12'. I use a linear rather than a two sided
work flow. The enlarger is in one cormer of an L shaped bench around one
end and 1/2 way down one side. After a partition there is room for a 4 ft
sink. Plenty big enough for two people to work with tray us to 16 x 20.
Ample storage space. I think 8x8 ft would be plenty big enough with a
smaller sink and some creativity in tray stacking, etc. We'd all love to
have an Ansel Adams darkroom, but I started in an interior bathroom with the
enlarger perched on the toilet. Made some good prints, too....
There are some excellent books on adarkroom layout. Check your local
bookstore, Amaxon, or the library. Heres one:

The New Darkroom Handbook by Joe Demaio, et al

I have used it to design mine and found it helpful. It covers everthing
from temporary bathroom setups to production facilities.

"bob" wrote in message
...
I'm thinking of building a darkroom. I seem to have two options:

1) a roughly 8x8 foot (2.4m) space that will become available this
summer. It has plumbing, electric and ventilation already.

2) the space over a 2 car garage that won't be built for at least a year.

I'm tempted by the 8x8 space, because it's both certain, and soon, but my
I do 4x5, so the enlarger is big -- about 3 feet square (nearly 1m). By
the time it's in the space, along with counters and sinks, things will be
pretty tight.

Anyone have experience in a comparable space with a comparable enlarger
(Besseler 45)?

Currently all the gear is sitting on shelved in my office, because I
can't set it up anywhere.

Bob

bob wrote in
:

I'm thinking of building a darkroom. I seem to have two options:

1) a roughly 8x8 foot (2.4m) space that will become available this
summer. It has plumbing, electric and ventilation already.

2) the space over a 2 car garage that won't be built for at least a
year.

I'm tempted by the 8x8 space, because it's both certain, and soon, but
my I do 4x5, so the enlarger is big -- about 3 feet square (nearly
1m). By the time it's in the space, along with counters and sinks,
things will be pretty tight.

Anyone have experience in a comparable space with a comparable
enlarger (Besseler 45)?

Currently all the gear is sitting on shelved in my office, because I
can't set it up anywhere.

Bob


Bob -

You can do a lot with an 8x8 space. The end result may not be a spacious
or as luxurious as the space over the garage, but it can be just as
workable.

Suggest a few things. First, decide what size prints you want to limit
yourself to. You can always improvise to make larger prints, but choose
a maximum standard size. Then, purchase the trays. Lay them out on the
floor (the living room works very well for this as long as the spousal
unit is not home), and measure the footprint of the full complement of
processing trays (developer, stop, fix and rinse). Those dimensions
determine how big your wet side sink needs to be.

Then, take a good, hard look at the 8x8 space. Are there constraints
that you need to work around? Are their ceiling obstructions or basement
windows that you need address? Where are the plumbing connections?
Either sketch this out on paper, or better yet, get some kind of
sketching software that you can use to lay out the room. Then, start
sketching how you would fit the darkroom components into the room.

Spend some time at Home Depot or Lowes to see what is available -
shopping for ideas.

One subtlety that you need to be aware of is that a 4x5 enlarger requires
a lot of head room. What is the ceiling height in the 8x8 space? What
kind of counter height allows you to get maximum extension on your
enlarger column without forcing the head through the ceiling of the room.

Finally, don't constrain yourself to simple rectangular layouts. There
is a lot that can be done with corners. In my darkroom, I opted to use
two inexpensive kitchen cabinets on either side of a corner, with the
corner blocked in to form a counter for my enlarger. I mounted the
enlarger directly to the counter, and braced the column into the wall to
eliminate vibrations. Because I have a ceiling height constraint (due to
a structural beam that passes through the darkroom space), I built a
recess in the ceiling to allow the enlarger head to move to the top of
the column. The result is that I have lots of space around the enlarger
for all the clutter that builds up during printing.

Gregory Blank wrote:

In article ,
Gregory Blank wrote:

I'll put some pictures on my site, at www.gregblankphoto.com/darkroom.
for the OP to view.

Interesting darkroom decor. You appear to have a mural
of a naked fairly climbing up a tree full of elves.

Or is it my imagination?

Should be http://www.gregblankphoto.com/darkroom.html

smaller images are linked to bigger ones just click on them.

--
LF Website @ http://members.verizon.net/~gregoryblank

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President,
or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong,
is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable
to the American public."--Theodore Roosevelt, May 7, 1918

bob wrote:

... the enlarger is big -- about 3 feet square (nearly 1m).


What sort of enlarger comes with a yard x yard base? I've
not sized bases lately but doubt the standard base for a 4 x 5
runs any more than about 24 x 30 inches.
Personally I'd like to see my 6 x 9 Omega B8 attached to a
few inch riser and that a part of the bench itself. I don't
think I'd go so far as to wall mount.
I'll second that single tray suggestion. I shelved several
trays and my darkroom got a whole bunch bigger. Lloyd reuses
chemistry while I use it, metered, one-shot. Metered and
with the least fluid practical, the chemistry is always
fresh. Less waste I dare say than the "let a bunch of
chemistry sit around in the trays way".
BTW, 27 inch benches may be just right. I'd consider an
8 foot plus a 4 foot counters.

In article ,
Tom Phillips wrote:

Interesting darkroom decor. You appear to have a mural
of a naked fairly climbing up a tree full of elves.

Or is it my imagination?

Should be http://www.gregblankphoto.com/darkroom.html

Yep, I painted that a long time ago, I never finished that as I wanted
to use the darkroom. I have always had issues finishing artwork,.. In
any event once I get to "my house" I intend to allocate some real space
for getting back to painting and and maybe some illustration work if I
can find a market.

Quite a few years back I took up airbrush, here's a few more samples of
some uncompleted drawings,...some of the first airbrush work I ever did
while I was experimenting.

http://www.gregblankphoto.com/Greg'sArt.html

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LF Website @ http://members.verizon.net/~gregoryblank

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President,
or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong,
is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable
to the American public."--Theodore Roosevelt, May 7, 1918