Darkroom Build Part 3!!

Good lord, it’s been nearly two months since I was last arsed enough to update the darkroom build blog – shoddy effort. Anyway, lots of progress made, I shall let the many pictures speak for themselves. Lets start with the floor. Damp proof membrane, concrete down and sealed with PVA/Water mix, along with the brick wall at the back. Dries clear, thankfully:

Sink, original Belfast that had been in the Garage of this house when we moved in, date underneath reads March 1936 which tallies with the house build time. From badly painted flaky terracotta:

To clean and white(ish) – note the custom plinth for the sink, sturdy enough and it needs to be:

Interior I decided to go for the wood panelling approach, underneath I stapled a thick black damp-proof  placca membrane to keep damp (obviously) and light out from the shed panels outside. Overkill maybe but there’s no light (or damp hopefully) whatsoever gets in!

This was all sealed and painted white (satin, mmm) – now some people think darkrooms should be black but that is a common misconception. White (or light colour) means more light reflected and less need for as much lighting. Plus it’s clinical as owt so I can see any stowaway earwigs on the ceiling, ugh:

 Also came across this nifty little interior concertina door on offer in B&Q for £3, bargainous! I may never use it all that often but I like it very much…

OK, decided to go for carpet in the dry area, and tiles in the wet area – the underlay down as is the carpet, but no pics sadly:

Water supply was sorted by a fantastic local plumber who happens to be the fatha of one of my best friends – if anybody wants his number then I will gladly provide it. He took a T-piece from the garden tap and a flexi hose through the wall of the Garage and into the ‘wet’ area of the darkroom with another outdoor tap on the end. Basic but works just fine with a length of hose directed into the sink. Also tiled a splashback area around the sink, well me ‘expert tiler’ fatha has (who has also been a massive help with this project, he protests when I ask him to do stuff while I’m at work but loves it really). Walls have been painted WHITE white since this photo was taken, it looks lovely and er, white:

And finally (if anyone is still with us), not so long back I acquired a highly expensive (and massive) lightbox from a very kind gentleman I work with and had nowhere to put it until now. It doubles up as the white light for the dry section of the darkroom and also as a lightbox for viewing negs before printing. Also got one of the enlargers set up on a folding table which had also been looking for a home:

And most importantly, speakers for MP3 player! Visiting the darkroom of the lovely Brenda this week to compare notes and exchange dosh for darkroom goodies! Getting there…. More to follow soon!!