Closet Darkroom Vent?

jwinst

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Aug 27, 2006
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I am looking into the the possibility of converting a closet into a darkroom. Just about everything I should be able to manage except the ventilation. Any Ideas? And its a rental unit so cutting a hole in the wall and making one myself is unlikely at best.

Or should I just practice holding my breath?

Thanks anyone
 
rogue_designer said:
what about buying a replacement door, and cutting a hole in it? you can rehang the old door when you move out.

Not bad, Actually thats a great idea. If I end up undertaking this, thats probably my solution right there. Thanks man!

kshapero said:
A good air exchanger from Home depot or lowe's would help.

And I had assumed something along those lines would be necessary, the problem I had was just where the outlet would be, thus the hole of some sort in a wall/door/window etc.


Now on a scale of 1 to 10 how bad is the worst a darkroom can get... 10 being a mouthful car exhaust or a nice day in LA or something(settle down...joke)
 
b&w only - a darkroom with no vent can get pretty bad - the fixer/stop combination gets potent in a hurry.

color processing can be downright dangerous.

Don't make a darkroom space without ventilation. You also want the fume path to not be right in your face - ie. exhaust fan next to, or above the chemistry, not behind you where it would suck the chemicals past you to get out.
 
I replaced my closet door with a cheap one from Home Depot (~$20). I then cut out two holes and installed an extractor fan in one and vent in the other. As mentioned earlier make sure you are not pulling the fumes across your face.
Cheers,
Nick
 
If you have a breathing problem dont use a stop or fast fix.

Tap water tempered close to the dev temperature is ok instead of stop for film. You only need stop for paper.

Plain hypo will extend your wash times for the same permenance, and is a lot easier on the throat & nose, it is cheaper.

If you move a lot of air you will get more dust. If you live somewhere hot you may need ventilation.

Noel
 
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