Bonjour! Im just making mine to. Im going to use a plastic laundry room sink/tub or whatever you wanna call it. You can get them at Canadian tire or Rona for something like 25 bucks I think. Then ill just build up some walls out of plastic up the 3 sides and incorporate a fine screen at the drain for filtering the water when I wash out my screens. Dirt cheap way of doing it but it should be fine.
I have a Lawson washout booth now, but I have in the past used one of those white basins, worked OK! Then I bought a bathtub with the attached surround-it was damaged and I got it pretty cheap...That worked pretty well also!
Technically not "home Made", but I went to a sheet metal shop and he built me a custom waterproof box that I screwed mid-drift high to the wall. Made a drain out of PVC, and put a waterproof fishing light in the back. Worked like a champ until I upgraded. The whole thing cost me $175.00 compared to the $1200.00 I just spent.
Bonjour! Im just making mine to. Im going to use a plastic laundry room sink/tub or whatever you wanna call it. You can get them at Canadian tire or Rona for something like 25 bucks I think. Then ill just build up some walls out of plastic up the 3 sides and incorporate a fine screen at the drain for filtering the water when I wash out my screens. Dirt cheap way of doing it but it should be fine.
We check this possibility too, but I just wondering if its a bit too small... You dond have any problems with it so far?
Technically not "home Made", but I went to a sheet metal shop and he built me a custom waterproof box that I screwed mid-drift high to the wall. Made a drain out of PVC, and put a waterproof fishing light in the back. Worked like a champ until I upgraded. The whole thing cost me $175.00 compared to the $1200.00 I just spent.
that's a nice one! i'm planning on building something very similar in the next few months.
right now I'm using one of the mentioned laundry tubs. they work fine but for most of my screens (19x23), I have to put them in at an angle to fit. make sure the wall is really watertight, because a lot will go out the sides when they're angled.
also, mine is in the backyard connected to my kitchen sink cleanout pipe, let me say it sucks! here in texas, it's usually warming up by now and we're expecting snow for the 2nd time this week! so much for global warming! it was nice yesterday, but i didn't have time to clean screens, so now i'm having to take thaw out breaks!!
also, mine is in the backyard connected to my kitchen sink cleanout pipe, let me say it sucks! here in texas, it's usually warming up by now and we're expecting snow for the 2nd time this week! so much for global warming! it was nice yesterday, but i didn't have time to clean screens, so now i'm having to take thaw out breaks!!
Tell meabout it, I'm living in Quebec, here we have snow 4-5months/year...
Here's my "El Cheapo" washout booth. I framed an opening between the 2 walls of my darkroom (4 feet wide) and dropped in one of those cheap (about $12) plastic tubs they sell at Home Depot for mixing mortar or concrete. I had to cut a hole in the bottom for the drain. In this photo, you can see I've also suspended a smaller tub underneath with filtering material to catch any solids from screen reclaiming. The hose underneath drains to a toilet drain in another room.
The second photo shows the cheap "mixing valve" I cobbled up so I'd have hot and cold water, since I had easy access to the lines. The surround is that corrugated plastic material used for patio panels or skylights. I bought 2 sheets, cut them in half, then rivetied the 4 pieces together with a big snotty bead of silicone sealant in the overlap to prevent leakage.
It ain't pretty, but it's bigger than most laundry sinks, and cost me $40 - $50 total. The pressure washer sits on the floor underneath, and my dehumidifier sits next to the sink and drains directly into it so I don't have to empty the bucket.
What do you guys use for filters? I'm setting up in a large basin-style sink, but I don't want the emulsion and whatnot to go down the drain. Bad for the environment I'd imagine, and it clogs the pipes.
Here's my "El Cheapo" washout booth. I framed an opening between the 2 walls of my darkroom (4 feet wide) and dropped in one of those cheap (about $12) plastic tubs they sell at Home Depot for mixing mortar or concrete. I had to cut a hole in the bottom for the drain. In this photo, you can see I've also suspended a smaller tub underneath with filtering material to catch any solids from screen reclaiming. The hose underneath drains to a toilet drain in another room.
The second photo shows the cheap "mixing valve" I cobbled up so I'd have hot and cold water, since I had easy access to the lines. The surround is that corrugated plastic material used for patio panels or skylights. I bought 2 sheets, cut them in half, then rivetied the 4 pieces together with a big snotty bead of silicone sealant in the overlap to prevent leakage.
It ain't pretty, but it's bigger than most laundry sinks, and cost me $40 - $50 total. The pressure washer sits on the floor underneath, and my dehumidifier sits next to the sink and drains directly into it so I don't have to empty the bucket.
Wicked awesome and cheap! I bet you could make wine from water.
The dehumidifier will easily pull a gallon or so of water out a day. Before I started draining into the sink, in the summer the bucket in the dehumidifier would fill up during the day and shut off. I set it at 40% humidity, and even after using the pressure washer, it'll only go up to 50%, then drop right back down. Most recommend not doing your washout in your darkroom because of the added moisture to the air, but it's the only space I've got and it hasn't been a problem for me. My screens dry out in a wooden box I built that has filtered holes in the front bottom, and a small fan drawing air from the inside out on the back. It's one of those sort of thin, small side-vented squirrel-cage type fans that are used on electronic equipment, so no light gets into the box.
Home made washout booth 
Re: Home made washout booth 
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