I'm being transferred from Atlanta, home of basements, rolling hills, green mountains and "sweet tea" to Houston, the place with no basements, and no hills.

I currently have a darkroom in my basement. Like most basements, it's the perfect spot - concrete floor (don't have to worry about chemical spills); consistent temperature; easy to make light proof, etc.. I'm going to have to get real creative in Houston as to how I can set up shop. Converting a finished bedroom really isnt an option - my wife wouldn't allow it (divorce isn't an option either - she brings home a paycheck!). I've been thinking of converting part of the garage but I'd have to insulate it, bring in water, heating and a/c for those balmy summer day temperatures of 100+ degrees + 98% humidity. I'd welcome some creative suggestions from any Texans out there who have figured out how to set up shop in a "darkroom impaired" state.

I could also use some feedback on venues for showing my work in Houston. I'm not a professional - just a passionate amateur. I've been exhibiting in juried shows in "co-op" organisations in St. Louis and Atlanta for some time (and winning prizes on ocassion). Any suggestions out there??

-- Robert Thomas (thoma5@bellsouth.net), February 23, 1999

Answers

Try convincing your wife that using a bedroom is less expensive than building in the garage. I had a darkroom in a spare bedroom in Kerrville, TX, and used the house's HVAC system to keep a constant temperature. I kept the darkroom's HVAC vent open in the summer and closed in the winter, then set the house's thermostat to keep the darkrrom 68 degrees year round. The house was warmer than that year round and it kept our electric bill reasonable. Construction costs would likely be less too, depending upon the complexity of running plumbing to the bedroom. Of course, my wife was an accounting major when I had the darkroom in Kerrville, so she liked the idea of saving money.

If you must build in the garage, I'd suggest a separate a/c unit for the darkroom. You can use space heaters (when not loading film) in the winter. But that a/c is not an option in Houston. Make sure you get all the insulation possible, as Houston can get cold in the winter. Not often, but it happens.

You really wouldn't want a basement in Houston anyway. Runoff from thunderstorms could cause major problems, but being from Atlanta you probably know all about that.

-- Darron Spohn (dspohn@clicknet.com), February 23, 1999.

Hey Robert, I just moved from Houston to DC and am trying to figure out how to set up a basement darkroom. Don't worry to much about trying to heat a Houston darkroom, heat and humidity are the problems. Houston has a thriving photo community. Join the Houston Center for Photography and the Texas Photographic Society to hear about national, regional and state news/events. There are also several hobbiest clubs in Houston such as the Houston Photographic Society (HPS) that is a print based club and another (I can't think of the name) that is a slide based club. The HPS meets on the second (speaker/presentation) and fourth Tuesday (member print competition) of the month at the Tracy Gee Center. All of the organiztions I mentioned have web pages. Good luck and get ready for some great Tex-Mex food.

-- Patty Miller (julieevans@mindspring.com), March 05, 1999.

My darkroom is in my garage, sharing water with the clothes washer. The most important considerations are ventilation and AC.

-- Ed Buffaloe (edbuffaloe@earthlink.net), March 12, 1999.

Making a darkroom in your garage is very easy use 1/4 in the back of the garage. In most case the hot water heater and power are there tap into the hot & cold water and T off your a/c to the dark room. Use a bath room vent to the out side and put a 2" drain in outside wall to your drain hope this helps.

-- Mike Hindman (mh9@gte.net), May 13, 1999.

The garage use 1/4 in the back of garage is easy to convert in most cases the hot wather heater and elec. power will be there. Tap into the hot & cold water and elect. for the room . Use a bathroom vent to vent to the outside T into the A/C put 2" drain to the outside into the top of your cleanout plug. Hope this helps e-mail me if you need more info.

-- Mike Hindman (mh9@gte.net), May 13, 1999.

I'd suggest putting a separate wallmount a/c unit in the garage darkroom, as opposed to tapping into the central a/c. Central systems are balanced for correct return air flow, and you could screw that up by 'tapping in' to the central system. You might consider getting a small heatpump unit. It should provide plenty of heat for the mild winters down here. BTW, I live northeast of Houston and have that rarity of rarities in this area; a basement. (I also live on top of a hill).

-- Jack Chase (jgchase@tenet.edu), May 21, 1999.