If this page takes more than a minute to load, you might want to refresh your browser
Darkroom Accessories: Print Drying Racks
My print drying screens are designed to fit into a drying rack, which has wheels and will roll under my sink. I have not yet built this, so these plans are what I plan to do. I'm sorry I won't be able to identify any pitfalls until after I'm finished, which could be a while, since I'm working on this dang web site so much lately. I will make the screens out of 1x1 lumber and fiberglass screen, but you could purchase ready made window screens and save some time, I never priced screens, because I want to make them. I describe the building of screens later in this document. The drying rack will be made from 1x2 posts, with 1x2 frames at the top and bottom, and the 'drawer guides' will be angled metal, aluminum if I can find it. The outside dimensions of my drying rack will be 36" tall (including wheels), xx" wide, and 24" deep.Contents
Drying RackRack Tools
Rack Materials
Rack Construction
Screens
Screen Tools
Screen Materials
Screen Construction
Use
Drying Rack
The drying rack will be made from 1x2 posts, with 1x2 frames at the top and bottom, and the 'drawer guides' will be angled metal, aluminum if I can find it. The outside dimensions of my drying rack will be 36" tall (including wheels), xx" wide, and 24" deep.Rack Tools
- Screw driver - I prefer a drill with screwdriver bits
- Drill with 1/8" bit, and 1/4" bit (1/4 should be the size to match the wheel posts)
- Center punch
- Tape Measure
- Tin snips or hacksaw
- Paintbrush
- Sanding block - I prefer to use a palm sander
Rack Materials
- Saw - Table, circular, or hand
- Screws - 1 1/2" - I prefer drywall screws because they are self tapping
- Screws - 2 1/2" - I prefer drywall screws because they are self tapping
- Screws - 1/2" or 5/8" - Round head screws, these will go in the angle bracket guides, and we don't want the screen frames to catch on the screws
- 1x2 lumber - for my drying rack, I'll need 8 frame pieces 24" long, 4 leg pieces 34" long, and 3 cross brace pieces 43" long
- Wood glue
- Paint
- Sandpaper
- Aluminum angle bracket, 3/4" on each side, 68 of them each 24" long
- Swivel wheels, the kind with a post that goes into a hole, 4 of them
Rack Construction
- Cut 8 frame pieces each 24" long, they will overlap at the joints
- Cut the legs 34" long
- Glue and screw the frames together, using 1 1/2" screws, one at each corner, the bottom frame has the front and back rails on top of the side rails, the top frame has the front and back rails under the side rails
- Cut the angle bracket to length, one screen per inch of leg, so 2 pieces of angle bracket per inch of leg (in my case 34", 68 angle rails)
- Drill 1/8" holes in the angle brackets where they will be screwed to the legs, one screw per end, be sure to use a center punch so the drill bit goes where you want it to go
- Draw lines on the legs at 1" intervals from the top, these will be used to align the bottom of the angle rails
- Screw the angle rails to the legs, aligning the bottom of the angle bracket with the 1" spacing lines, using the round head screws
- Glue and screw the entire assembly together, using 2 1/2" screws to hold the legs to the rails (you have to screw through 2 1x2 pieces at each corner before you go into the leg), pre-drill holes in the rails. You only need one screw per corner, if you use glue.
- Cut the cross braces to length, to fit inside the legs and rails, from one corner to the other, cut the ends at an angle to match the rails
- Glue and screw the angle braces to the top and bottom rails - the angle braces make triangles on the sides and back, the triangle is a very stable shape. Make sure the box is square before attaching the braces.
- Paint the assembly, but not the aluminum rails, any color will do, you want to paint it to keep down the dust
- In the bottom of the box, in the corners where the rails overlap, drill holes for the wheel posts to fit into, make sure the holes you make are a tight fit, so the wheels will stay in place
- Insert the wheels
Screens
My drying screens will be 24" by 22", which will allow me plenty of room for 4 8x10 prints per screen, or 2 11x14's or 1 16x20. They will be 1/2" shy of the width of the opening in the drying rack, so that they can slide in and out! They will be made from 1x1 lumber, which actually measures 3/4" by 3/4", with lap joints at the corners, and I will staple fiberglass screen to them. I will seal the lumber with the same liquid plastic paint (could use marine varnish) that I used to seal the sink. The reason for sealing the wood is so I can wash the screens with no fear of deforming the frames.Screen Tools
- Saw - Table, or hand - don't try to use a circular saw!
- Stapler - I don't think a paper stapler will work, I have an electric stapler
- Tape Measure
- Paintbrush
- Sanding block - I prefer to use a palm sander
Screen Materials
- 1x1 lumber - I'll need 34 frames, each will have 2 22" pieces and 2 24" pieces. I'll need 68 of each length (WOW, that's a lot, I think I'll make 10 or so frames to start)
- Wood glue
- Liquid plastic paint or marine varnish
- Sandpaper
- Staples
- Fiberglass screen mesh to cover one side of each frame
Screen Construction
- Cut the 22" and 24" pieces
- Make half lap joints for each corner
- Glue and clamp the frames, keep them square
- Check the first one to be sure it slides into the 'shelf' with a little bit of room for the screen.
- Paint the frames with a water-proof sealer - liquid plastic or marine varnish
- Cut the fiberglass to wrap all the way around the frame, to be stapled on the inside of the frame, after wrapping all the way around
- Staple the screen to one corner - one staple
- Staple the screen to an adjacent corner, make sure the screen is taught, and square (the straight lines in the screen should line up with the straight edge of the frame)
- Staple one of the other two corners, keep the screen taught and square
- Staple the last corner
- Staple around the remainder of the frame, ever 3" or so, keeping the screen taught as you do
- Repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, rep....
Use
- After you wash the prints thoroughly, place them on a screen, face up
- Don't overlap them on the screen
- Slide the screen into the rack
- When you are done printing, roll the rack into the center of the room for maximum air circulation, and without stirring up any dust, leave
- When you go to remove the prints, they will probably have some curl to them, and you might want to remove the top screen first
- On a fairly regular basis, you need to wash the screens with soap and warm water to remove any chemical residue - I plan to wash mine after every 10 or so uses
Visitor Comments
The comments stated below are not necessarily the opinions of Andy Hughes or DarkroomSourceAnother portable print dryer idea for those with limited space (i have to space share my darkroom with laundry). Attach a length of screen to two different pieces of wooden dowel like an ancient scroll. Then attach some 1/2 bias tape (fabric store)to each dowel like a purse strap. The dryer can be rolled up and taken anywhere. I hang mine on two tea hooks over the bathtub and remove when I am not using to keep the screen from gathering dust. Steaming the bathroom also helps to cut down on dust in the bathroom. thanks.Contributed by on 1999-09-08 00:00:00
An upright paper rack is good for drying if you are using RC, and I imagine it is used much more frequently than fiber. I do all my prints on RC, and then I make a fiber print if I'm very pleased with a shot. Anyhow, a rack where you can layer the prints upright works well and is very simple to make... if you don't know what I mean perhaps a diagram: ///// (a view from the side) Does that help? lol. This sort of drier would take up much less space, also. Hope someone finds this useful. AuroreContributed by on 2002-07-06 00:00:00
Also, an economical option for printing racks are the stackable sweater dryers that you can get at any Wal-Mart or Target in the ironing board/laundry basket section. The sweater dryers are made for drying sweaters flat; they are basically made of screen stretched across plastic racks. They stack on top of each other, and also easily collapse for easy storage. Best part is, they cost about 7-8 dollars.Contributed by on 2004-05-02 16:45:37
