Warm and cool shops

robinson46176 · Post by **robinson46176** » Tue May 01, 2012 4:59 pm

I wanted to start a new thread for this instead of pursuing this on the original which was going another direction.

Original quote from the other thread:

fredsheldon wrote:Which is why I just blew in 20 packs of insulation into the attic above my attached garage and installed insulation on the garage door. Next up is to install a ductless air conditioner and then I'm good to go for the summer. We had 90 days of 100 + heat last year.

I have always believed in the value of insulation and have come to believe that it can be one of the best things we can do for a building.
As a kid growing up our old barns were fairly tight as far as barns go, much more so than now. They spent the winter with up to 20' of chopped hay blown into the lofts and even late in the winter there was always a heavy layer of hay there. Just the body heat of the livestock was enough to provide some comfort in there. I don't know what the R factor of say 10' of chopped and blown hay is but I'll bet that it is pretty high.

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heathicus · Post by **heathicus** » Tue May 01, 2012 6:47 pm

I'm dreading finding out just how hot my shop is going to be this summer...

dusty · Post by **dusty** » Tue May 01, 2012 7:01 pm

heathicus wrote:I'm dreading finding out just how hot my shop is going to be this summer...

I suppose I should consider myself extremely fortunate. My shop opens to the east. In the morning I open the overhead door and let the morning sun shine in. During the winter, this relatively quickly warms the shop to comfortable (provided I am wearing pants and sweat shirt). During the summer, I don't have to wait. The shop seldom goes below 65°.

During the summer, I wear shorts and t-shirt and because the sun is now overhead by 10:00am, I will be in shade for the rest of the day. Thankfully, I saw fit to over insulate when we built the house. The builder thought I was nuts. Really, I was just lucky because I had no idea I would need that insulation.

I do perspire a lot during the summer though.

Too much insulation, I guess.

ryanbp01 · Post by **ryanbp01** » Tue May 01, 2012 8:14 pm

My shop is insulated to the point it's cool in the summer and I can heat both my train rom and shop with one small heater in the winter. The two new insulated doors have made a real difference.

BPR

fjimp · Post by **fjimp** » Tue May 01, 2012 8:27 pm

My builder was totally convinced I was nuts when I insisted on building a well insulated building. The heater runs on occasion during winter months. Last summer the air conditioner ran two or three days a week. The shop maintains the same temperature 24 hours a day seven days a week and I don't even need to go out in cold to move between house and shop. The realtor who assisted us in buying our property saw the shop for the first time Sunday. She was blown away and expressed that the new shop would add value even in a buyer didn't want a shop. No we are not contemplating a move. Jim

paulmcohen · Post by **paulmcohen** » Tue May 01, 2012 8:44 pm

I just finished insulating my shop, I covered a window with 2" of foam and plywood and am using a high tech metal foil over bubble wrap over the garage door. The plywood gave me lots more storage area.

One thing I was worried about was the outside ducting of my air conditioner looking like a pot grow shed so I added some additional shielding to hide exhaust and light leaks, a downside from living in a place where growing pot is legal with a card.

derekdarling · Post by **derekdarling** » Wed May 02, 2012 1:27 am

My shop faces west. To set up, I move the cars, open the sheds and roll all the equipment out under the carport, out of any rain. Never really gets oppressively hot here in southern B.C. (just south of Vancouver), but the spring and fall can be cold and damp, so I put in a roll-up tarp with some weights to enclose the area, and a small space heater keeps me toasty! I would kill for a shop, insulated or no, just to not have to put everything away at the end of a session, or for lunch!

Derek

mrhart · Post by **mrhart** » Wed May 02, 2012 9:15 am

I am an urban dweller, so my garage is also the shop. Stays mostly comfortable but I'm pretty hardy as well. I have no cooling options but a breeze controlled through the doors. I do have a small gas forced ar heater hung from the ceiling for colder days. Boise has no real extremes in weather as alot of you do. It was a record high 91 a week and a half ago, now 62 for the next week.

heathicus · Post by **heathicus** » Wed May 02, 2012 9:44 am

I finished "insulating" my shop a couple weekends ago with 3/4" thick styrofoam boards. One side has a foil coating on it. I don't know how much it is going to help, but hopefully it is better than nothing. And the shop is mostly in the shade all day. But even the shade is hot and humid in the summers here.

dforeman · Post by **dforeman** » Wed May 02, 2012 10:29 am

My shop is actually part of my parents three car garage. My step father had converted one of the bays to a shop and when he passed away I inherited the space/equipment. They bought the place in 89 but it was built in 1971. Unfortunately, the original builder didn't see a value in insulating/heating/cooling the garage part of the house. My step father always complained that it was either too cold in the winter or too hot in the summer to work in there. So, he really didn't do all that much in the shop. Our summers/winters here are kind of hit or miss. Some years we have mild weather others we get hammered. It really just depends on which direction the storm events drift. The other year when they were offering tax breaks for updating/adding insulation (the state's initiative to entice folks to be more energy conscience); I went ahead and finished insulating the attic over the garage. Plus, with the insulated garage doors it really helps to keep temperatures somewhat even. I usually don't mind the summer heat. If I open the garage doors and the back door/windows we get a nice breeze through the garage. In the winter I have a kerosene heater and a propane heater to keep the garage warm when I am working out there. I've also been thinking about insulating the outer walls which are covered with fire retardant drywall (a building code requirement here in Maryland for garage spaces). But, the only way I can see to do that without tearing out the drywall would be to use the blown in injection method. I think that will be another project for down the road.