Shop Air Conditioning

Eric Patterson

Eric Patterson

Administrator
Staff member
The recent heat wave has prompted me to find a cooling solution for my garage workshop. The simplest solution would be a window unit but the only two windows face the front of the house and I don't want a window unit eyesore. In fact it might be a covenant violation. I've also looked into portable floor units where you run hoses out a window for heat exhaust. I'm leaning towards this but they are expensive, twice that of a window unit, and take up floor space which is a premium in my current shop. I figure there are other solutions or maybe someone has an idea or two. I've been toying with the idea of mounting a window unit up high in a corner of the shop so it will be out of the way but that will require some way of venting heat and condensation and I've not worked all those details out.

Any suggestions?
 
Couple of solutions to consider.

Is your house A/C unit sized large enough to cool the garage space as well as the house? You could just duct it in.

Cut a hole in the back wall for a window unit or mount one on the roof like the commercial guys do.
 
Pete

Ducting mods might work but I'm not sure if my current AC is beig enough and I only want it cooled when I'm out there. The rest of the time it doesn't matter.

The back wall is our laundry room and mounting on the roof would be visible from the street. Perhaps I could go with a second AC in the attic and duct it in the garage but that sounds expensive.
 
What about a 'through-the-wall' model in an inconspicuous spot? You would need to frame in a new opening, but I could still be a better option.
 
Eric,

Have you thought about a ductless wall mount system? I've seen these used with good success. Basically need power and a pump with some tubing to take care of any condensation. Wouldn't need to cut a hole in the house, except for maybe to dump the condensation tube to. Heck, you could even stick the tube end in a 5gal bucket and just dump it when you're done. I suspect you wouldn't be leaving it on all the time?

http://www.mrslim.com/Products/Category.asp?ProductCategoryID=24

Ryan
 
Eric, a window mounted portable AC would be the easiest way to "Get'er Done" if you have a window to work with. I have a window mounted AC in the little apartment up at the shop, another one in teh meat cutting room and a 3rd one that was adapted to work in the meat locker that is regulated to come on ay 45 degrees and go off at 39 degrees. They work harder in the kind of heat you are having, but worth every cent when you want to work out in teh shop during the summertime.

They will work even if sitting on a bench inside the shop as long as you can make an air intake from the outside to the back of the air conditioner. Food for thought if nothing else.

Dave
 
Eric,

Have you thought about a ductless wall mount system?
http://www.mrslim.com/...ProductCategoryID=24

Ryan
Click to expand...


Eric,

there is a church in Door county, old Belgian country church that put these units in. (or something very similar) Total was I think 10-12 units. Hung them up high. This church is out in the middle of no where, no trees to shade it at all. Place was blistering hot prior to them adding these units. Now, I must say it is almost cold in church. Several of the old biddies even bring sweaters to church now.

My point is I believe they work very well and are a fairly simple install and the are super quiet. Check them out first, very minimal in terms of holes in your walls.

Eric
 
Ithink sony makes a wall mounted unit that hugs the inner wall-as for the compressor, you can always do shrubs--check with an hvac person as to what type of unit might be best suited for your situation, other than a windo shaker, w2hich seems to be taboo in your 'hood! You might want to get a copy of the neighborhood rules, to see what is applicable-do you have a homeowners association? if so, chat with them!
 
There are Portable units now.

http://www.pcrichard.com/catalog/product.jsp?modelNo=AP095R&AFC-GoogleBase&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=AP095R

L_AP095R.jpg


Hitch
 
Hitch, that says no longer available. I would think that a hot garage would need more than 9-10k BTU. Get a 15-20k window air conditioner and make a nice cover for the outside that matches your siding when it's not in use. You could also make a rolling cart that holds one and have it in your entry door when using it...make the cart so it covers the whole door opening when rolled in place.You have the tools....use them! Also you could T into your duct work and siphon of cold air into the shop...just put a close able register on it.
 
They make a bunch of these portable units now...different companies. I just snagged the first picture I found.

Hitch
 
Eric,

Easy solution- move to Washington ; ) . Been here about a week-experienced slush while driving throught the mountains, and the temps around Olympia have been in the mid 50s. I think yesterday was the first day we actually confirmed the sun shines here.

-Bill
 
hey eric the duct idea sounds good to me just have to install some type of manual damper to open air flow or close it when needed you might starve the rest of the house for a while but it is easily fixed when you close the damper, all of above would work if you have accsess to the duct in the main system , if you have any ques shoot me a line i am in the business of hvac
 
Eric, I did the suggestion that Andy Grant described when I built my new shop. I did however have new construction going for me. I had the contractor box it out and cut it in the vinyl. I have mine pretty high on the wall as not to take up my "useable" non ladder space. This allows me to pull it out and chunk it if need be and put another right in it's place. Quick and easy.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. I think I am going to call a local HVAC company and get them to come out and do an on site assessment. I did think about tapping of my existing ducts but my garage is on a slab while the rest of the house is crawl space so I'm not sure how ducts could be run. Probably could just not sure how at this point. The other thing is I can imagine the rest of the house being cool and but still hot in the garage since the doors and one wall aren't insulated.

As for the through the wall in an inconspicuous spot idea, that would be hard to do. My house is brick and the only wall to work with faces the front of the house. It would be seen just like a window unit. I have a side entry two door garage, one exterior wall that faces the street, and the other two walls are opposite the laundry room and the kitchen.

The idea that seems like a good fit is the split unit that Ryan showed. I could mount it high on the wall and set the compressor portion in the front shrub beds out of view. It's more money than I planned but it's getting dang hot. Another solution might be to go ahead with the window unit and put a trellis in front of it to block the view from the street. Also Attic access is good so a small unit placed there and ducted in might work but I'm not sure about efficiency when you put the unit in such a hot place.

Thanks again for the suggestions. I"ll let you know what the HVAC guy says.
 
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They say the Eskimos have 37 words to describe snow, we have 37 words to describe the frequency, intensity and amount of rain, and another 25 phrases to describe the ratio of clouds to sunshine. Do you know any other place where they differentiate between partially sunny and overcast with sunbreaks? Get used to it.

Eric-can't help you with air conditioners, we still have the heat pump (furnance) running or wood stove burning.
Eric,

Easy solution- move to Washington ; ) . Been here about a week-experienced slush while driving throught the mountains, and the temps around Olympia have been in the mid 50s. I think yesterday was the first day we actually confirmed the sun shines here.

-Bill
Click to expand...
 
Calliing your local HVAC guy is definately your best bet. Im a hvac contractor and a seperate min-split system is the way to go. When selecting the minisplit, the length of the line set is very important. The sony mentioned above will have a problems if the line set(refrigerant lines) are under 26' in total length and over 50' in length. Your local contractor should know all of this. A 24,000 BTU would be fantastic because you would have a quick recovery time when turning it on in the heat of the day. I would suggest going with a heat pump instead of just AC as the cost difference will not be that drastic.
The problem with just cutting a duct in to your existing system is that your existing ductwork is not sized for your garage. Even if you did have enough unit, which I seriously doubt, your duct would probably not carry the additional cfm's needed. Residential duct systems work on pressure. Even though you have a new vent cut in, its not a gurantee that the duct can carry the release in pressure and deliver the air needed. You possibly could just screw up the air delivery inside the house.
Good luck. If I was close by I woud have been glad to help.
 
Eric: You should have asked me first since I have knowledge of your environmental and political situation, and an elegant solution. Ready for it? Get a window unit and grow your bushes a little higher. Tada! Ain't I smart?
 
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