Well it's time for me to start thinking about cooling my shop. Does anyone use some sort of portable cooling system for their shop? I turn in my garage and as everyone knows it gets dang hot in there during the summer. This will be the first summer I try to turn in the garage and unless I cool it somehow I'm not going to want to be out there. Does anyone have any suggestion on some sort of portable cooling system or setup that they are using that they would suggest? Thanks.
Shop Cooling. Anyone using a portable A/C unit?
- Thread starter les-smith
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toolcrazy
Member
Open the doors. [
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jjenk02
Member
Les, I cut a hole in my shop wall and installed a window AC unit in mine last summer. I bought the 220 V version, but if you don't have any 220 there are plenty of 110V units available.
wdcav1952
Activities Manager Emeritus
Les,
First, you need to insulate if you haven't. I have a small ac window unit that I use. It will do the job, but insulation is a must if you want it to work.
First, you need to insulate if you haven't. I have a small ac window unit that I use. It will do the job, but insulation is a must if you want it to work.
jjenk02
Member
Thanks William, I forgot to mention that I insulated my shop also[:I][:I]
Tanner
Member
I bought this last year from Home Depot. It works great in AZ. It even takes moisture out of the air. We don't need that in AZ, however in Florida, I would think you may need that controled. James has a good idea, if you're handy with a sawsall and have the guts to cut into your house.[:0] If I tried that, I would mess that up big time. Heck, my wife already calls me Tim the Tool Man. You know like that show Home Improvement with Tim Allen, where he screws everything up.[V]
arioux
Member
Hi,
Here are some links that my interest you:
General info:
http://www.air-n-water.com/portable-ac-faq.htm
And a nice comparaison tool;
http://www.shopping.com/xGS-portable_ac_units
Hope this help you
Alfred
Here are some links that my interest you:
General info:
http://www.air-n-water.com/portable-ac-faq.htm
And a nice comparaison tool;
http://www.shopping.com/xGS-portable_ac_units
Hope this help you
Alfred
Rifleman1776
Member
I open the door to mine.
Fans help.
Fans help.
DocRon
Member
My shop is in my garage, has a back door and two windows. I just open the doors and get a nice breeze, if there is one, then use a 20'' box fan sitting on the floor and bathing me in a refreshing zephyr, scented with the aroma of wood shavings. []
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dubdrvrkev
Member
I have a small portable Mastercool evaporative cooler. It works up to a point but after 100 or so it just doesn't do the job anymore. If I get out in the morning and get it going it will keep the shop cooler longer, but if I come home from work and try to cool it down, forget it. I am a little concerned about the added humidity rusting stuff but I haven't had anything yet, except once when I let the pads get all clogged up and it was spitting water drops all over my mini. Luckily I caught that one pretty quick.
Basically I cherry pick my turning times in the summer here.
Basically I cherry pick my turning times in the summer here.
Gary Max
Member
I get up in the middle of the night and work-----sawdust and sweat don't mix well.
Penmonkey
Member
I open the garage door and some windows and set a fan in one window and then put something (piece of plywood) over my ice tea to keep the dust out of it.
dubdrvrkev, now here is a guy that knows what I'm talking about. My garage door faces west and has no shade at all. In the summer, in the early evenings, the garage door is so hot I might as well be standing by our oven when we're cooking pizza. My hope is to get something that I can blow on me. I'm leaning towards a poratble A/C unit and after reading what arioux posted I've got some good info to go with.
Does anyone use a portable A/C unit like this? If so, which one and how well does it work?
GreggR
Member
<b>If you cut a hole in your garage wall be sure to remember all exterior walls are load bearing!! </b>First double the studs on each side of the cutout (use screws and glue), and be sure to put a header and a cripple stud above the cutout. The header has to rest on a vertical support, so place your stud doublers on the inside of the existing studs and cut them short so the header will rest on the doublers. After installing the header and the cripple stud above it, THEN cut between the doublers with the sawzall or drill some holes in the corners of your cutout and connect the dots with a circular saw. Once your cutout is sized properly then place another header below the cutout - this one can be toenailed between the doublers and flushed up to the opening. Now you have a ridgid frame around your cutout and you've maintained the sturctural integrity of the wall.
jjenk02
Member
I tried one of the portable units like you have pictured BEFORE I cut a hole in the wall and mounted a real AC unit. The portable unit would not cool down my shop, you only felt it if you stood right close in front of it. I tried it for a couple of weeks but took it back...
Russb
Member
I also tried a portable unit and found it will not cool my 2 car garage. I don't know the model or the BTU rating. They are also quite expensive compared to window units. If you do try one get the highest BTU rating you can find. If I did it over again I would probably get a suitable window unit and try to make it portable somehow since I don't have windows or want to cut a hole for one.
Grizzlyss
Member
We had a portable air conditioner set up in our bedroom last summer, here in Alberta, and it would only cool the bedroom down at night, and turning it off and opening the window actually did it faster. It was actually bigger than we needed (according to the manufacturer) and yet it couldn't even maintain the temperature in our bedroom through the day, it would slowly creep up. My advice, save some money and time, and put one in your window, or in the wall, works about 4 times better, and is cheaper too. Your choice though.
Sheldon.
Sheldon.
TellicoTurning
Member
Like Frank, I just open the doors and get a couple of fans going.. Fortunately, doesn't get too hot in TN, 80 to 95 last summer.. plus my shop sits under a couple of big shade trees... It's fun in the fall when the acorns drop onto the tin roof...
Sawdustman
Member
Before I moved into my new shop I worked from a garage and used one of the roll around AC units as in the picture shown earlier. I routed the exhaust through a dryer vent in the wall that I installed. After 3 years of use I have to say it only worked if it was blowing directly on me and even then only on the days that weren't really hot. An expensive unit that was marginal at best.
Much nicer in my new show with real heat and AC
Much nicer in my new show with real heat and AC
woodbutcher
Member
Hurricanes blew my trees down. Shop temp went from high 80s to over 104. Insulated and 18,000 btu a/c. Soon found dust was a severe problem. Finally installed Clear-vue and things are much better. If you can stand the heat I suggest forgetting the a/c. It cost me 2500.000 for equipment plus a LOT of time.
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