Garage cooling
I've had a shop in my house for over 30 years and tried all sorts of solutions to the heat for July, August and September-
Here's my suggestions-
-swamp cooler - they don't work as well as they used to because the humidity is higher in the summer than it used to be. It might be good for a month or so, but the humidity will overwhelm it in August and September. It also is hard on tools - they rust. With the amount of water they take, they are not really any cheaper to run than an ac unit. They take a lot of maintenance too
-Window AC - This is what I have now - 10000 BTU in a 600 sq-ft shop. I cut a hole in the wall and mounted it between two studs. About the best it will do is 82-83 F inside the shop and it is insulated to R26 and no windows
-Mini-split. This is what I want to try next. For around $1200 I can have between 2-3 tons of AC at a pretty good SEER. I can also have heating for the couple of weeks I need it in the winter
-Stand alone central air - 3 tons with ductwork, outside unit and air handler in the attic - $3500. The ultimate solution but too expensive.
Here's my suggestions-
-swamp cooler - they don't work as well as they used to because the humidity is higher in the summer than it used to be. It might be good for a month or so, but the humidity will overwhelm it in August and September. It also is hard on tools - they rust. With the amount of water they take, they are not really any cheaper to run than an ac unit. They take a lot of maintenance too
-Window AC - This is what I have now - 10000 BTU in a 600 sq-ft shop. I cut a hole in the wall and mounted it between two studs. About the best it will do is 82-83 F inside the shop and it is insulated to R26 and no windows
-Mini-split. This is what I want to try next. For around $1200 I can have between 2-3 tons of AC at a pretty good SEER. I can also have heating for the couple of weeks I need it in the winter
-Stand alone central air - 3 tons with ductwork, outside unit and air handler in the attic - $3500. The ultimate solution but too expensive.
And as for ducting the garage into the main airconditioner - been there and done that and I wouldn't recommend it.
When I built the house I had the AC contractor extend the duct and put in a register in the shop.
I got a lot of complaints from the family about the smells. If I painted in the shop, you could smell it everywhere in the house. If I had gas or solvent, you could smell it everywhere in the house. If I was welding you could smell it. If I ran a motor you could smell the exhaust.
I don't know about you, but I keep a lot of chemicals in my shop- paints, thinners, cleaners, oil gas, etc. In AZ all that crap evaporates eventually. I don't mind occasional exposure when I'm working in the shop, but the idea of exposing my kids to it continuously when the AC was on bothered me.
I ended up capping the duct and the return to install the wall mounted unit I have now
When I built the house I had the AC contractor extend the duct and put in a register in the shop.
I got a lot of complaints from the family about the smells. If I painted in the shop, you could smell it everywhere in the house. If I had gas or solvent, you could smell it everywhere in the house. If I was welding you could smell it. If I ran a motor you could smell the exhaust.
I don't know about you, but I keep a lot of chemicals in my shop- paints, thinners, cleaners, oil gas, etc. In AZ all that crap evaporates eventually. I don't mind occasional exposure when I'm working in the shop, but the idea of exposing my kids to it continuously when the AC was on bothered me.
I ended up capping the duct and the return to install the wall mounted unit I have now
I have a window unit. I insulated my garage and if I know im going to be working during the day I leave the side door open (it goes into my porch) and let it get as cool as it can at night. Then I turn the ac on early in the a.m. and it generally stays pretty nice during the day.
I Had in my old house i had a exhust fan that was in my garage ceiling and when i closed the garage door opened the side door in the garage kicked it on it was like the a/c was on in the garage no kidding. If i ever build a house again i will have one put in .
Staging Lane
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 80
Likes: 0
I know its out of your budget but in my garage I have a seperate central ac unit. and in my washbay stall I have a heated/cooled floor. And suprisingly that floor cooling works better than I thought it would. I put it in just for the heating but it works very well for cooling. If I leave all my doors for my washbay open to the rest of the garge it keeps it 70 on a 100+ day 
But I do leave it on all the time. Runs dirty cheap 
But I do leave it on all the time. Runs dirty cheap 
11 Second Club
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 300
Likes: 1
From: Central Florida
When I had my main house AC unit replaced, the new system was upsized to include the square footage of the garage. a single duct was added (just so happens the air handler is conveniently located in the garage)... it keeps the garage as cool as the house. By far it's not budget-friendly, but well worth the investment. At least when I work long hours in my own garage, I don't have to sweat or share it with mosquitoes.
My next project will be to hang a small vacuum hose system so I can start the car w/o opening the garage door.
My next project will be to hang a small vacuum hose system so I can start the car w/o opening the garage door.
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo
Awesome K5 Blazer Restomod Comes With C7 Corvette Power
Verdad Gallardo
10 Camaros You Should Never Buy
10 LS Engine Myths That Refuse to Die
Verdad Gallardo
I also have a 2 car attached garage on my house, my car stays in the garage 99% of the time and down here in the summer time the humidity is stifling. Lucky for me I do have two windows so a $100 lg window unit is the key, I even had the windows in my garage door tinted limo to cut down on the heat coming in thru there. Don’t get me wrong in the June July months it will still be around 80 in there but it’s a dry 80 and with two fans going its very comfortable versus the outside heat. I would love to insulate the ceiling in it one day and buy or insulate my garage door too. Even in the cooler parts of the year I leave it on in the "humidity cycle' where it just acts as a dehumidifier, works great, IMHO.
Do not get a rolling portable air conditioner. They only do spot cooling, so only what you point the vent at. The best compromise I have found is opening the door to the house and having a fan blow cool air in. I also hooked up a window AC unit, but its ghetto rigged with my bay windows. I use those 2 and I don't work during the heat of the day.
I've always wanted to stick a window AC unit in the wall of my future garage. I know what you mean though. My place in NM cooked in the summer. No insulation over the garage just made it an oven. Especially with non-insulated garage doors.
Measure the area of the garage to get a cubic foot size and add 20% to that. Should be enough to cool it and not have the unit running all the time to KEEP it cool. I know how Phoenix summers are. I swear my shoes could have melted to the road. 0_o
Keep in mind that if you add a duct from your central air to feed the garage its a fire hazard and if something happened the insurance company might have leverage to not cover it. Best bet is a mini split unit.
Do this, Get a window unit big enough for your garage at Wally world or were ever. get a piece of plywood wide enough for one of your garage doors. Frame it up and install the unit in it. Make it so you can up the door a little and move your window unit from under it, then close the door on it. That way you can open and shut the door when ever you want and just wheel the framing out of the way. You might need to get a little insulation to stuff in the open corners over the door or something.
What a buddy of mine did is took some small copper piping and heated it up, put it around the front of a fan and put some behind the fan, then took something like a 20 gallon bucket and filled it with about 75% ice cubes, then water, worked kind of like a radiator..given he did that for two-a-days a few years ago..but it was a nice relief in a room about the size of a two car garage..but this is Ohio, we have 95 degrees with 90% humidity lol
