Thoughts on adding AC in my garage. - Page 2

David Fermani · 07-15-07, 05:28

I'm sure the 2 piece units are the best, but will a 16,000 BTU mobil work? The garage has a drywall ceiling (not insulated), block walls and non insulated garage door. Right now during direct sunlight(afternoon), it gets much hotter than the outside air temps inside our garage. I would definately prefer a mobil system.

gmblack3a · 07-15-07, 06:02

I have a smaller port unit. Only 10-12k BTU and my garage is 420sq ft. My garage door is a POS builders grade and not insulated. 2 out of 3 other walls are outside walls. This unit drops the humidity from 80% to 65% but the temp only drops a few degrees. I run one of my airmovers or a fan in front of it to help spread the cool air. The output air is 54° from the unit. I picked it up used for $250 as the ones at HD are $450-500. It helps somewhat, but if I paid $500 from HD for it, I would take it back.

David Fermani · 07-15-07, 06:31

Bryan - would it be better it was 16,000 BTUs? I need the garage to be almost as cool as the rest of the house. I'll be doing my day job out of it mostly. If it's in the upper 80's, it won't be cool enough.

gmblack3a · 07-15-07, 08:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by David Fermani

Bryan - would it be better it was 16,000 BTUs? I need the garage to be almost as cool as the rest of the house. I'll be doing my day job out of it mostly. If it's in the upper 80's, it won't be cool enough.

David, Does you garage door have good insulation? I am thinking of having a new one with insulation installed next year before the hot season. My house is over 15yrs old, so soon or later its gonna need replaced anyway.

Hard to say if it will be as cool as the rest of the house. If you have good insulation in your garage you might....

David Fermani · 07-15-07, 08:33

Not right now, but I should add some.

pb_foots · 07-15-07, 08:59

I can attest to the efficieny of the 'split unit' like the one above. I built a factory in Malacca Malaysia several years ago and used those Sanyo units exclusively. It was 100 degrees and 100% humidity outside, but you could get the conference room temps cold enough to hang meat.

Our work areas were huge, and those A/C units saved me a ton of money on install over a central system. Highly recommend.

Scott P · 07-15-07, 01:35

If you are going to make it a working space and spending any amount of time in there, I would suggest an insulated garage door and insulating the walls (foam board maybe?) and definitely the ceiling. The insulation will keep the unit from working to hard and keep the temps much more stable. I'd definitely go for one of those Mr. Slim units instead of a portable/mobile one.

gusmiami · 07-24-07, 01:21

I have one of these "mini-split" systems in my garage here in Miami. I love it. It's a 2 car garage and the garage gets colder than the inside of my house if I'm not careful. The units are NOT expensive. I would highly recommend one of these.

SuperBee364 · 07-24-07, 01:54

I just had my garage door insulated about a month ago. It does make a huge difference on temperature. I had it professionally done at a cost of $300.

gusmiami · 07-24-07, 03:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuperBee364

I just had my garage door insulated about a month ago. It does make a huge difference on temperature. I had it professionally done at a cost of $300.

This does make a huge difference. I had insulated garage doors installed when I remodeled my house. It was a must since they face west..... the afternoon sun beats the sh!t out of them!! Another reason why i needed the AC in there.

Accumulator · 07-24-07, 03:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by gusmiami

...[my garge doors] face west..... the afternoon sun beats the sh!t out of them!! Another reason why i needed the AC in there.

Yeah, I have westward-facing steel roll-up doors and they get *hot*. Mine're supposedly insulated, and I can't imagine how hot they'd get if they weren't