Difference between revisions of "Archives/Shop 2.0/Heating And Cooling"

Revision as of 17:20, 20 July 2010

Lets coordinate ideas here.

Current Situation (verified by spacefelix on 7/20/10)

• From A/C Experiment
  • Assuming 24 BTUs to cool 1 sqft., Main Room at 30' x 40' needs 28,800 BTUs and Lounge Loft at ~30' x 10' needs 7,200 BTUs. Need a total of 36,000 BTUs to cool. Assumed BTUs/sqft is based on A/C manufacture's specifications. As they are conservative, it is assumed high ceilings will not impact this estimate.
  • Currently have a floor unit (9,000 BTUs) and a window unit (10,000 BTUs) with boost fans and several floor fans about for cooling. Total of 19,000 BTUs of cooling provided. Falls short of 36,000 BTUs by 17,000 BTUs.
  • Will purchase a new 15,000 BTU window unit for Main Room. Will be installed in window nearest the NE corner of the Main Room. Will bring us up to 34,000 BTUs of cooling, 2,000 BTUs short of 36,000 BTU estimated requirement. <- In Progress, spacefelix
    • Adding this unit will require an independent 110V line to be routed to the Main Room windows due to power requirements and to avoid tripping breakers. <- In Progress spacefelix w/ crashcart
• We need around 10 tons (120,000 BTUs/hr) of A/C capacity.
• Insulation
  • Per Ratmandu, the sloped roof is already insulated, fiberglass insulation seen on the main room's acoustic tiles is really unnecessary. Looking at the walls, it is assumed they are uninsulated as one can feel the heat/cold through them from touching the inside face.
  • There are many gaps in the doors, windows and seams throughout the shop. Have so far weatherstripped the main room window plates and doors.

Options

• Fans
  • 24" High Velocity Floor Fan
    • I'll throw in $30 towards this. --Omegix 16:43, 20 July 2010 (CDT)
  • Place mounts and vents in the Main Room window plates to allow for box fans to be mounted.
• Add a 15,000 BTU window unit, dehumidifier
  • Only serves Main Room, but can be ready the fastest and is most certain by far.
• more insulation on south & west sides of building
  • sees more sunlight during the day and afternoon than the other
  • garage door is on this side
  • cheapish
  • Scott & Spacefelix thought of a English Ivy shade garden on the walls. It would be a lattice that would be offset a foot from the wall. Ivy or other leafy vines would be grown on the lattice. It would shade the walls and provide transpirative cooling in the summer. The dead vines in winter would provide thermal insulation. I see this being done with simple rope being tied to stakes on the ground and attached to temporary clips on the building's awnings. The vines would then root in the ground and climb up the ropes.
• awning over garage door
  • "over door tarps" to some
  • would shade the door
  • has the added benefit over covering the smallish patio outside the door
  • would keep rain water from coming in under the door
  • cheap
  • Could set up a PVC pipe frame to hold up a tarp and mount above the garage door using temporary clips. However, it is advised that it be stowable to protect it from high winds. --Spacefelix 17:13, 20 July 2010 (CDT)
• compressor unit for outside capable of handling 2500sqft.
  • The pipes are already run and the cooling coil is inside above the furnace.
  • expensive
• fix ceiling tiles and insulated above it
  • Scott was looking into getting the used, but still good tiles from his building coming up.
  • cheapish
  • Take caution: per above, the roof is already insulated, so I advise that the ceiling insulation may be unnecessary. --Spacefelix 17:03, 20 July 2010 (CDT)

What's worked

• tarps from the ceiling, separating the garage and smallish room off the main room
  • on any given day you can tell a very noticeable difference between one side and the other with the existing AC on.

What won't

• any form of interior evaporative cooling
  • far too humid in this state for it to work
• Rooftop Conduction\Evaporative Cooling
  • The original roof of the building was flat, the angled roof is above it. This would only serve to cool the air gap between the two roofs.
  • http://www.builditsolar.com/Experimental/RoofCooling.htm
  • It's always cooler at the shop after it's rained
  • Could probably be done for a few hundred
  • water is a cheap utility