air conditioner for 2 car

[PoorOwner]

The garage is 20x23 all walled only ceiling have insulation.

I can cut a hole in my stucco like for the dryer vent but that's about the extent I want to do, I do not want to put a window style one in the wall or something like that. I also want to stick with 110V receptacle.

If they make one that mounts on the ceiling that would be great.
But I was thinking on of those portable conditioner mount it up the wall and out of the way?

Yea, cost is a concern, don't want to spend more than a few hundred. I already have a heater so I don't need a heat and cool unit. I feel bad now, first I wanted the heat now I wanted the cool too.

 

[HoosierBuddy]

A window unit is in your price range, but you don't want one.

A ductless minisplit system is what you want, but not in your budget (More than $1000, probably).

I'm stumped. Maybe a couple of these?

Even those aren't cheap. I think Northern is wanting $179/ea.

Phil

p.s. Is this an attached garage? Any chance you could run a new duct in from your home's A/C system?

 

[PoorOwner]

A window unit is in your price range, but you don't want one.

A ductless minisplit system is what you want, but not in your budget (More than $1000, probably).

I'm stumped. Maybe a couple of these?

Even those aren't cheap. I think Northern is wanting $179/ea.

Phil

p.s. Is this an attached garage? Any chance you could run a new duct in from your home's A/C system?

The duct could run to the garage but it would be thefurthest run and I feel it will not be effecient.

My home is a duplex, I only have one wall that I can possibly cut and that is crowded with utility lines / meters plus it would make the home appearance very poor to install an in-wall unit.

I just found out what a mini-split is, maybe I should save up and get a small mini split like this?

http://www.air-n-water.com/product/ACS-1200H.html

 

[JMURiz]

p.s. Is this an attached garage? Any chance you could run a new duct in from your home's A/C system?

That's a big no-no!
You are not allowed to run vents to/from a garage to the rest of the house. Bad things happen when exhaust seeps from the garage into your house (like death).

There are always free-standing AC units, but they are $$ too (~$400).

 

[Jaytree]

That's a big no-no!
You are not allowed to run vents to/from a garage to the rest of the house. Bad things happen when exhaust seeps from the garage into your house (like death).

There are always free-standing AC units, but they are $$ too (~$400).

I have a close friend that had a vent in the existing duct work that ran through the roof of his garage and that never occurred to me. That garage was like an icebox most of the time.

 

[HoosierBuddy]

You are not allowed to run vents to/from a garage to the rest of the house.

Oh, yeah? Who's going to stop me? You? I don't think so, Skippy.

In any case, it can be done quite safely. You put a servo on the duct. It opens the duct only when the fan is running. That's EXACTLY how the a/c in my new garage works. There's an airhandler upstairs in the finished bonus room that sends cold air to the garage, the family room, and breezeway.

That's the way the HVAC pro that did the a/c recommended it be done. So, that's what we did.

As far as your "Death comment"? If you've got enough CO to hurt someone in your garage...you've got a huge problem whether it comes in the house or not. It'll kill you just as dead in the garage. And that has nothing to do with the hvac system.

Phil

 

[HoosierBuddy]

It's interesting to me how you can make sweeping statements about a project you've never seen, or make any sort of comments about the HVAC guy who did my work without ever meeting or speaking to him.

The largest hole between the house and the garage would be the door. Come to think of it, it isn't a fire door. It's a regular old exterior door, just like you would use say...in a house. There are no ducts running through that wall.

Phil

 

[PoorOwner]

The book I was reading on build garages told me not to tie into the central A/C but it only mentioned due to solvent smell etc. Anyway I would not do this because it would cost me alot to run the whole house A/C in order to cool the garage.

Do you think something like this (portable) could work?

http://www.air-n-water.com/photos/2668-2b.jpg

I know portables are not most effecient, but this could be hauled back into living quarters to use which is a bonus. I rarely run the whole house A/C at all.

 

[HoosierBuddy]

Duct runs from the living space terminating in a garage are prohibited by national BOCA code. That will never pass a residential inspection around here.

Humph.

"Around here" must be in a different space time continuum. BOCA became defunct in 2003.

For Indiana, the applicable code is "2003 International Residential Code for One and Two Family Dwellings" published by ICC. Since my home was built in 1918, I'll bet there are one or two other issues with current code.

Actually though, you've really piqued my interest. Since we don't have any code or building enforcement in my county, I'm not sure exactly who to approach on this. Fire door between the garage and the house? Man...not in any house I've ever lived in. I've never owned a new home though. Looks like you have to BUY the code from ICC. I guess they wouldn't want to put that stuff on line. Then everybody would be able to read the code. Wouldn't want that. NOOOO.

Phil

 

[BoCRon]

PoorOwner,
It would be helpful to know where you live. Some of the free-standing unit (swamp coolers for example) are useless in the South due to humidity, but work very well elsewhere...

Annette

 

[PoorOwner]

I am in Northern California. I saw some swamp coolers they are much cheaper but I am not sure how well they work. Will it cost rust in some steel stock that I keep around.

Depending on the cost, I am probably not going for a 30 degree drop.. just looking to get more comfortable, when it is 100+ outside I sweat too much even if garage is cooler than outside, I also have a big job site fan that resembles what you see at dyno.

 

[oldgoat]

I worked in a machine shop that they put swamp coolers in to try to cool the place, but it didn't work all that great and caused rust on the machines surfaces that weren't protected by oil. In a real dry climate like Arizona they do good but I would guess that northern Ca is fairly high on humidity. Now one thing I have heard of a guy using was running well water through a big radiator (like a tractor or semi radiatior) and using a fan behind it to blow cool air through. A friend had a house that had central heat that ran through the attic and in the ductwork in the attic they had put the radiator in it. He said that the house would get down to the high 70's when the outside temps were in the high 90's. Took it out when he added C/A because the water ran out onto the lawn and with 3 boys water and dirt don't mix. Asked him why he didn't just drive another well and run the water back down into it.

 

[Major Ramifications]

I don't see any problem with a portable A/C unit. They are almost within your budget, compact, quiet, and they would only require a small dryer-vent like outlet, and either a drain for the condensed water, or you could empty the tray as needed.
I (unfortunately) live near New Orleans, with it's sub-tropical climate and intense humidity. In my 20x20 attached garage, I find that only one 5,000 BTU window unit makes all the difference in the world. The main thing is to knock the edge off of the oppressive humidity and heat. For when I want to cool it down fast, or for exceptionally hot days, I run both of the 5,000 BTU units, and it stays cool and dry inside. Conventional wisdom dictates that I should need more BTU's, but with two walls being cooled by the house, an insulated door, and part of the area above the ceiling being cooled (1-1/2 story house) this is plenty.
What I'm trying to say is that any amount of air conditioning in the garage is worlds better than none at all.
Also, have you ever considered a large, low temperature dehumidifier and some fans? A 90 pint per 24 hour dehumidifier runs about $250 at Sears. You can pick them up on ebay for much less. You can either empty the condensate bucket or run a drain hose to the nearest drain. They can be set to maintain a given humidity level, or they can run constantly. Just a thought.