Garage HVAC and doors

[dsd]

Hi all,

I have a 3 car garage and have been contemplating the Mitsubishi mini-split. One reason is to keep a collector car in a constant comfortable temperature.

What's really held me back has been some smarts between the garage doors being open and the hvac. With 2 kids the doors are always in random states.

Has anyone done any automation around this?

My initial thinking is using an automation hub (link wink) to link either new smart garage door openers or dry contact type trigger to a thermostat. If the doors report open for N minutes it kills the HVAC.

Am I missing a better solution or overthinking this?

 

[slice]

Over thinking. That unit is so energy efficient couple,times open and close won't notice it
I have same set up

 

[dsd]

Thanks. My concern is the kids leave the door open (or the wife) for several hours in the summer. The AC would be running full tilt to no avail.

Again, still overthinking?

Thanks!

 

[grndcont]

Maybe train them not to do that? im putting Heat/AC in my garage and keeping the door closed will be driven into their heads before the install is ever completed.

 

[Hilltopmasonry]

I worked in a building that had some sort of switch mounted to the overhead door that would shut the heater off when the door was open...it was a good idea but not sure what kind of switch it is or how they did it


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Radix2]

Look into what controls the unit has built in. One option is just to have it off or reduced output when the kids are around using the timer function. It may also have a energy saver feature that opens up the set points during some periods.

If you are just concerned with storage, having some loose control during the day or off will not hurt anything.

Since power do expensive in Asia, these units have quite elaborate controls to turn down the power when people are out for the day

 

[thammel]

My liftmaster openers have options for automatically closing after X minutes. This might solve your concern.

Tom

 

[MrBalll]

My liftmaster openers have options for automatically closing after X minutes. This might solve your concern.

Tom

And it'll lock the kids out when it shuts so you won't have to worry anymore.

One cheap and not overly efficient thing to do would be to put the unit in the collector garage and hang a clear sheet of tarp from the ceiling to close it off from the other two garage ports. Would keep that area a lot cooler and the kids could be told not to touch that garage door. Just put up a few eye hooks and hang it when needed.

 

[bzinsky]

I think the best solution is to train the kids, probably not that difficult and also not the end of the world if they forget

If it auto closes you always have the risk of it hitting the kid or locking them out, probably best if they actually understand how to operate it and are in full control of it.

If they don't close it, tell them they broke the door, pull the lever on the door opener track that disengages it, and show them how you now have to manually open it. They would recognize the importance of that a bit easier.

 

[Milton Shaw]

I have seen some garage door openers that are WI-FI enanbled that will message your phone if they are open and you can close them remotely. Combine with a WI-FI remote camera and you would be much safer and keep the kids safe too.

 

[Jamie V]

I'm thinking about installing a security camera in my garage and if it sees motion it will send your phone an alert. This way if the kids (or wife) go in there your phone will be alerted and you can look and see if they closed the door. It will also double as a security camera to keep an eye on the vehicles.

My Honeywell t-stat is wifi so I can remotely turn it on/off. That is another option to remotely control the unit.

 

[buddyboy]

when I was a kid my dad told me to always keep the garage door closed, I left it open once. just once

lol

you should be able to get a garage door controller that shuts the door after x minutes and also an outdoor keypad so you can get back in if locked out.

 

[thammel]

And i also have the iphone app that tell me if it's open or closed and I can open or close it via the app.

Tom

 

[mike_s]

Condo owners at the beach have been using small magnet switches for years to tell if the sliding glass doors are closed on the condo unit before the AC will kick on.

Google for that ane you will have your solution

 

[98ssuck]

Get limit or magnet switch that you can mount on the door to tell if it is closed. Wire in a time delay. So if the garage door is open for more than let's say 5 minutes the unit shuts of. Wire it into the control circuit for a contactor. Use the contactor to switch the incoming power to the unit ac unit.

 

[SiGmA_X]

Basic human training should solve the issue. But a limit switch can be a fallback, like 98ssuck detailed.

 

[mpire]

Another thing to consider is sticking a heat pump water heater out in the garage. It won't cool down the garage much, but it runs a long time and does a great job at dehumidifying the garage and that makes a difference. Plus it saves you money on water heating while you are at it. My power company gave me a large rebate on a new one, so its something to consider.