New shop build: air circulation

[Gigemags05]

Hello,
I'm building an 18'x 35' shop. It will be insulated and I am putting an 18,000 btu mini split system in. The overhead door will be on one 18' side on front and the workbench area along the other in back. Located in the DFW area.

Questions:

1.) where should the inside ac unit be located? Was planning to install it on the back 18' wall opposite of the side of the overhead door above my workbench. Is this optimal?

2.) I currently have plans to install 4 outlets on a dedicated 20 amp circuit at 8' above finished floor. The plan is to mount some 20" oscillating fans to aid in air circulation. Will 4 fans be ok on that one circuit? Are four fans needed? Will it be too loud?

Thanks in advance.

 

[JamesW84]

Check how many amps each fan is, add them up and make sure cumulatively they are under 80% of the amp rating of the breaker (which is properly sized for the wire used).

As far as the mini split, when I installed mine in my house, the manual said to locate it where it would not blow on people, I assume for comfort.

Be aware, most mini-splits in A/C mode will create a "gym sock" odor if the interior set temperature isn't much lower than the outside temp. For example, if you set it to 70 degrees and the outside temp is 75, it probably will create an odor as it isn't working hard enough to get rid of the moisture (as I remember understanding it). However, if it's 80+ outside and you set it to 70, it has to work hard enough that there isn't an odor.

Mine created the odor, that's why I researched it and found that most units will when under a light AC Demand. Other than that, mine was great. I had a Mitsubishi GE24NA for my living room and loved it.

 

[Gigemags05]

Hmm, interesting tid bit about the odor. Unfortunately, where I live, that little sucker is going to be working its tail off in the summer time haha.

I was searching for amp pull on some fans but haven't found any. I'll continue to look.

 

[JamesW84]

you can convert watts to amps if you know the voltage, which is probably 110. Just divide the watts by volts(convert kilowatts to total watts first, although I doubt they will use killowatts an hour).

So for example, a 500 watt fan would be

500w/110v=4.55 amps.

4 fans at 4.55 amps = 18.2 amps, which would be too much for your 20 amp circuit. Obviously, that's just an example.

Lets find out the most watts your fans could pull:

20 amps * .8 load = 16 amps

16 amps/4 fans=4 amps per fan.

4 amps*110v=440 watts.

You need a fan that pulls less than 440 watts (or 4 amps per fan) if you want all of them on the same circuit. I'd say that should be easily attainable.

 

[Gigemags05]

wow, that is good info. Thanks!

 

[Gigemags05]

Looks like the wattage for most of these fans is well below 440, mostly in the 150-175 watt range.


Anyone have any recommendations for a good, quiet oscillating fan?

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

If you've got the headroom I highly recommend one of these-

http://www.bigassfans.com/

 

[Gigemags05]

Unfortunately I won't have enough room or that's what I'd do

 

[onewheat]

What about ceiling fans? They move good amounts of air and are quiet. You didn't mention ceiling height.