What about a garage? Does the heat make it unpleasant to ride in your automobile during the summer?
This is among the most frequently asked questions we get from buyers. Although there are numerous approaches to this problem, in this article we will discuss some of the best methods for maintaining a comfortable temperature in your garage.
What Does It Mean If It’s Difficult To Heat Or Cool Your Garage?
There probably aren’t many ducts and return vents inside your garage if it’s tied to your system.
It also is popular for garages to be disconnected from the rest of the house’s wiring. Your garage may be kept at a pleasant temperature all year without being hardwired into your house or rigged up into a complex system.
Your garage is probably under-insulated if you have trouble keeping it at a comfortable temperature year-round.
My Garage Is Overheating; Why Isn’t It Cooling Down On Its Own?
Do you have a hot garage and no idea why?
This is because:
- They have insufficient insulation.
- That’s right; you saw it written there. Garage insulation is essential for both heat retention and heat loss.
- The garage has no air flow or windows.
- Air can more easily circulate in a garage that has windows or vents. A garage without proper ventilation will quickly become as hot as any other enclosed interior space.
- Direction and placement of the garage.
- The midday light will heat up a garage which faces west.
- Auto paint schemes.
- Darker colours absorb more sunlight, so a garage with such a dark door and roof will get warmer than one with lighter colours.
- Car storage.
Do you pull into your garage after a day of errands to keep your car out of the heat? Do you have a lot of tools in your shed?
Do you have LED lighting in your garage? Your garage’s temperature might be affected by everything stored in there.
Why Should You Maintain A Cool Garage?
It’s never comfortable to enter a heated garage. In addition, garages aren’t usually the airiest of spaces, so the objects stored inside are vulnerable to damage from excessive heat and humidity.
Electrical devices are vulnerable to heat damage, especially after being on and operating in a hot environment for an extended period of time.
When utilising an electrical appliance in a hot garage, you should bring the temperature down.
Doing so will assist maintain the item’s quality and reduce the possibility of malfunctions or fires.
How To Cool A Garage During The Summer
Opening a garage door or a few windows is the simplest and least expensive approach to cool the space down.
A cool air temperature will be maintained thanks to the air movement. If you can, open your windows and doors so that the breeze comes from the opposite direction.
Cooling A Garage Without Windows
Doors and windows can’t always be left open. Therefore, here’s how to keep a windowless garage comfortable:
- Put off or do house improvements outside.
- Machines that generate a lot of heat, such as drills, table cutting tools, planers, and sanders, should be avoided during the hottest parts of the day. Take these activities outside if at all possible. There will be less discomfort in terms of temperature, and you can rest assured that the air quality will be maintained.
- Get rid of your incandescent lights.
- By switching from incandescent to high-efficiency LED bulbs, you may save money off your energy bill and lessen the amount of heat produced by your lighting.
- Park your automobile inside to cool it off.
- In the summer, your automobile may heat up faster than usual due to your driving it. Your car’s outside temperature can easily get to 100 degrees. If you must store your vehicle indoors, do it just after the sun has set or park it in the shade outside for a while.
- Put the fans in the right spots.
- Get a fan, or many fans, and strategically put them around the garage to create draughts and lower the temperature.
- Get a portable air conditioner.
- Bring in a portable air conditioner on hot summer days, or right before you need to utilise the garage.
- Aire Serv Can Make Your Garage More Comfortable
There’s no reason to treat your garage like an afterthought when it connects directly to your house. We have a solution for you if you are either worried about the cost of heating your main house excessively or would like to make year-round use of your garage a reality.
Tips To Stay Cool In The Summer
Cool Your Garage With Ingenious Garage Cooling Solutions
When the humidity is excessive, going about your everyday activities can be a real drag. If you like to spend your leisure time with in garage working on cars, then really hot days are a major inconvenience.
The temperature in your garage could be as many as 10-18 degrees Fahrenheit (5-10 degrees Celsius) higher than the ambient air temperature if you don’t have air conditioning.
It’s not pleasant when the garage is so hot that you can’t do the things you enjoy doing there, such as exercise, working on vehicles, creating, or utilising it as a workshop.
It’s time to find some relief from the heat by investigating innovative garage cooling options.
Why Can A Garage Get So Hot?
Let’s first diagnose the problem at hand, then examine some potential garage cooling solutions. The temperature in a garage can be impacted by a number of different things, such as:
- garage orientation (late afternoon sun can be very hot inside a garage that faces west).
- colours of a garage (darker garage doors and exterior garage colours will conduct heat)
- Does your garage have a fan or other means of ventilation?
- Keeping your car inside the garage on the a hot day is a smart move.
- your home’s insulation, including your garage
Garage Cooling Solutions That Have Worked
Now that we know what causes a garage to heat up, you may employ the following techniques to lower the temperature.
While some of these suggestions for keeping cool won’t cost you anything but a little time and effort, some may.
In the end, no matter how big or tiny your garage cooling efforts are, they will have an effect. When the temperature in your garage rises to the level of a sauna, every last little bit counts.
Outside, Park Your Recently Used Vehicle.
One of the simplest ways to cool down your garage is something you have probably never thought about.
If you intend to utilise the garage once you arrive home from a drive on a hot day, leave your car parked in the driveway.
Even after the engine has been turned off, the vehicle will continue to emit heat, which can raise the temperature of your garage by a few degrees.
After you’re done, please bring your cars inside. Using your garage as a parking spot has many advantages, including increased security.
Use Caution When Using The Garage.
If you have to spend time inside the garage while it’s hot outside, choose the best time of day to do so can help a lot.
It’s ideal to go early in the day, before the sun gets too high in the sky (between 10 and 11 a.m.).
If your garage is adequately insulated, you can let out some of the day’s accumulated heat by opening the doors before you head out to your morning workout or work.
If you have to leave your garage on the a hot day, try to avoid doing so between the hours of 3 and 6 p.m.
Fans Are One Of The Most Affordable Garage Cooling Options.
It could be more expensive than you’d like to invest to completely renovate the garage’s air flow and insulation. It’s possible that installing air conditioning inside the garage may exceed your budget.
One of the least expensive yet still efficient ways to cool down your garage is with an oscillating household fan. You can get the air circulating in your garage with pedestal blowers, box fan boys, or (much better) a high-powered shop fan.
With many fans, you may vent the garage’s heated air through an open window or door.
You can direct another fan at the garage space you’ll be using to create a gentle breeze.
Keep in mind that even with these fans running, the temperature in your garage won’t drop below the ambient air. Instead, they’re just making air move, which is helpful in a small way.
Lighter Colours Should Be Used For Garage Doors And The Exterior Of Your Home.
By painting your roof and walls with lighter colours, you can reduce the amount of heat your home absorbs from the sun.
If your garage faces west and you want to use it for hobbies in the summer, you should think about shading options before making a purchase.
Brighter garage door colours may be beneficial depending on how your property is oriented. Selecting a garage door style without windows or with windows that let in as little light as possible is another option. To learn more about the individualised options for your garage door, consult a professional at Garage Life.
You can save money on cooling costs by selecting a property in a location where trees provide shade for the garage.
Improve The Ventilation System In Your Garage
Roof vent garage cooling solutionsA garage ventilation system uses the concept of fan-driven airflow in both passive and active ways.
Passive ventilation is typically fitted to the roof and uses almost no energy to exhaust the garage’s attic of excess heat. Most frequently, they take the form of whirring turbines installed in roof vents.
Mechanically powered active ventilation systems are more expensive and complex, but they are also more effective in removing hot air from a garage.
Mounting options for this type a ventilation system include the garage’s roof and walls, most ideally high up and directly opposite the garage door.
If you decide to install an active ventilation system, have a professional do the job. These can draw a lot of power, and you shouldn’t utilise too much at once.
Air Conditioning Is More Expensive, But It Is Also The Most Effective.
A more expensive option is to install air conditioning, yet it’s the most effective way to immediately reduce temperatures in a garage.
The installation of central air conditioning in a garage is possible if financial resources permit. Using more than one system, or employing smaller air conditioners, are other methods for cooling a garage.
A glass door air conditioner works great for tiny garages with windows, keeping the space cool and comfortable.
A small air conditioner with appropriate BTUs is great for cooling off larger garages that aren’t too enormous. Take into account that this device requires access to the outside in order to vent properly.
To get the most from any of these garage air con solutions, you’ll need to install adequate insulation.
Garage Insulation Is An Important Cooling Factor.
Even if insulation is there, it likely isn’t of sufficient thickness in the typical garage. If your garage has air conditioning, this is a huge drawback.
The heat that is transported from the outside of your garage to the inside can be greatly reduced by installing proper insulation. Insulation will help prevent the conditioned air from being lost to the outer environment.
It therefore takes longer to get the garage’s temperature down, your electricity bill goes up, and the cooling system has had to work harder.
Garage walls, ceiling, and doors could benefit from insulation. The insulating properties of your garage door may also be affected by the material it is built of. Natural insulators include, for instance, wood.
Adding silicone caulk and weatherstripping to the doors and window frames of your garage can further increase its ability to maintain a comfortable temperature inside.
Investing in better insulation for your home is a smart move that will pay dividends all year long in the form of decreased heating and cooling costs and a higher resale price.
Maintain A Clean Garage Space
Improving the ventilation in your garage is as simple as clearing out the clutter and keeping things more organised.
The garage’s air quality suffers when boxes and other bulky items are stacked on the floor. Clutter inside the garage prevents you from making full use of its space.
Investing in garage storage solutions like cabinets, Slatwall, & overhead racks will make it much easier to maintain a clutter-free space. It will also help keep the air circulating in your garage.
Methods of regulating garage temperature, Slatwall adorned with tools
Keeping the garage clean and clear of clutter improves ventilation.
In The Garage, Utilise A Dehumidifier.
Consider purchasing a dehumidifier again for garage if you live in a humid climate.
If you have a competent ventilation system in place, you should feel a minor temperature change once the moisture in the air has been removed.
Because of its ability to keep the garage dry throughout the year, the dehumidifier is a useful appliance all through the four seasons.
Permanent Garage Cooling Options
Insulation Of The walls
It’s not uncommon for garages to reach intolerable temperatures during the summer months due to their lack of insulation (and also very cold in the winters).
Installing wall insulation is among the greatest ways to cool your garage if you plan to spend a lot of time there but haven’t gotten around to it yet.
Insulating the attic the garage door is just as effective as insulating the walls when it comes to maintaining a suitable temperature inside the house.
Therefore, this type of job does not incur any ongoing energy costs. After the insulation is in place, you can stop worrying about your utility bills for a good long while.
Alter The Colour Of Your Garage
Not the most elegant answer, but it helps immensely. Hence, if you want your garage to heat up quickly in the summer, you shouldn’t paint it a dark colour. You could use a lighter, brighter colour like white instead.
If you start painting your garage in the spring, before the heat of summer sets in, you might expect to experience a temperature drop.
Consider Garage Ventilation.
You can also use ventilation to bring the temperature down in a garage. Since hot air rises, the garage stays comfortably cold thanks to the roof vents.
When the weather is nice, especially at night when the temperature is lower inside, you can let the cool air outside in through the roof vents.
Vents in a garage can do more than just help keep things cool; they can also get rid of toxic substances and exhaust from vehicles.
Active ventilation systems are another viable option for your garage. It’s more expensive than standard options, but it effectively cools down a room. The system’s installation is not limited to the ceiling or floor.
Purchase an Air Conditioner
There is no more obvious or costly choice. But if you install an air conditioner in your garage, you can rest assured that it will be as comfortable as your bedroom.
Choose this if and only if you plan to spend a lot of time in the garage.
Either a window AC or a ductless mini-split AC put on the wall will work for this setup. It is essential, once again, to buy an additional unit for your garage.
The through air conditioner is an option for those who need to cool a garage that has no windows. In order to install the air conditioner, a rectangular section would need to be torn out.
Mini-split systems can be installed in rooms without windows. All you need now is a small, 2″ × 2″ hole in the wall, high up.
This AC model is either very quiet or very efficient, and it can quickly cool down a room to a comfortable temperature.
Mini-splits have the obvious downside of being more expensive to run. Nevertheless, by installing smart AC controllers, you may make your air conditioner more energy efficient and so reduce your monthly power bills.
Yet, an air conditioner is a must-have if you plan on spending a lot of time inside the garage and using it like any other room in the house. Having the door open to the garage can also help cool down the room next to it inside the house.
Temporary Garage Cooling Options
The following are some of the best ways to reduce the amount of energy used to keep your garage cool.
Fans
A garage fan can be a lifesaver on hot days. The use of fans not only improves ventilation and makes a space feel less stuffy, but also aids in dissipating excess heat.
Having a strong wind hit your body directly is an effective way to reduce your core temperature. Fans help you cool off faster since they boost your perspiration rate. More moisture evaporates, resulting in a cooler environment.
A fan is a welcome addition to any hot, enclosed room. But, keep in mind that a fan is only effective in temperatures above 68 degrees Fahrenheit. A fan won’t help when your garage is extremely hot.
Dehumidifiers
Damp air acts as a thermal blanket, making even a moderately heated space feel oppressive. Dehumidifiers get rid of the damp, stuffy atmosphere that causes people to sweat excessively.
Keeping an eye of humidity levels is crucial whether you have delicate items, furniture, or even electronics, as this will prevent the growth of mildew, fungus, rust, and other moisture-related issues.
The purchase of a dehumidifier can have a dramatic impact on the temperature and degree of comfort in a humid setting.
However, a dehumidifier has the drawback of not being able to blow fresh air into the space. As a result, you may still want to invest in a fan.
When used together, these two components can provide an effective, inexpensive, and environmentally friendly cooling system in your garage. Smart air conditioning controllers, such as the Cielo Breez, can let you keep a close eye on the relative humidity in your home.
When It’s Hot Outside, Close The Doors.
Whether to open or close the garage doors is conditional on the weather and the garage’s geographic location.
Close the door entirely if your garage isn’t located in the shelter and therefore is subjected to direct sunshine. Keep out anything that could cause the temperature to rise so that the cool air stays where it is.
Swamp Chill
A straightforward method that gets the job done if you need a quick chill. In order to function, a swamp cooler takes advantage of evaporation.
Use a handheld fan to blow across the top of a pail of ice. Now the ice-generated cold air may be distributed throughout the space.
Adding a water sprinkler alongside the fan creates a fine watery spray in the air, and enclosing the system is another option for fine-tuning the design. You can rest assured that the question of how to cool the garage with really no windows will now be answered.
Keep A Hot Car Out Of Your Garage.
In the summer months, it’s not a good idea to park your car in the garage immediately after returning home from driving it. The car’s heat will radiate into the garage, perhaps increasing the temperature there.
You might want to cool off the car by keeping it in the shade outside for a while. By following this advice, you can avoid wasting money on unnecessary garage heating.
Clear The Clutter
The garage’s ventilation can be impeded by the presence of large, heavy tools and gear lying around on the floor.
Putting up shelves and cabinets will help you keep your garage organised and uncluttered. Don’t forget to put everything back where you found it after using it; this includes tools and storage containers.
FAQS About Garage
Why is it so hot in my garage?
Lack of ventilation is a common problem, especially since many garages don’t have windows. Without air circulation, the garage will feel hot and stuffy. A soft breeze can lower the temperature slightly and make the space feel more comfortable.
How do I reduce heat and humidity in my garage?
How to Reduce Garage Humidity- Step 1: Protect your tools.
- Step 2: Keep water out.
- Step 3: Get rid of cardboard.
- Step 4: Improve ventilation.
- Step 5: Improve exterior drainage.
- Step 6: Add windows.
How can I cool my garage cheaply?
Using air conditioning in the garage might also be too cost prohibitive for your liking. One of the cheapest garage cooling solutions you can use that’s still effective is a simple oscillating household fan. Pedestal fans, box fans, or (even better) a higher powered shop fan will get the air in your garage moving.
How can I cool my garage without ventilation?
Cooling a Garage With No Ventilation: Portable Options- Open the Garage Door.
- Add Powerful Portable Fans.
- Try a Dehumidifier.
- Build a Low-Tech Swamp Cooler.
- Buy a Portable Air Conditioner.
What is the best garage cooling system?
Mini-split AC units are the best type of air conditioner for the garage. Unlike central AC, they are ductless and can deliver up to 30,000 BTUs of cooling effect. This makes them appropriate even for the biggest 4-car garages.
