Air Conditioner

[SawDustB]

Dave where did you find or what is the cover you have on the pipes going from the condenser to the inside unit

If you Google slim duct you'll find it. I used the same stuff when I installed my mini split in the house last year. You can usually get it at an HVAC supplier, not so much at the box stores.

[RichardA]

7 hours ago, K Cooper said:

Brian, wish me luck. I'm 78 yo, with 28 years left on a 30 year mortgage and two kids, 5 & 7 years old, and a 32 yo bride. Where would I move?

mental institution

[Larry Moore]

18 minutes ago, SawDustB said:

If you Google slim duct you'll find it. I used the same stuff when I installed my mini split in the house last year. You can usually get it at an HVAC supplier, not so much at the box stores.

Thank you

[Da Hammer]

I'm only five hours east of you, my answer was to install a mini split.  I bought one off the net for about $2,200 and installed myself.  Then I have HVAC come and check the hook up before firing it up for the first time (cost me $150).  Now Eureka, my shop feels great, and I also have a heat pump should it ever actually get cold here on the gulf coast.

 

I am a complete idiot I can't build anything out of wood and have zero handyman skills and I hooked all of it up myself and ran a new 220 line from the breaker to run the unit.  It's really pretty simple to do.  The only thing you must have is a  place for the water to drain there is a drain line that puts out quite a bit of water when it's operating, I use that water to take care of my orange and satsuma trees it works great.

 

One day I'll take a picture of my shop as I have been re doing it over the last five months at a snail's pace but it's moving along. 

[Janello]

Coop, you can get a mini split with or without a heat pump. You can also put more than one evaporator on a condensing unit these days (more zones). When you add heat to a mini split a/c unit, it's then called a heat pump..Don't ask why.

I think my setup is a 2 ton condenser with 9,000 btu evaporator in my 12x24 room and 19,000 btu evaporator in the 24x24 room.

I have Daiken units out in my shop and I have a few mitsubishi units in the basement of my house that just cool. All work very good.

[Coop]

Thanks guys. It sounds like the mini split might be the answer.

[Janello]

By the way..these units have a seer rating 13 being the "standard" the higher the seer the more efficient. If you go for a mini split look for one with an inverter. This link provides some good info on this.

http://www.daikin.com/products/ac/lineup/split_multi_split/

[-MattK-]

Coop, I bought one from these guys:. https://www.acwholesalers.com/Wall-Mounted-Ductless-Mini-Split-Air-Conditioning-Heater-Products/cat16988.ac;jsessionid=BC0077AB34BB997ED90AD6AD3D244038.worker5

 

they said the internals of the gree unit are the same as the Mitsubishi.  Who knows (and who cares).  Their service was ok, didn't have everything in stock so it took about 3 weeks to get it  

 

it works great, I'm super impressed. And it's really quiet. I bought a unit that heats (even when ambient air is down to -14) as well, so I spent around $2k but you can probably get away with a cheaper one. 

 

Installation was $1100 I think. I had to go through town hall for permits etc so wanted a professional install.

 

quotes from guys selling Mitsubishi units were $7-10k (!!). 

[drzaius]

11 hours ago, K Cooper said:

In my search, the only two I came up with was Tom mentioning he had one and Dave saying he left room for one if ever needed. I will pm Tom. Thanks.

No smart ass remarks from me this winter about y'all's winter, I promise?

Guess I'll deserve that.

[AJ_Engineer]

I'm thinking real hard about putting one of these in myself: http://www.homedepot.com/p/MRCOOL-DIY-18-000-BTU-1-5-Ton-Ductless-Mini-Split-Air-Conditioner-and-Heat-Pump-230V-60Hz-DIY-18-HP-230A/207074950

But for the moment I just run a dehumidifier to cut down the humidity if it is humid.

[Don Z.]

So, more specific questions, especially for those who suggest insulation.

My shop is one bay of a three car garage.  Temp here yesterday was 102 degrees Fahrenheit (39 on the Communist scale), but humidity is low.  Yeah, it's a dry heat, but it's still heat.

Garage is attached to the house.  The garage doors are steel, and insulated, but no matter how you cut it, that's a lot of heated steel facing south and radiating heat.  I don't know about the insulation in the walls (doubtful it's there), but the outside is brick (which isn't a good insulator, but better than just aluminum siding and bare studs).  The "attic" over the house is insulated, but the blow in stuff stops where the garage stops.

I'm thinking about a mini-split, but not sure how long I'm going to be here, so not sure on the expense.

Will I see any value at all in blowing more insulation in the attic, over the garage?

I'm considering a small "inside" unit, that I know will be difficult to vent, but just want to cut temps about 10 or 20 degrees near the bench.  

Opening the door and trying to blow air out might work, but there's no window to crack for a cross breeze.  Last year I tried just a fan, and the difference was similar to that of standing in an oven, and standing in front of a hair dryer.  

 

Other thoughts?

[KenMasco]

On 6/14/2016 at 6:40 PM, K Cooper said:

This heat's hell. I hate to hash old meat, as I recall a thread or two from last year about air conditioning for the shop, but my searches turned up nothing. And since I was a lot younger last year, i didn't see the need for one. Can some of you fortunate enough to work in the confines of a cool shop share what you're using and the pros and cons? I'd hate to know I had to stay in the house all summer and watch Martha and Opra reruns while working crossword puzzles and drinking beer! 

I just got a new central AC system installed in my home, replacing a 25 yo system. I live inland Southern California (hot).  I wanted to add a few duct runs to cool my 475 sf shop as well.  No can do.  Code won't let me share a air handler between the garage(shop) and the house.  I didn't want a window unit hanging into my front walk.  My wife suggested hanging a window unit between my shop (two car garage) and the third garage where I park my car.  When I'm running the AC I simply close the door to the shop and open the garage door to let fresh air into the other garage.   It sounded like a great idea.  I bought a 15000 BTU LG window unit yesterday ($400.00).  Today I cut open the wall and framed in the hole.  Tomorrow morning I'm sliding that baby in place and will be ready for what promises to be a very hot week next week.  I'm expecting it to work perfectly.  I'll let you know how well it works if you are interested.  I'm excited!  AC in the shop!  I'll be able to make sawdust all year in comfort.  Can't wait.

[Alan Bienlein]

I bought a 25,000 btu window unit when I built my shop in March of 2007. During the summer months I leave it on set at 75 degrees 24/7.