# So ... How hot has your shop been?



## TheDane (May 15, 2008)

Like a lot of the rest of the country, we have been sweltering in 90+ degree heat and high humidity. I know … those in warmer climates are saying 'cry me a river', but here is Wisconsin (I live northeast of Green Bay), we are unaccustomed to temperatures like that. The last time it was 100+ degrees here was almost 20 years ago.

My shop is on the south side of the building, gets direct sun most of the day, and has zero insulation in the attic, so needless to say, I haven't spent much time out there in the last seven or eight days. I don't actually know what the temperature in the shop was on the hottest days, but when it is 99 degrees outside, I think it is a sure bet that it was hotter than that inside.

I keep a block of paraffin (the kind you find in canning supplies at the supermarket) in a bin above my workbench … I use it to slick up the sole on my hand planes when I'm flattening stock.

Today, it was only 88 in the shop, and I decided to prep a piece of stock for a little project I want to get started on. Imagine my surprise when I reached for the paraffin and found it melted over the end of the bin!



















So … how hot has your shop been? Or, maybe a better question is … what do you do on really hot days?

Full disclosure: We are blowing 16" of insulation into the attic over the garage and workshop next week … wish I would have done it sooner!

-Gerry


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## TedW (May 6, 2012)

Nice and cool in my basement shop. Too bad I can't spend some time in it. :\


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## Dcase (Jul 7, 2010)

Gerry, I am in the same boat as you… I live next door to you in MI and I have the same problem with my shop, the attic is not yet insulated. I have also found the shop temp to be even hotter then the outside. Even with the garage door open and fans going I just cant seem to cool it down in there… I have been toughing it out as best as I can but when its no fun being uncomfortable in the shop…


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## Dal300 (Aug 4, 2011)

22X28 shop, 11 or 12 3X5 windows, single glazed. 104° outside, 72° at 16:00 inside.

Central air is a wonderful invention.

<,>.<.>, (That was me rubbing it in).


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## Jeff28078 (Aug 27, 2009)

I live in NC and my shop is my unfinished two-car garage. Morning starts at 85F and I give up ten degress later in the afternoon. The biggest problem is sweat dripping on the cast iron of my tools.


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## WoodworkingGeek (Jan 11, 2011)

My shop is hotter than out side the shop!! I live in GA and its very humid here! Thankfuly that my 10,000 BTU air conditioner that I bought is coming tomorrow!!


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## Smitty_Cabinetshop (Mar 26, 2011)

96 degrees inside yesterday in the shop. Fan and squirrel fan moving hot air. 72 percent humidity. It pretty muck sucked. But all shop time is good time.


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## b2rtch (Jan 20, 2010)

I turn my A/C on. 
I keep my shop around 74/76
That simple


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## Gatorjim (May 12, 2012)

inside my shop today


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## Kentuk55 (Sep 21, 2010)

while it was 118 on my back deck yesterday, it was about 80 and pretty comfy in my shop. I likes my ac in me shop.. thnkful for electric service


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## Blackie_ (Jul 10, 2011)

Hot? not so sure I'd call it hot the complete opposite, a whopping 70 degrees in my shop and as some have already mentioned I have an AC in mine to *grins big*, 8K BTU window unit and I keep it on 70 for the simple fact that the DC is located in a seperate room outside the shop with a window port between shop and room for the wart, it draws the cold out and sucks heat in through the hidden cracks in the shop.


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## TheDane (May 15, 2008)

I considered putting AC into the new shop, but ruled it out. We get cool breezes off the bay, and our average daytime high temps in July (the warmest month of the year) is only 81 degrees.

-Gerry


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## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

Neighbor bought a new AC. The one he had purchased was too big for his window. He asked if I would mount the new AC in the window. In exchange he'd give me the one that wouldn't fit.
YES!
So, I have this big honkin AC in a 24×24 shop. Cool as i want.


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## DIYaholic (Jan 28, 2011)

The basement shop stays naturally cool at 72 degrees & dry with a dehumidifier!!! I should go down there more often.


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## derosa (Aug 21, 2010)

My shop is above the kitchen and is a secondary form of attic space with no insulation in the eves, 2 very tiny windows of which only 2 open and no insulation but lots of direct sunlight. The other day when it hit 98* here I tried going in the shop, I started sweating the moment I opened the door and was hit with a wave of heat. Half hour later my shirt was drenched and I was becoming dizzy from the heat. Had no choice but to give up, only thing I managed to do was make my first pen. Took three trips to the shop despite only taking a total of about an hour to make one. 
The one upside is that the applewood I sliced up back in april that is stickered in my shop has to be practically dry with the last 2 weeks worth of heat.


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## OnlyJustME (Nov 22, 2011)

My shop is the 2 car garage attached to the house. i recently gutted it and ran new wiring and insulated the walls. i did not yet however insulated the ceiling and with the 8,000 btu window a/c running it still didnt get below 90 degrees. this week is supposed to be cooler though. only get up to 90 outside.


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## timbit2006 (Jan 6, 2012)

It's only been around 24degrees here so I don't know how it is this summer but in previous years somehow the garage manages to keep itself cool. The insulation must work really good.
Now that I have those nice 20amp(All four equal 20) halogen lights in the shop, it might get a lot hotter. If so I have a wall air conditioner that with a little bit of work can be mounted.


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## MoPower (Feb 6, 2009)

Cool 75 in my shop. The mini split heat pumps do a great job of keeping the shop cool in the summer and warm in the winter.


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## Manitario (Jul 4, 2010)

I put a portable AC unit in my shop last week; the temps here have been in the high 20's C, which compared to other parts of the country is not too bad. I like being cool though! As well, I live right on Lake Superior, so it gets very humid, I wanted the additional benefits of dehumidifying the shop with the AC.


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## Blackie_ (Jul 10, 2011)

Gerry, you mentioned that you thought about putting in an AC but ruled it out, why not go ahead and put it in? The ole saying it's better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it, what can it hurt? Put one in and only use it when you need it, you could also get one with a heat pump so as to knock out two birds.

Being here in Tx, AC is a must, we only have roughly 3 months of cold weather a season, though this year isn't as bad as it was last year.


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## TheDane (May 15, 2008)

Randy-I ruled it out for 2 reasons … we only get a few days of high temperatures and humidity here every year, and I didn't want to give up the wall space to accomodate a window/wall unit. Cost was also a factor.

I think once the insulation is installed, the shop will be a lot more livable during warmer months.

-Gerry


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## SnowyRiver (Nov 14, 2008)

It hasnt been too bad in my shop. It's mostly underground so it stays pretty nice as long as you dont open the main garage door and let the heat in. On the hottest and most humid days, it has been running in the low 80s. The shop is insullated too so that helps.


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## crashn (Aug 26, 2011)

NO A/C in my shop. So hot that I put a 5 gallon bucket of water next to some walnut, came back an hour later and was able to bend it around a 9" circle. Home made steamer!


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## RogerM (Oct 31, 2011)

I keep mine around 76 degrees. Heat Pump!!!!!!


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## longgone (May 5, 2009)

Sprayed in foam insulation keeps my shop always comfortable and soundproof in addition to a 6 to 7% moisture content in my wood. I never have any rust on tools either.


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## PineChopper (May 21, 2012)

I have to use my garage and it's been over 100 the past few days.


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## b2rtch (Jan 20, 2010)

The other extreme; a few back I was working in my garage when it was barely 10F


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## lumberjoe (Mar 30, 2012)

Uninsulated, OOOOLD detached 2 car garage in full sun all day with really old windows that do not open and only 1 door opens. It gets to be about 100 in there. This summer has been brutal in the North East. I really don't care though. Heat doesn't bother me when i am working outside. If I am trying to relax or socialize at a cookout or something, it really gets to me. I just stay well hydrated and plug away.

Bonus - some of my sympathetic baby weight gain is shedding off

Edit, b2rtch, I did the same thing all winter, No heat. Fortunately we also had a very mild winter here, and on average the temps were low to mid 40's


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## dbray45 (Oct 19, 2010)

My shop is in the basement - not much A/C and a continuous dehumidier keeps things about an even 80 degrees. Keeps the lumber very dry and stable.


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## Chuckthewoodchuck (Feb 9, 2012)

mines been right at 100 every day this last week. even with the doors open and fans running. My shop is a enclosed metal carport with 1" rigid foam for insulation.


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## Tennessee (Jul 8, 2011)

My 11X22 ft. shop has 6" of insulation and an enclosed sunroom above it. Outside walls are brown and uninsulated. It sees the morning sun. My 7000BTU air conditioner and one of those floor fans mounted in the ceiling and I cah hold 76'-78' inside, 102-104' outside. Oh, and my garage door has 3/4" rigid foam in it, but the aluminum framing gets hot.


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## KenBry (Sep 13, 2011)

HA! 112-115 on average the last 2 weeks in the afternoons. I live in Phoenix and the afternoon sun hits my shop (garage). No insulation, no AC, just a fan. I typically do any work if I am working out there in the mornings when it's only 85-90.

But basically this is my winter and I don't do allot out there this time of year. So when you guys are complaining about the cold I am out there working away in the 70 degree shop


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## mojapitt (Dec 31, 2011)

Mine is a 36×48 uninsulated shop. I work in there regardless of the temperature. I am hoping to frame & insulate it this fall.


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## JoeLyddon (Apr 22, 2007)

I have not measured the temp… but it has been VERY HOT!

... and in letting my mouth heal from extracted teeth, I have not felt like doing anything…


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## Jeff1984 (May 25, 2012)

Well it's currently 118 degrees in Lake Havasu City, AZ and my garage shop is right about 105. But its a dry heat


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## TheDane (May 15, 2008)

Jeff1984-Yeah, that's what we used to tell our relatives back east when I lived in Tucson.

-Gerry


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

My shop is not air conditioned but it never gets above 85 degrees and I'm not sure why. I run 2 big fans and can work when it's too hot to do anything outside.


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## Bluepine38 (Dec 14, 2009)

The back deck was in bad shape, so after it quit raining here, I tore it apart and am building a new one. Not
much shop time. It is all outside on the north side of the house, so I get some shade but the thermometer
still registers in the 90's.


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## revanson11 (Jan 5, 2012)

For my 20 X 28 shop I bought a portable 9K BTU AC unit at HD and hung it up on a wall about 6' off the floor with the exhaust going into the attached uninsulated garage. My windows push out at the bottom so a conventional AC was not going to work. I'm in central MN and this past couple of weeks have been extreme for us so I decided to do something about it. If I go out to the shop in the morning and fire up the air it seems to stay ahead of the heat and makes it comfortable to work out there. I also run my ceiling hung air filter to move the air around.


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## ssnvet (Jan 10, 2012)

my shop is in the finished basement of the add'n we put on the house 5 years ago… (and my wife still thinks I built it for her ;^)

without running any AC, it's the most comfortable room in the house….

I just started running the dehumidifier on the other side of the basement every so often a few weeks ago, and that makes it even better.

about a 1 degree temp rise for every step up from the landing…

oh well…. I have to eat!


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## DaddyZ (Jan 28, 2010)




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## Mosquito (Feb 15, 2012)

Mine is either around 75 depending on what I have my A/C set to in my apartment ("shop" is my second bedroom) otherwise it's whatever the temperature is outside if I go to my parents' to use the power tools on the patio. Also being Central MN and it's been quite warm for here… you guys in AZ might have 115 temperatures, but you need 115 temperatures to feel that, we only have to have mid 90's to feel like 115


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## Knothead62 (Apr 17, 2010)

My shop is what used to be the garage in the basement (house is split foyer). I closed off the vents downstairs to diret air upstairs. We have had temps up to 103 deg. this summer in SE Tennessee. It's cooling off in the 80's this week. Need to get out the electric blanket! 

It is so hot, a dog was chasing a rabbit and they were both walking.


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## TheOldTimer (Dec 13, 2009)

114 here in Chandler AZ today, I have air in the shop but do not use it as I am retired and the electric bill is saved to keep the house cool. Woodworking can wait until fall. There is nothing I have to do that can't wait. It is not a dry heat now, the monsoon is here. As a retired Firefighter living near Chicago, I have had enough snow and cold to last me the rest of my life.


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## MrRon (Jul 9, 2009)

The way to keep cool in your shop is to have as much air circulation as possible. If you have A/c, that's great, but with large shops, A/c can run up your electricity bill quickly. Insulation is the #1 way to keep cool; that and sealing air leaks. A pretty comfortable environment can be obtained with fans; not just one big fan, but several medium size fans, strategically placed to keep the air moving. My shop is 1200 sf. It has A/C, but I don't use it because my insulation is not up to par and there ae too many leaks. I have a smaller 100 sf room that is my machine shop and I keep it cooled by A/C, due to the nature of the tools within. The room is kept cool with a 5500 btu A/C, which is more economical to operate than a 1-1/2 ton A/C. When I upgraded the A/C in my house, I used the old A/C unit in the shop. Until I get all the insulation work done, I rely on fans to keep cool. Temperatures here are usually 90° or more and humidity above 50%.


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## TheDane (May 15, 2008)

We installed insulation (R38) in the shop attic Monday morning … makes a huge difference. Outside temperature Monday afternoon was 95 degrees … temperature in the shop peaked at 82.

-Gerry


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## MR_Cole (Jun 1, 2012)

My shop stays nice and cool all summer because it has no windows!


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## JoeLyddon (Apr 22, 2007)

*... He turned it back UP!*


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## dbhost (Jul 20, 2009)

It's been overcast and rainy for the last 2 weeks, but I have been sick as a dog too…

On the few occasions I have been able to get out to the shop, I have found the temps to be in the high 80s / low 90s. I kick the A/C on and the temp nosedives into the mid 70s quickly…

I am in the progress of a project to run a sub panel and finish insulating my shop. (insulation and radiant barrier in the ceiling, nothing in the walls, overhead doors have R10 ridgid foam with radiant barrier).

I figure when all is said and done, and this project is over, I will be able to enjoy a nice warm winter in my shop. I will likely have to wait until next May before I can tell if the AC will be able to keep up without running me into the poor house…

FWIW, we did something similar with a friends garage that he rigged for auto repair. About the same size as mine, but with 10' ceilings. He has the exact same A/C as I do. 30 minutes to cool down to 72 degrees, and then it kids on for a few minutes every 45 minutes or so… Scary part will be the freezer in my shop. it WILL dump heat by the bucket out there… But it's the trade off I agreed to in order to get my sub panel and insulation done… Likewise, she agrees, I need a shed to get all the lawn and garden, and, well non workshop stuff OUT. Maybe I can talk her into letting me put the freezer out in a shed too!

Before I insulated the shop doors and ceilings, in 90 degree weather the shop would REGULARLY get to around 120, and be basically unworkable. With just the doors and ceiling insulated, it rarely gets over 95 without the AC going. I expect to see uncooled high temps in the mid 80s when I get the insulation done…


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