# At what Temperature do you flee from the shop?



## jap (Oct 10, 2012)

For me below -10c or 14f, i will hardly work in the shop.
Currently it's -20c or -4f in the garage, that's way to cold for me. So i read about woodworking on Lumberjocks, the next best thing!
I want global warming 
So at what temperature do you stop working in the shop???


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## LukieB (Jan 8, 2012)

I wuss out about 10 degrees f.


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## muleskinner (Sep 24, 2011)

"*For me below -10c or 14f, i will hardly work in the shop*"

Holy crap! At that temperature I'd flee from home. Arizona is nice this time of the year.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

Me, when it tops 100F. Sometimes the shop goes as high as 107-108F


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## Earlextech (Jan 13, 2011)

I recently moved from Fla to NC and I no longer work in my shop professionally. I skedaddle at about 40F. I don't mind heat though, being from Fla.


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## mojapitt (Dec 31, 2011)

About 10 degrees Fahrenheit. Fingers can't handle it below that.


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## GT350 (Dec 22, 2012)

I just turn the furnace on and go back out in about 30 minutes. I'm not that tough.


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## DS (Oct 10, 2011)

115F+ is about when the evap starts to be less than efficient.

Hey, its Arizona


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## Cosmicsniper (Oct 2, 2009)

Yep, heat is the issue here in Texas. Over 100 degrees and it will depend on my mood. In the winter, my space heater makes it somewhat comfortable as long as the weather isn't freezing. Below 32 degrees and I'm staying inside.


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## jusfine (May 22, 2010)

It can be -40 Celcius and my shop is still toasty warm. 30' Radiant tube heater does the trick.

I used to have a shop in a smaller garage and had to heat it with wood stove, by the time it warmed up it was time for lunch… never got much done in there in the winter…


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## jap (Oct 10, 2012)

it never crossed my mind about being too hot. i might have to move south


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## Woodbum (Jan 3, 2010)

Hell I'm a wuss. I fire up the heater at 45-50. My old stiff hands work much better at 60 or above. Mike and I share the same attitude about the heat. Here in OK the temps the last 2 summesr hit 113. When it tops 100, I'm out of there. Even my 2 high output air movers don't help then. My brain start cooking and I can't concentrate. At that temp, it's pool, beer and cigar time


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## helluvawreck (Jul 21, 2010)

35deg F - 98 deg F. Outside of this range I prefer not to work

helluvawreck aka Charles
http://woodworkingexpo.wordpress.com


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## sprucegum (Dec 6, 2012)

When the outside temp. hits -10 I turn my Sterling propane heater off and head for the house because I don't want to pay for the propane. Looks like the next few days are house days.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

I have heat in the winter but 80 degrees is my max for the summer.


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## Kreegan (Jul 10, 2012)

Last weekend, I was working at 38F, but that was pretty unpleasant. The problem is every time you pick up something metal, it just sucks all the warmth out of your hands.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

*PERFECT SHOP TEMPERATURE*

IMO, I find it to be 55-60F. Absolutely NO sweating, yet cool enough you can add a shirt/vest as needed.

BTW, my earlier comments about leaving the shop at ~100F is really more dictated by my ability/inability to keep a fan directed on me at all times. I have watched rust bubbles pop up in less than 5-min on my cast iron saws and jointers. When I drip, I quit. Sometimes, on rare occasions, the humidity will dictate that "sweat" temperature and ruin a day in the shop.


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## Wiltjason (Jan 10, 2013)

It depends,on what I'm doing, my shop is real small and I have acouple heaters so if I'm usually good to down around 10-20 degree range, but if I'm doing glue UPS or finishing I usually shut it down around 32 if I can't take them in the house


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## Billinmich (Mar 8, 2008)

in the winter shop is always between 50 60 degrees,so I'm good in the winter,summer 90 95 tops and i'm gone


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## oakwood (Sep 25, 2012)

When it's too cold or too hot you tend to hurry more and I find that not only do you suffer from the discomfort but the project also often reflects the haste and also much of the enjoyment is sucked right out. Best to just stay indoor and whittle a toothpick or better yet, surf Lumberjocks. In my case I am fortunate to have a community center woodshop to go to.


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## jap (Oct 10, 2012)

^true, i go in at -10c because the cold outways the fun.


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## derosa (Aug 21, 2010)

My shop stays a bit warmer then outside due to its location so if there isn't a bad wind I can had out there till 15f. There is r30 insulating the heat from the kitchen below so no help there, has a connection to the unheated garage and no insulation in the ceiling. In the summer I stop going out there when the temp is high enough to cause nose bleeds after a few minutes.


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## PatrickIrish (Oct 19, 2012)

Ive noticed that it my feet that get first then my body. I found cheap foam mats at Harbor Freight and good to go. Granted I'm in California so maybe 30 degrees is what I've experienced.


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## jap (Oct 10, 2012)

"Ive noticed that it my feet that get first" 
Why, do you go barefoot? 
For me it's my fingers, even with gloves that go numb quickly.


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## getlostinwood (Apr 11, 2011)

if I can keep the garage door closed I will work down to 35 or so. I dont sweat enough to keep myself cool above 100 or so. Not that Im wussing out but medically dont sweat enough cant even wet a t shirt when it's 100 plus working in the hay field


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## DS (Oct 10, 2011)

I guess this is where I admit to avoiding working in the garage when the temps dipped to 28F in the mornings for four days. That's the debt of winter in Phoenix I guess.

Actually I did work out there, but I couldn't finish anything until it wouldn't freeze on me.

Still that leaves the other 361 days, with the possible exception of 100+ days of 100F+ temps we have each summer. (It's gonna be 80F this afternoon-a record high for this date)


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## MT_Stringer (Jul 21, 2009)

Last summer we had some 100 degF days - 102 in the garage. UGH! And humidity was a booger here in the Houston area. Sweat was terrible; getting on everything - wood and cast iron table top! :-(

Thankfully my "shop" is a one car attached garage. Several years ago, we replaced the siding on the house, and while it was open, I had the contractor insulate the outside wall of the garage…about 20 feet. And We replaced the garage door with an energy efficient door. Well, that didnt help any at all. The heat was coming through the ceiling.

Fast forward to this summer. I installed a split system AC w/heat pump and had a contractor blow in R38 insulation over the garage and adjacent bedroom and bathroom. WOW! What a difference. The "shop" is just like any other room in the house now. 31 deg F. outside a week ago, 69 in the "shop". Kinda expensive fix but it works great.
Note: a window type AC wouldn't work for me 'cause the little ol ladies riding around the neighboorhood would write me up! :-( The condenser for the AC sits behind my privacy fence so all is good.


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## MrRon (Jul 9, 2009)

<40>80° F; I'm out of there.


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## Woodmaster1 (Apr 26, 2011)

It is 8degrees out today so until I install heat shop work is on hold. Anything above 35 degrees I work in the shop. The colder it it the less time I spend. Should get the heat installed this spring.


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## RonInOhio (Jul 23, 2010)

I have toughed out some of the cold. Finished shingles on Christmas day.

Inside I turn on a kerosene heater but the shop is still open at one end and at the soffits.
So it helps but doesn't raise the temperture much beyond 15 degrees of the ambient.

Haven't got insulation in yet. Its getting close though. Will be the last winter without an 
insulated shop.

I usually wimp out below 35 degrees. It depends. Right now an artic front has settled in
will be hanging around for around a week. Temps in the teens and single digits.

Not going out there in that . I'm pretty comfortable at 45 and above. But the days 
of having a cold shop are numbered. Can't wait.


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## joeyinsouthaustin (Sep 22, 2012)

I am in the other crew.. I can tell exactly when it goes past 106. That is where it gets uncomfortable, ever with fans blowing. Fortunately worked on a lot of job sites where the builder supplied ac. I hope to see more of that here in texas.


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## dbhost (Jul 20, 2009)

90 deg F. Hey you didn't specify what temp limit lower makes you flee the shop! I hate sweating on my work pieces!

With my current insulation setup, my shop stays about 50 deg F when outdoor temps are in the upper 20s… It rarely (I.E. never seen it happen in my 20 years here) gets below 20 deg F here…

So honestly I am FAR more worried about being too hot than cold.


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## teejk (Jan 19, 2011)

shop is set at 62F because I have some tractor paint trying to cure…house is supposed to be at around 68F but been fighting a boiler problem (good thing my HVAC guy decided on using a furnace as the air handler for the AC…not as good as the radiant in-floor but better than nothing). My problem the past few days is getting from the house to the shop in -10F…guess I'm getting old…that 150' walk in the cold is too much for me.


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## WhoMe (Jul 9, 2009)

Anything between 40 degrees to 105 degrees keeps me out of the shop…..
Anything outside that is really unlikely to happen where I live….


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## F40qwerty (May 16, 2012)

People flee the shop?


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## JayT (May 6, 2012)

Brent, that is just not fair, it was 13 degrees when I left for work this morning.

We get extremes on both ends of the spectrum.

I'm usually good down to 20 degrees or so in the winter. Shop is lightly insulated so I can keep it in the 40's inside at 20 degrees outside and that is enough to still work.

Summer is worse, triple digits means no woodwork shall be done.


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## FeralVermonter (Jan 1, 2013)

The Feral Vermonter does not go in until the whisky starts to freeze!


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## scrollingmom (Aug 27, 2011)

I have a heated garage, but I only turn it on when I have somehting that I need to work on. Cost too much for propane to heat it constantly.


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## runswithscissors (Nov 8, 2012)

I find that I can endure cold for quite a while as long as I have a project that keeps me engaged. The cold gradually seeps in, legs and feet become icy, hands get stiff. I did install an old fashioned trash burner that I feed with wood scraps. With wide open soffits at each end of the flat roofed (unfortunately) shop, it can raise the temp 4 or 5 degrees (f, of course). I'm good for 4 or 5 hours.

Here in the Pac. N.W. we are genetically unadapted to heat. Above 75 f, I start to whine.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

When Joey in Austin talks about fleeing the shop in +100F days, as I have, we are not talking about those isolated days. In recent years we have been chasing 100 days in a row with +100F Temps during the summer. Yeah, I know this is NOT Arizona BUT even for Texas this is the PITs!


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## DS (Oct 10, 2011)

Yeh, I've been in Texas at 100F. It is miserable in 85% Relative humidity.

At least in AZ it's a dry heat. 10% to 20% RH typical.


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## Purrmaster (Sep 1, 2012)

No temperature has driven me entirely out of the shop yet (my shop is unheated). But it sure slows me down. And I've had to resort to using epoxy instead of wood glue. It's the only thing that seems to work in these temperatures (around 25-30 degree Fahrenheit).


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## blackcherry (Dec 7, 2007)

32 degree or beer 30 which ever comes first…


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## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

about 40 F. I've been cold and wet enough doing working as an electrician! I'm staying warm and dry from now on ;-)


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## jm82435 (Feb 26, 2008)

I don't mind working in the cold - I haven't found glue that will set below about 40 degrees though… My wife just loves it when i drag a project and a bunch of clamps into the house too.


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## bondogaposis (Dec 18, 2011)

It don't matter now that I got heat. 9° F here this morning, went right to work.


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## TechRedneck (Jul 30, 2010)

My shop is in the basement/garage.. About 1400 sq ft. It is below the house with block walls and insulated garage doors.

About three years ago I decided to add a wood/coal furnace as a secondary heat source for the shop and house. Right now the outside temps are around 9 deg F. Shop is at 61 and we keep the house around 66. I piped the coal furnace supply and return into the ductwork with a backflow preventer. The floors are a lot warmer since there is no insulation between the garage and living space, master bath is just below the stove and the floors are warm in winter. When the outside temps get in the teens, the main propane gas furnace kicks in for several minutes every hour or so. I go through 3.75 tons of anthrosite nut coal delivered in 40 lb bags. Beats cutting firewood.

By switching to coal I was able to heat an additional 1400 sq ft (shop/garage) heat the house and save 65% over just heating only the house with propane. In winter it is nice to open the door and feel the heat coming off those glowing coals. To add a few degrees to the shop I open a damper to divert half the 650 cfm to the shop.


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## jumbojack (Mar 20, 2011)

below 40 or over 95. 
but I live in California so it is almost always "IN THE COMFORT ZONE"


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## cutworm (Oct 2, 2010)

On the hot days I work in the morning and retreat after lunch. Winter - anything under the low 50's and I'm out.
I'm a wimp.


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## markswoodcraft (Aug 5, 2012)

at 40 i start to get discouraged
less than 32 im done
a wood stove provides a little warmth
more than 80 in summer is too hot


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## whitebeast88 (May 27, 2012)

being in the lovely HUMID south when it gets in the upper 90's i call it a day.

winter i'm a big sissy,when it gets around 32 it's time to go.unless there's something that has my attention other than numb fingers.


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## wooded (Mar 6, 2012)

50 with a hoody and 85 with windows and a breeze, is not an issue since I use the heat and air c …..;-J


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## lathman (Oct 25, 2012)

i keep my shop at 60F all winter….in summer i shut down the heat and it never gets above 80F(air conditioning may come this summer).....


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## sprucegum (Dec 6, 2012)

For all of you guys in the cold country with unheated shops. Try my rational (it worked on my wife) I don't have a lot of expensive toys, I don't use drugs, I don't smoke, I drink modestly,and I don't gamble. For these reasons I feel I am entitled to spend a modest amount on good tools and a decent place to work without freezing my butt off. On top of all that since I do make a modest profit from my work it is all tax deductable less items withdrawn from business for personal use.


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## grfrazee (Jul 17, 2012)

During the Christmas holiday I spent >8 hours a day in the shop. It's located in southeastern Wisconsin, and I think the temperature was between 20-30 F. However, the shop has 2×6 walls, fully insulated, so the inside temperature was hovering a few degrees above freezing. Just to take the edge off, I used one of those little campsite propane heaters, but it was hard to tell how much it was warming the 28×40 shop.

Depending on what I was doing (lifting heavy workbench parts, hand planing, glue-ups, measuring), I was either mildly chilly or had to take my fleece-lined shirt and flannel off because I was starting to sweat. Keeping moving kept me pretty warm, and I'd say that unless I couldn't glue because it was too cold, I would probably keep working.

That said, I've worked in 95F in the summer, and I find myself coming inside to the A/C after not too long. If there's not a breeze that I can let in the two garage doors, there's not a chance in hell I'll sweat through that.


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## jap (Oct 10, 2012)

I find that when i started using handplanes over power sanding, i stay warmer. 
I won't be going out into the shop for more then a few minutes today, the temperature is -26c or -15f where i am.


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## dpoisson (Jun 3, 2010)

Well not sure where y'all are located, but tonight it's going to get down to -31C (-23.8F), -46C including windchill (-50.8F) here in Quebec City.

One would hope that people have heated shops around here lol

Jap, are you in Quebec by any chance?


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## jap (Oct 10, 2012)

dpoisson - No, I'm in Ottawa.


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## stevepeterson (Dec 17, 2009)

I am around 50 years old and 50 degrees is too cold for me.

When I was 20, I would probably quit working at around 20 degrees.

Hmmm, I see a pattern here.


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## teejk (Jan 19, 2011)

steve…you are onto something! I used to enjoy deer hunting also…with age I become more convinced that venison doesn't taste as good as it used to.


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## scarpenter002 (Sep 16, 2007)

In Houston, it is both a factor of high temperature and humidity. Nothing worse than having sweat dripping all over your fine pieces of wood and cast iron/steel tools.


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## brunob (Dec 26, 2006)

I can't deal with hot or cold so have heat and AC. Cheap room AC from Lowe's.


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## scarpenter002 (Sep 16, 2007)

Duplicate- Delete


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## stefang (Apr 9, 2009)

It'a been -11 degrees today, but I still worked in my shop. It's insulated and heated so no problem. I did keep on a lightweight jacket though. It almost never gets too hot to work in my shop. We haven't had much summer here for the past 4 years.


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## Whitewalls (Dec 30, 2012)

30's is fine, I can fire up the heater and wait 20-30 min and it's good for a few hours. But right now it's 10 degrees outside, and it takes too damn long for the heater to warm up the garage. Especially at 5.85 a gallon for K1. So I'm inside my nice warm house working on the basement. lol


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## BentheViking (May 19, 2011)

really gotta figure out a way to heat my garage well…or at least well enough. don't get a lot of time to be in the shop so when i have a day off there are projects that must be done and it is what it is…kinda sucked seeing a bank today that said it was 11 degrees


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## doordude (Mar 26, 2010)

less than 40 i'm back in the house,95 i'm out of here too. just can't work with sweat in the eyes. hate it…


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## emart (Mar 16, 2011)

in the winter time i generally leave when it gets lower than 20 degrees. anything over that if its cold i leave when i cant feel my fingers and return once i thaw out. typically i will use my shop until its about 95 or so since its usually wet out most of the year


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## mojapitt (Dec 31, 2011)

I have been in the shop when it's 110 degrees. not comfortable, but grew up with it so I just do it. It was upper teens today, had to go in and warm up a few times but got by.


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## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

When I was a kid on the farm I think I got some minor frostbite in my fingers. They all belt like thumbs when ever they got really cold after that until I was cold to 40, then it seemed to disappear. Is that what you meant by not feeling your finger emart?  I hope not!


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## thedude50 (Aug 13, 2011)

I puss out when it is in the 20s which has only happened a few days here this year but in the summer I may have to quit when it over 110 and we had 90 days like that last summer so it was a real bitch. Hopefully by next year I will have ac and heat in the shop along with insulated doors and some windows in the shop.


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## stefang (Apr 9, 2009)

20F below here last night. I'm learning how to get dressed a lot faster these days as we use no heat in the bedroom.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

It is now 5am and the temp outside is +60F. Last week it was in the 20's in the am. Supposed to hit 80F today… in January!


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## stefang (Apr 9, 2009)

Sounds great Mike. Wish I was there.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

South Texas doesn't usually get that cold in the Winter, but I do remember a couple of morning in early February they were +12F and +13F. The reason I remember those mornings so well is because of the 50-mile commute to work, on my Harley! It was one of those one-handed riding mode days… with one hand on the handlebar and one hand held against the rear cylinder (to warm up), then switching every few minutes as you zoom down the road at 70mph. BRrr….


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## fisherdoug09 (Jan 29, 2011)

All I can say is you guys are tough. I live in western Montana and it can get pretty cold here in the winter. I have a nice wood stove in my shop and get it going 1st thing in the am. Let it get to mid 50's in the shop and its perfect working conditions.


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## Jim Jakosh (Nov 24, 2009)

I can work at any temperature for a short time if I have to get something out,but I can't stay there if it is above 90 or below 30 degrees F. I use a fan or the wood furnace to make it tolerable after those extremes….....Jim


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## SCOTSMAN (Aug 1, 2008)

I don't go into the shop without heat on of somekind when it's freezing outside it is just not fun at these lower temperatures.I would advise you to get a heater if you don't have one already. Alistair


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## MarkDavisson (Apr 26, 2009)

Depends on the wife's mood.


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## DS (Oct 10, 2011)

Good answer Mark! I love it! (Just don't let the wife read it)


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## oldnovice (Mar 7, 2009)

Temperature doesn't really drive me out, the water/humidity does. Fortunately in the San Jose Bay Area the humidity doesn't get that bad in the summer; but when it raining I don't want to open my garage door!

When I lived in Illinois I was glad my shop was in the basement because in the midworst you have *"weather you can wear."*


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## doninvegas (Jun 10, 2010)

In Vegas, 112 to 117 in the summer. Not worried in the winter a space heated works just fine.


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## thedude50 (Aug 13, 2011)

Old Novice I am going to be up your way for a meeting of the period furniture manufactures association Would you like to attend and meet up they are having a master teach a class on leather application for desks and things like that I am thinking of joining the assn. The membership is cool and a good way to get good advise on building historic looking furniture.


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