Looking for simple solution to ventilate my free standing one car garage. Looking for thermostatically controlled fan. Ideas?
Line voltage stat available at any hardware store (around here) and hook it to the biggest blower motor you can find. Cut a hold in the wall mount the blower motor to it and you have redneck ventilation. Depending on what your trying to do cut the hole low or high or do two. Blower motors are available from most heating and air places that do change outs for scrap price.
If you are trying to dump heat, mount the blower as high as you can. Also... is the roof ventilated? assuming there is no ceiling, a vented ridge is helpful, as are gable end vents (both doesn't hurt, more is better).
Don't loose sight of winter. Whatever you do now to let the summer heat out will also let that nice warm air out in the winter... or even let snow into your garage.... unless you use a louvered fan set-up. Back when I lived in Ohio my first garage was unfinished, un-insulated and without a ceiling. I installed a whirlwind ventilator in the roof and then installed a hinged cover that was operated from below to shut it off in the winter. Low buck and worked quite well.
Thanks Everyone. This garage, which is a freestanding prebuilt building, will house my 71 Chevelle and Triglide. My nephew is finishing up a major restoration to the Chevelle and suggested the garage is too hot and should be ventilated.
Ventilation Denis ; Just don't forget the all important floor level screened vent ! . Explosive fumes are heavy and settle near the ground , then when you go in and start the engine ~ boom , not pretty . The screen is important to keep the ding dang mice & squirrels out . As mentioned for hot air it's better to exhaust it than to try and blow in fresh air ~ you can always use portable fans to create a breeze where you're working .
Thanks Thanks Nate, this building is only used for storage, is my "clean storage." My regular garage is where I do work. And I only work there in the spring and summer because we are snowbirds and head to Florida for fall and winter. However, I do appreciate the advice.
Denis, Below is link showing a # of vents for garages from eBay, they will give you an idea of what you may need. As for the Suicide Vents garages have had for years, they are not a requirement for the exhausting of Carbon monoxide which builders use to think were needed. Carbon monoxide will rise to the top of an enclosed space, not fall, its atomic weight is 28 and Oxygen is 32, with specific gravity of air @ 1.14 specific gravity of Carbon monoxide @ 1.0. Vents placed high on the wall will get the hotter air out while bringing in cool air can be done with a swamp cooler low on the wall maybe at the plate line to help with the make-up air the upper exhaust fan is doing and to help keep the lower portion of the garage cooler. http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fro...ilation.TRS0&_nkw=Garage+Ventilation&_sacat=0 Hope This Helps, Charles
Awesome little building. It appears to already have a gable vent. Does it have one at both ends? Is the cupola also vented?
Yes it is vented but no air flow so very warm. I found a thermostatically controlled fan that I will put on the opposite side.
A nice garage ! . I'd be ashamed to post pix of my 1923 'T' Model Car Hole . C02 isn't what you have to worry about , it's the flammable / explosive gases that settle . Agreed , a fan up high will draw in cooler ground level air .
Nate, The vents were never there for the gas fumes in private garages they were there as anti-suicide vents, only working garages were/are regulated for hazards, even more now with the natural gas vehicles being worked on. A trip through NEC Article 500 hazardous area classification sends one from class 1 division 1 locations downward into less hazard operations of commercial garages and gas station businesses. Keeping the water heater off the ground by being at least 18 inches off the floor is the only gas fumes mandate but that comes out of the building code, water heaters having closed fire boxes now kind of stops that directive altogether. By the way are you needing any more cactus for the green belt? Charles
Where I come from , Down East , garage explosions were a common thing , that's what those vents were for . Suicides usually use a hose from the tail pipe to the window , the garage's vent isn't going to make any difference there . Yes , I need more cactus ! .
I've got some cacti... some 8,000 ft elevation central Colorado Cacti.... all this suicide talk is depressing.... and smelling exhaust fumes is worse, especially with a cadillactic converter
Downers Haven't you ever seen a suicide John ? . I find any death to be very upsetting but when you're in The Auto Trade it's un avoidable in time . Did I ever tell you alls about the death cars I used to buy dirt cheap clean up and repair then re sell ? .
I'm not sure what a "cadillactic converter" is, but, if it's like when all your stocks crash, and you have to trade your Cadillac for a Hyundai, that might trigger thoughts of suicide. I'm sure you informed the buyer, Nate. Seriously, a suicide or attempted suicide is VERY upsetting. I,ve seen the aftermath of 5. Now, back to topic, the cute little building appears to have side windows. Crack a window in the summer, be sure the gable vents are open, as John suggested, problem solved.
Cornfused It's a play on words Steve. Some folks I knew as a kid back in Ohio used to call catalytic converters cadillactic converters... it always struck me as funny, guess ya had to be there. Remember how nasty exhaust smelled back when they first started putting catalytic converters on cars back in the 70's? Like rotten eggs as I recall.
