Heated workshop

[Chipper]

The workshop in my pole shed is only heated when I will be working in there. I've never had any problem with my machines or tools in the past but none of them are computer driven. Will there be a condensation problem with temp changes? In the winter I heat it up to the 60's for working but with the MN winters and not heated the shop temp is below freezing a lot when I'm not in there. Will I have to keep the shop heated?

[Greybeard]

How about getting an old wooden cupboard, put in a small(100watt?) heater/light bulb, and store your computer with anything else condensation sensitive in that ?

John

[pkunk]

How about getting an old wooden cupboard, put in a small(100watt?) heater/light bulb, and store your computer with anything else condensation sensitive in that ?

John
More like only 25 watt will work. Larger than that would overheat.

[Greybeard]

You're probably right pkunk, and you might get sunbathing racoons or whatever wildlife you have in your neck of the woods.

(see left ) :D

(It's a vole, our garden and kitchen neighbour)

[Mary]

Thanks for the ideas, I have the same conditions here in Wisconsin.

[Chipper]

Thanks for the answers. Here's what I came up with. I made a 4' X 4' closet in the corner of the workshop with some shelves in it to store items I don't want to freeze and room to wheel the machine and stand under them. I bought a small ceramic heater with a thermostat control on it and the temp in the workshop has dropped into the 20's and 30's at night while the temp in the closet hasn't dropped below 50. Thanks for heading me in the right direction.

[Greybeard]

Great - please post photos if anything nests in it. :D

John

[flyboy]

Believe it or not, its not the temperature change alone that causes condensation. The moisture content of the air, or the humidity is the main beast.

I too have an unheated shop, unless I am in there of course, but if you bring the temperature up gradually you will not have any problems.

What I mean by gradually is this....I would not bring it from the cold shop into the warm house. :shock:

[HerbO]

That is how my shop is ...heated only when I'm working.
The first day I had the CW it was 20 degrees out. It took a couple of hours to bring the shop up to 65. I watched just for condensation and it was fine. My wife ask me yesterday why I wasn't biting at the bit to get the CW back. At -12 last night and only up to 8 today I would worry it would. Next project warming cabinet.

[HandTurnedMaple]

Running it the cold isn't really a problem. My entire shop is run on a 15A circuit (I will upgrade in the Spring). So I can't use any other tools when the CW runs. As a result I'm rarely in the shop with the CW (except to vacuum every 30-45 minutes) so my heat isn't on either. Sunday was the first time since I bought it that the weather broke 40, so its been running below freezing for most of the time. Although I suspect the cold is what caused the glue failure on the head cable.

[Gman_Ind]

It is a nice idea a heated tool closet. Except as mentioned before don't pull a nice warm tool out into a freezing room it will get covered in condensate and need to be acclimated to the shop temp. I think it would be better to leave the tools in the main shop and let then heat up with the rest of the shop.
I am originally from Michigan's UP and used to dealing with the extreme cold as well.
I plan on putting in overhead radiant heater when I move out of the basement.

[GIZMO1D1]

MY ANSWER WAS A FORCED AIR 75,000 BTU UNIT.

RAN 3/4 BLACK PIPE TO SHOP FROM HOUSE... WORKS GREAT//

WAS ALWAYS HAVING TO THROW AWAY ALL STAINS/VARNISH'S ECT.


NOW IF I COULD GET TIME TO CLEAN IT UP.. :shock:

[Greybeard]

Mike G - Sorry, but you've got it the wrong way round.
If there is water vapor in the air at a given temperature, it will condense on any cooler surface. Warm breath on cold glasses ?

The danger of leaving tools out in an unheated environment comes from a sequence of events.
You've left your tools out - large mass of metal. Overnight the air temperature drops along with that of the tools, a slow process.
After dawn, the sunrise heats up the air quite quickly, but the mass of metal is slower to react, so its temperature lags that of the air. In these conditions water will condense out of the air onto the surface of the metal.
Unless of course the humidity has dropped overnight, but that's moving the goalposts. :D
Regards
John

[GIZMO1D1]

:shock: :shock: :shock:

good thing the question wasent to hard!! :shock: :lol:

i now understand how n.a.s.a. works.. :shock: 8) :lol:

[Chipper]

After making the original post I talked to CW and the tech said the biggest problem is you have 2 metals in the machine. One expands and contracts and the other doesn't. Nothing in the machine will be hurt if it gets cold but he said to try to avoid big temp changes. The room should be above 40 and the machine warmed evenly to room temp before trying to carve. This lessens the possibility of the metal parts binding.

[Gman_Ind]

Mike G - Sorry, but you've got it the wrong way round.
If there is water vapor in the air at a given temperature, it will condense on any cooler surface. Warm breath on cold glasses ?

The danger of leaving tools out in an unheated environment comes from a sequence of events.
You've left your tools out - large mass of metal. Overnight the air temperature drops along with that of the tools, a slow process.
After dawn, the sunrise heats up the air quite quickly, but the mass of metal is slower to react, so its temperature lags that of the air. In these conditions water will condense out of the air onto the surface of the metal.
Unless of course the humidity has dropped overnight, but that's moving the goalposts. :D
Regards
John
Yikes So true! So sorry to mis quote myself!! cold tool to a warm environment = condensation. warm tool to a cold room is OK. My point as is yours if I read better than I type is keep the environment more stable, less metal moving and condensation. Also having the shop somewhat warm makes it easier for me to get motivated to get to work a little earlier. When I make cabinets it is very important to acclimate the wood to as close to room conditions as possible. Temp + humidity = wood movement. Thats another discussion.

[mtylerfl]

Hello All,

I have used a Honeywell Oil-Filled Heater for many years, and it does a great job of keeping the workshop comfortable, with a very safe heat source.

My workshop is a 2-car garage, insulated and drywalled. Even though I'm in Southern Georgia, it can get a bit cool in the winter. Last week, we got down to the 30's, but my workshop temperature never dropped below 60 degrees.

I bought mine about 6 years ago online at Target and see they have updated their design and lowered the price. ( I paid $59.95 but you can get the new model for $39.99 now)

Here's a link if anyone is interested...
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/sr=1-5/qid=1170946095/ref=sr_1_5/601-1329989-1967325?ie=UTF8&asin=B000JGCQRK

I'll post a pic of mine.

NOTE: I have it plugged into a separate 15 Amp circuit - that is, separate from my 20 Amp circuit that I use for my power tools.

[tim1216]

I use the same oil heater in my shop wich in wisconon it has been below 0 for the last week or so and i have had no problems. it is cheap to run and it is safer than convetional space heaters.