krellious Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 So a AC is out of the question. Any suggestions or recomendations for heating and dehumidyfing the entire garage?Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
intangcity Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 why is an ac out the question? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LithoMan Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Air con im guessing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
intangcity Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 one thing i can think off is insulate the walls and ceiling if possible then have an exhaust system that only runs when humidity gets to a high dew point and turns off after a lower point is made.(so on a thermostat) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
intangcity Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 i have my tanks in my garage and have the walls and ceiling covered with polystyrene its an all steel/colourbond garage.ive never had humidity problems.it could be because of the air flow through the garage.i have only a quarter of the garage as my fish room and i built a wall to block it off with a door etc but there are small areas for air to move between the two areas.in summer i rarely have the heaters on and if i was to block the room off completely id prob only run 2-3 heaters out of 5 in autumn winter etc.it gets cold here St Marys is in a valley we tend to cop it all the heat and the cold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krellious Posted May 23, 2014 Author Share Posted May 23, 2014 Ac is out as i dont want to knock out bricks to put one in. I have built a wall to insulate the room from the garage door. There is very little airflow as i have also put cloth in all the weep holes. The garage is also part of my house so i dont want to put to much stuff on the walls or have to mvove tanks to do so. I also have 12 tanks running and will be adding about 2000l more in the coming weeks. So heating and humidity will be a prpblem in a brick and gyprock lined garage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ged Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 I have used an oil heater to heat my fish room previously but not the most efficient use of electricity. I was looking at this style of heater last year as an alternative to oil column heater. http://econo-heat.com/aus/products/eheater-wall-panel-heater/There are some great electric dehumidifiers on the market with all the bells and whistles i.e. Humidity Control settings, auto shut off, large capacity. You can also have a look at the non-electric dehumidifiers that can be recharged by using the microwave or putting out in the sun once they are full. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
intangcity Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 is the garage detached from the house if not u can run a split system or does it have a window where u can install the ac(window rattler ) its the box stle one that needs bricks knocked out but u can put them in windows.ive installed ac for 19 years ud be surprised where some people want them and where they can be mounted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krellious Posted May 25, 2014 Author Share Posted May 25, 2014 Garage is attached to the house. I had considered a split system but dont want one for the house and the boss wont be to happy if the fiah get one and she doesnt. There is no window to mount one either. I was hoping to be abke to use a portable ac but rhey seem to mostly cool and not heat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buccal Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Truly your best bet is a split,, or your just flogging a dead horse as to what works weighing up cost and efficiency.My first breeding room was a little smaller than a double carport garage.From fridge and washer city I got a Teco of the smallest range.It was $700 installed a bargain,,, and the cost now days haven't changed.May modern breed room has the largest size and works amazing.Once you reach desired temp on heat mode, you can then select auto which will switch to the dry mode occasionally and relieve room of humidity.Having a ten millimeter gap along bottom of entry door and a tiny vent in ceiling exits humidity very very well when having the fan mode sett on high together with heating.With polystyrene used, these vents don't seem to compromise insulation capability.Polystyrene and a split system works better than most are trying for,,,, and realistically is the cheapest way while achieving what's expected.I run outdoor grow ponds for cichlids and another for aquaponics supply barra.For these 20000 liter plus set ups I use pool heat pumps, these work well but there's no control of humidity,,, in the outdoor situation it's still very extremely insulated but designed for humid situations.The split systems have a fan mode which you select on high,,, this keeps the room slightly pressurized which constantly forces out the moisture in the air,,,, you may have to play around with vent positioning and sizes.The vent at foot level should be double the size as vent in ceiling, and these vents only need to be very small. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 I always just kept the air moving. A couple of floor fans running all the time helps heaps.Keep lids closed, evaporation will kill you in a sealed room. I will be running exhaust fans on some sort of sensor, something like thishttp://www.pureventilation.com.au/product/ceiling-exhaust-fans/e-style-100-humidity-sensor-timer/I will also run two wall fans to maintain air movement in the room.I think I will stick to my column heater. With a well insulated room, it used very little power, maybe adding $50 to my winter bill and not being used in summer. I am lucky as I am building my room now and add things like insulation as I goJosh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krellious Posted May 26, 2014 Author Share Posted May 26, 2014 Thanks guys, May have to make new and tighter fitting lids. Also Josh what colum heater do you use. I had considered getting one of them but wasnt sure if they would add much to the headitn bill. Also do you have it on a timer or a thermostat or just leave it on all the time. Fan circulation is a decent idea and will look into that.Thanks also Buccal but once again them misses wants ac in the house ad will shoot me if i give it to teh fish and not to her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 I just had a 1200/600w unit from Bunnings. It had a thermostat dial, but no temp settings. I just played with it until the temp was right.I used it on the 600w settings and it kept the temp stable. Much cheaper then heating 13 tanks with heaters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anponee Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 So, a 600w oil column heater running 24/7 is the same as 2x 300w tank heaters???I meant for power consumption??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buccal Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 The same power usage yes.But one may burn up more power than the other,,, because different methods have different efficiencies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 I am heating a room which had twelve tanks. It's much cheaper to do it this way. If I only had two tanks heating that tanks would be a better option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buccal Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 Further elaboration (food for thought).This would be a major factor when trying to compare the apple to the orange when one or the other can be good in a given situation.If your heating the air,,, and the room is moderately to inadequately insulated,,, then power will be waisted heating up some of the warm air that is actually escaping,,, so if this is happening to a particular degree,,,,, then heating the water may be better as water retains heat better than air.In a well insulated room with the air heated will find a equilibrium where the heat transference between the tank water and air balances out and working together with the heated ground that radiates back out.The initial week while the the ground takes a while to saturate with heat will seem like the heater is struggling,,, but after a week or so you will notice the heater turning of more often via thermostat.The less air space and less ceiling height,,,, basically the more water and the less air will result in better efficiently.Like I said, water retains heat for longer, therefore it sticks around to radiate back out rather than escaping so much.On the other hand,,, a display tank in a house would be better suited to the water type heaters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krellious Posted June 12, 2014 Author Share Posted June 12, 2014 I ended up getting http://www.harveynorman.com.au/heating-cooling/heating/electric-heaters/delonghi-2400w-oil-column-heater-213436.html and put lids on all my tanks. Power going through the meter doesnt seem to have increased much and the room stays a solid 24 and the heater is running on a low setting. Pretty happy so far. But time will tell when i get a power bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
green troll Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 Sorry link doesn't work... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 I fixed it up. It should work now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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