dehumidifier in your shop

grumpyvette

Administrator
Staff member
now I'd be the first guy to admit the reason I don,t air condition my shop is 100% based solely, on a lack of available, and continuing disposable funding too install or operate a functional air conditioning system ,I installed a couple 1600 cfm roof vent evac fans and (21) 60 inch blade span, industrial ceiling fans mounted to the 16 foot level rafters that keep my shop air moving briskly, the tall ceiling height and open rafters allow the heat to rise easily and the evac fans force a constant flow of otherwise hot trapped air up and out over the roof, the ceiling fans produce a nice breeze .
theres zero doubt there significant moisture in the air here in Florida, I have to drain the air compressor tank drain every time I use the shop air compressor and get at least 1/8th-too 1/4 cup of water.

a great deal of the rust issue most of us have can be reduced by proper planing,
tools should ideally be stored in a near moisture free area.
if your planing a shop a multiple plastic layer moisture barrier under the concrete floor of your shop will help a great deal,
if you bought a building that has no moisture barrier under the poured slab, you should consider the better epoxy based floor coatings
and in either case roof vent fans and ceiling fans that keep the air moving reduce the chances of parts and tools rusting.
most of us have some type of tool chest and if you have the tools long enough,
your sure to have issues with surface rust forming on those tools,
if the area you store the tools in does not dry and well ventilated.
now most of us will have noticed the better quality tool trays have a felt or plastic pad on the drawer floor
,if you spray the pools with a mist of WD40 occasionally,
the lower surface tends to retain the residue and constant use of the tools,
and occasional preventive misting with the WD40 will greatly reduce the rust formation issues.

http://www.dayattherange.com/?page_id=3667
P1000311.JPG

I doubt Ill get one of these, dehumidifiers like my friend just got, but I was impressed with the change it made in his garage
READ THIS THREAD

viewtopic.php?f=28&t=4865

and if I happen to win the super lotto , I'm sure I will think about it far more seriously.
but I i found something interesting a few weeks ago, I was over helping on a project at a buddys 3 car garage thats attached to his home with a 12 ft drywall ceiling and wall covering in the garage,and noticed what I at first thought was a new welder, but a quick inspection made me rather curious so I inquired what the new equipment was, as it did not appear to be an air conditioner , and obviously had a FAN inside and a moisture drain hose leading outside thru the wall,
http://www.allergybuyersclub.com/ebac-e ... temId=3460
EB-BD-EC85-500.jpg

It seems his garage here in florida has had a few issues with mildew because he keeps in closed, and not air conditioned and hes very allergic to mildew mold spores ,and had issues with mildew.
he assumed he had a roof leak, but a detailed inspection , by two different contractors found no roof leaks, what showed up eventually was a leaking drain on an attic mounted air conditioning unit, but even after that issue was corrected the mildew persisted, as a result of some research and talking to his doctor a dehumidifier was suggested as a less expensive option, too run, and from the results Id have to say its a very effective addition to his shop, he claims that not only has he stopped having symptoms from mildew he noticed the place no longer smells musty , his tools and stored car parts don,t seem to rust nearly as frequently, and hes seeing a constant flow of water from the dehumidifiers drain hose, that drains outside the shop, that far exceeded his expectations.
I suggested he add a couple ceiling fans to keep the air in the shop moving and some better lighting , and now that he swears hes no longer having allergic reactions to working in the shop, hes looking into those changes as well.
he also claims the garage feels a great deal cooler, because the shop just feels DRIER! ( noticed the old musty odor was now gone, so obviously the things doing some good)
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/dehumidifier-in-your-shop.10478/

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-a-shop-roof-vent-attic-fan.10467/#post-43831

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/shop-ceiling-fans.4865/

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...g-a-concrete-slab-to-work-on.5007/#post-57196

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/shop-drainage.5035/#post-16042
 
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every floridian with asthma or bronchial and respiratory problems, even allergy sufferers like your friend should have a dehumidifier in their home or shop... if i walk into my shed during daylight hours now in the summer its literally JUST LIKE A SAUNA! its tough to breathe the air because its so thick in there sometimes.
 
I've tried dehumidifiers and powerful fans. I tried running 2 and then just one dehumidifier in my 2 car garage during the summer and it was still noticeably hotter. It did cut down on the surface rust formation on bare metal but working in there during the day with it on didn't work out very well. So now I only use it if I have something big I need in bare metal for more than a day like a roll cage and then I'll leave a dehumidifier in there overnight. Normally I work doors open and I paint anything I strip the same day during the humid months.

Part of the heat build up with doors closed in my case is because of all the other things that are making heat while I'm working. Lights, fans, electric tools, and radiant heat from the metal garage door when the sun is hitting it are all pumping in more heat. At the time I tried running the dehumidifier my old compressor was in another room but now I have the compressors in the garage as well and the big ones make a LOT of heat. For me the dehumidifiers didn't work without the air compressors so with them it would be much worse.

I use an additional 60 gal cool down/storage tank on the IR compressor so I don't have to drain water as often. I get a couple gallons out of it when I drain it but only get a very small amount out of the water separator on the line that comes out of the cool down tank. The Snap On compressor has a water recirculating tube that takes the water from the bottom of the tank and feeds it back into the hot air coming out of the compressor head into the tank in a venturi fashion. It's OK for air tools but I don't like it for paint work because the air is more humid when it reaches the gun and the water separator on the hose outlet has a tougher job.
 
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