Life with Jane

[Wroughtnharv]

Working with the steel studs is more challenging than wood for me. But it is what I have and so we’re going with it. Most of the framing is conventional with the emphasis on shiplap walls and only using green sheet rock in the wet areas.

The interesting and most challenging part will be the attic framing. Even my most accomplished at home construction buds have their eyes glass over when I describe it to them. All I have to do is get the walls completely framed and then the real fun begins.

I’m seriously considering a evaporative shop cooler like a Mr. Cool because with the doors and windows open it’s pretty warm inside by the afternoon. Three large fans doing their best helps but….

[ronjhall]

Sorry to hear it is so hot in TX. Good you are getting some work done before heat builds oup.

[okmunky]

Originally Posted by Wroughtnharv

I’m seriously considering a evaporative shop cooler like a Mr. Cool because with the doors and windows open it’s pretty warm inside by the afternoon. Three large fans doing their best helps but….

Harvey, you may want to double check the statistics on evaporative cooling. I'm not sure you will get much benefit with the typical humidity in North Texas. At 16% it will help, but if you are having showers the humidity jumps quickly.

I've had some success with a damp towel laid across my shoulders under my shirt. I soak it in water frequently and fan it in the air before putting it back on.

[GypsyR]

I work in humid SC. I got one of the smallest Portacools they sell as a personal fan in the shop. A fellow employee was impressed enough with it he bought a similar one. Later the owner found a six foot one at an auction and now we have that too. The big sucker is pretty impressive. A youngster in the shop claims he measure a 10F drop from behind it to in front on a moderate day. The local big college football teams use the same ones on the sidelines to cool the benches during games.

On very high humidity days they are indeed less effective but on the ones I use I decrease the water flow for optimal benefit. They all have a control just for that. On drier days you increase water flow. In the last six years or so I've used it, I've yet to experience a single day where I left there was no evaporative cooling benefit. Not one. Even on sunny days where it rained and you can watch clouds of vapor rising up off the parking lot.

If you want to try one, the bigger the better. The smaller one like I personally use has a smallish outlet and a squirrel cage fan. As long as I am standing fairly still and no more than 15 feet away it's great. Further away or a step or two either way and it's nope. The great big effects the area of about a one car garage. Much better if you are moving more about but the direct effect is still felt in a limited area. Youngster swears after it has run a few hours that general area of the shop is notably cooler. I think it might be so but haven't really studied on it.

For some reason a lot of folks online who have never personally used one like to say they don't work. No idea why. The difference when you use one just as a fan and then turning on the water flow is marked.

[guardrail53]

Harvey, we had "swamp coolers" in Phoenix in the early 70's and they did a great job! But, with hard water, what we had, they required a lot of maintenance! The drip tray, that directed the water evenly down the pads, would clog up with calcium, dry pads, not good! After a service, they would work great for a couple weeks, then the cooling would go down, as the drip holes would clog! PIA!
Now days, mini-split is the only way to go! Cool and heat, very efficient and can be run with solar! Lots of info online! I would guess you could run two or three mini-splits for the same energy as one swamp cooler would take! And be way more comfortable!
And the quietness of the mini-split can't be beat!
We have 6 in our house here, 1 in each bedroom, (4) and one in the store and one in the downstairs living room! The one in the LR is a 13 BTU and will cool the whole downstairs of our house here in Thailand easy! My desk is right under it, and I can barely hear it running! Rail!

[SWO Vette]

I’ve followed this from the beginning and have enjoyed it. I hate sheet rocking as well. If it was me I’d hire that done. They’d be in and out quickly and it could be cheaper than a ER trip in this heat and the lost time. I about did myself in Friday morning as I changed the oil and filter, fuel filter and transmission filter in my truck. By the time I was done a had been drenched in sweat, felt nauseous and a bad headache. The temp was around 85 with high humidity and I was in my shop which is a 1916 built three layer brick building which by summers end turns into “pizza oven” due to this. I’m just now feeling right again after suffering several butt chewing by both my wife and my daughter who is a high school athletic trainer.

[Wroughtnharv]

Yesterday was low twenties in humidity and 102º. The fans help. We have four pocket doors. I’m installing number three, last of 36 inchers. The other installed ones don’t have the doors themselves installed and a friend let know that was a mistake. The slabs, doors, take up the opening and installing after the framing is complete is a tough job made harder. So yesterday I installed the first slab and it was tough. Today it’s all about wearing out the levels getting everything level and plumb.

One of the reasons I’m thinking seriously about buying the cooler is I will have a large work area once the apartment that is done that will be nicer to use if it’s cooled. Soon I will have the walls framed and then it’s time of the ceiling. The volume of the apartment will be cut in half. That might make the use of the cooler even more appreciated.

Rail, the plan is to use a three zone mini split with heat strips for heating and cooling for the apartment. The ceiling and exterior walls will have full six inches of open cell foam blown in. The open cell along with the closed cell over the interior surface of the barn itself means we’ll be well insulated.

I was in my late fifties when years of working outside by myself building fences and gates out of steel and wood caught up with me. I know well the kick in the gut when the heat sickness takes the legs out from under you. It’s not something to mess with and the damage is cumulative. I have no reservations when it comes to coming to a screeching halt when the symptoms appear. It’s not something to mess with.

[Wroughtnharv]

My primary care physician has ordered another stress test. I’ve had three or four cardiologists over the years come to the same conclusion, somethings wrong but it is not the heart. So he’s ordered another stress test with another doctor in the same practice here in Denison. Awkward.

Last VA checkup I asked for a scan of my brain. The logic being that if the fuel injection system seems to be doing what it is supposed to do then we need to consider an electrical issue. VA contractor contacted me Friday about setting it up locally. I don’t expect there to be an issue discovered but it will be nice to have a clear diagnosis.

Glenda and the doc are concerned about my lack of stamina when it comes to work. I attribute it to old age but they are worried about it being something else. They think I take too many breaks.

Once the framing is done and the ceiling installed we get to the fun stuff, plumbing and electrical. Then the foam guy comes in and does his thing. The wood working shop will be set up and we’ll get to see the frosting put on the cake.

[cwk]

Originally Posted by Wroughtnharv

One of the reasons I’m thinking seriously about buying the cooler is I will have a large work area once the apartment that is done that will be nicer to use if it’s cooled. Soon I will have the walls framed and then it’s time of the ceiling. The volume of the apartment will be cut in half. That might make the use of the cooler even more appreciated.

Rail, the plan is to use a three zone mini split with heat strips for heating and cooling for the apartment. The ceiling and exterior walls will have full six inches of open cell foam blown in. The open cell along with the closed cell over the interior surface of the barn itself means we’ll be well insulated.

I'm with Rail on this one: minisplit. I suggest installing a dedicated unit just for the work area. I suspect that might be more efficient than trying to add a 4th zone, needing a larger outdoor unit, to your main minisplit system.

Yes, they are super quiet. And, easy to DIY install. And, you will have heat in the cold weather; something that the "cooler" probably cannot do.

[Wroughtnharv]

Originally Posted by cwk

I'm with Rail on this one: minisplit. I suggest installing a dedicated unit just for the work area. I suspect that might be more efficient than trying to add a 4th zone, needing a larger outdoor unit, to your main minisplit system.

Yes, they are super quiet. And, easy to DIY install. And, you will have heat in the cold weather; something that the "cooler" probably cannot do.

I’m definitely using the mini splits in the 1150 sf apartment. However, the work area is 1850 sf with a 21+ foot ceiling plus the attic area over the apartment. I’m thinking the cooler might be a better option for spot work. Winter time I will have the blacksmith shop outback for hot work.

They’re saying that end of the week we have chances for more reasonable temps and some moisture. Right now out of the sun the low 100’s are so much better than the 108’s plus.

I’m still working on the framing and making the doors as close to perfectly fit as possible. Once I start the installation of the ship lap less than best it can be will bite me in the butt.

Thanks for the input. I need all the help I can get.

Be kind.

[GypsyR]

Though folks in places use swamp coolers for whole house cooling I think in our humid area "spot work" is exactly what you want one for. They really are nice to stand in front of while working. They will spoil you though, using a regular fan after feels like you are just moving hot air around.

My personal shop is 900 square feet, fully insulated, and I have zero interest in an evaporative cooler. I have the biggest 220 volt "window unit" I could find mounted in a wall. Since it is actually a heat pump just like a mini-split it heats in the winter too. Not strong on heat though. If it gets really cold I burn kerosene to supplement it. Didn't burn a drop last year. Not the cheapest option but as long as I work full time I can't live out there as I'd like so the power bill isn't so bad.

I have a couple of old Mustangs and some motorcycles. Moisture and rust are the enemy most foul. Since such a cooler does increase the relative humidity in an enclosed area I don't want one there. I use dehumidifiers even. I used to work with doors and windows open but it faces the street. These days there are too many eyeballs with empty pockets walking our streets and I don't feel the need to display my wares to them. So, the big doors at least stay shut.

[tommar]

Been a while since I've posted.... Happy belated b-day, Harv! My better half contracted Covid... apparently, there's a Covid cluster in her office. That was on Saturday... by Monday I was experiencing symptoms too. She got a fever; I did not. I was prescribed Paxlovid and I only had two days with Covid symptoms... all better now. She is still going up and down a bit. Wonder what would happen if you poured ice into an evap cooler? Stands to reason it would get mighty cold? Of course, you would need a good supply of ice.... when I worked for the power company, we had a ginormous ice making machine for the crews... and their Igloo water coolers... and... Shhhhh! beer. Anyways, I would think 25 lbs of ice in the evap cooler would really work wonders around 3 p.m., the hottest time of day. Just sayin....

[Wroughtnharv]

We pulled the plug and picked up a Portacool 130 at a local farm store. We got it home and there was a hiccup. It works awesome for what we wanted, spot cooling.But the drain plug leaked big time. They said they would exchange it but when I looked at what it might take to fix it vs packing it back up and hauling it back I fixed it. It was a real hassle to fix it but disassembly and reassembly correctly was the repair.

It doesn’t cool the whole building but it works awesome for spot cooling. And when I get the ceiling in I imagine we will love it even more because I will be working in rooms.

Tom and Mary sorry to hear about the Covid. As far as I know we’ve been able to avoid it. We can’t say the same thing for friends and family.

The framing has been slow mostly because it’s my first time and the heat has hit me pretty hard. I’m not sure if the new temp/humidity gauge helps or hurts. Yesterday for instance it topped out at 108º in the shade while ten miles away at an airport it allegedly was only 102º. We’ve got three days of high nineties predicted before we are back in triple digits.

Stay cool and safe out there.

[GypsyR]

The other day The Weather Channel site said we had 88% humidity. Portacools never let up.

Don't put ice in your Portacool. They actually work better with tepid or even warmish water. The reason is what takes the heat out of the air is the actual evaporation. Warm water evaporates more quickly than cold water which translates directly to cooler effectiveness.