temperature control

ox777 · 07-20-2002, 06:52 PM

I have a workshop space, but it is in my basement that has no a/c or windows. I want to keep a fairly constant temp down there to keep the wood from changing to much. I already have a dehumidifier. any suggestions?

Sonny Edmonds · 07-20-2002, 10:24 PM

Well honestly Ox,
How the hell is anybody supposed to know where you are? I mean, your basement may be under the ocean for all I can tell.
Or you might be in the desert.
Hard to imagine anybody making a house with NO ventilation for the foundation. That's a sure recipe for rot, mold, and mildew to get going.
I'd ventilated it, #1.
And I wouldn't worry about keeping the wood comfy. Mother nature didn't when it was growin up.
You want to keep it dry and ventilated, stickered and stacked level and flat.
Based on what little you gave anybody to go on, that's about as good a responce as I suspect you'll get.
Sorry Bub. :)

:D

Sonny Edmonds
"Precision Firewood Specialist"
http://home.earthlink.net/~sonnypie/
God Bless America !

**JohnV** · 07-21-2002, 07:49 AM

Sonny's right Ox you have to paint a better picture for people to help you out. Everyones willing but don't have crystal balls. Some are suspect about having balls at all. :o
Bottom line is most basements are not in the south, and if you have a dehumidifier you probably aren't out west. Which leaves Midwest and east coast probably. Anyway basements are supposed to have windows for emergency exits in case of fire so I'm not sure what you have.
Most basements are a fairly even temp year round and most have too much humidity and since you have taken care of that problem I will presume that you are OK. Since you don't have any window anyway adding an airconditioner would mean tapping into the central unit and that could be a problem depending or where it is etc...
That's all I can get from you post. Hope it may help.
Good Luck
John

Living in "The Sportsman's Paradise".

Sonny Edmonds · 07-21-2002, 08:45 AM

"Some are suspect about having balls at all. :) "

I knew I was gonna like you John. Welcome to the forum!
And I'm glad to see you have the balls to be registered! :7

:D

Sonny Edmonds
"Precision Firewood Specialist"
http://home.earthlink.net/~sonnypie/
God Bless America !

ox · 07-22-2002, 05:50 PM

sorry guys.

I live in Alabama where it is really humid. The basement itself can't be accessed without going out side and around the house. so it isn't part of any air conditioning system. there is one nice sized room where I currently have a shop set up with a door that leads into a dirt floor crawl space with some small vents. It gets very hot and humid in the summer, and very cold in the winter. The reason I am so worried about this is becuase I am building a guitar, were a few hundreds of an inch will make or break you guitar. Hope that helps you guys help me.

**Limey** · 07-22-2002, 09:52 PM

Hey Ox,
Living in Alabama you don't need a de-humidifier you need a sump pump!!
Sorry not much help but there are at least two guys here who are neighbours of yours in Loosianna so they might have some tips.
I have a basement shop in the North east and although it gets humid the basement remains cool so the amount of available moisture in the air is just about controllable with a dehumidifier going almost continually.
With the sort of work you are planning its going to be a case of trying to keep steady conditions at around the same temperature and humidity that the instruement is going to be kept most of the time.
So if you are going to keep it in the house you need really to get the basement close to the same conditions of temperature and relative humidity.
Best of luck you have a challenging problem.

Limey

ox · 07-23-2002, 05:09 PM

I don't really want to tap into another a/c vent, because I don't live alone, and I think that would affect the a/c in the rest of the house. Don't they make those things a certain size for a reason?

**davejack69** · 07-24-2002, 09:59 PM

Yes they do. I am not sure if I remember the "formula" we used at a wholesaler in Chicago, but I think it is 1 ton per 600 square feet. This is not an exact number, it doesn't use heat loss calculations or whatever it would be called for air conditioning, this is an approximation.

Some people use cubic feet, I believe, for things like high ceilings.

Anyhow, if you add one 6" drop to a room of about 100 square feet, it really doesn't matter too much, unless your sizing is near the small size. If you have a little extra capacity, it shouldn't matter.

Example - lets say I have 2160 square feet of house, and a 3.5 ton AC unit. By the rough guide above, I can condition up to 2100 square feet. I am already over, so if I add my basement, I might be pushing the unit too much. On the other hand, if they had installed a 4 ton unit, I am told it would always feel "clammy" when the AC is on. It would have allowed me to add another 240 - 520 square feet, however, without changing the unit. I say up to 540 because I don't believe they make a 4.5 ton unit.

Dave