Air Circulation in Garage Diy Easy Garage Ventilation
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How Can I Vent my Garage with No Windows?
Do you have a garage which has no windows? First of all, you are not alone. A garage without windows is more the rule than an exception. But the question is how can you vent a garage with no windows? What are your garage ventilation options?
There are several garage ventilation options and they are not that difficult to implement! You can get natural ventilation by putting vents in the garage door, walls and the roof. In addition you can use forced ventilation devices such as fans, air conditioners and solar powered wind turbines.
Think of your garage as a box with six sides. In the case of a detached garage, five sides (the door, the three walls and the roof) are exposed to outdoors. All these can be used for ventilation.
In case of an attached garage the walls adjoining the living space of the house can not be used for ventilation. But all others still are garage ventilation options.
And then there is also the option of getting air circulation within the garage space itself. Getting fresh air from outside to replace the stale air inside is of course great! But just moving the air around, that is air circulation has a lot of benefits too.
Why Do you Need Ventilation in a Garage?
You need ventilation in a garage, just like you need ventilation in your house. If anything there are more reasons for ventilation in a garage. You need ventilation irrespective of whether the garage is insulated or uninsulated, attached or detached.
Cooling a Hot Garage
Using ventilation to cool down a hot garage is certainly the most important reason. A garage with no windows, tends to get hot in summer as the outside temperatures start going up.
Working in the garage starts getting uncomfortable. You will be sweating most of the time. Ventilation will keep your garage cooler during the hot summer months.
Air Circulation for Well Being
Still air can be stifling. Don't you feel a lot better when there is a gentle breeze blowing. The reason is simple. The movement of air over your skin helps evaporate moisture on your skin. This results in a slight cooling of your body.
Gentle motion is uplifting and calming at the same time. Just having gently flowing water or air near you has this magical effect. Movement is a sign of life and the human brain is hard-wired to respond positively to such signals.
Removing Fumes & Odors
Your garage is not a garden of roses for sure. Whenever you park your car or start the engine, exhaust fumes are filling up the garage.
But that's not all. DIY projects requiring painting, oiling, greasing, sawing wood are adding to the unpleasant smells. Storage of sweaty sports gear, musty shoes, dirty bikes play their role too. If you do not have good ventilation, your garage would not be a very pleasant place to spend time in.
Reducing Condensation
Air circulation plays a very important role in reducing condensation on the garage floor. Condensation will make your garage floors wet and slippery which is a hazard risk.
Condensation happens when the warm air of the garage comes in contact with the garage floor that has cooled down considerably during the night. The best visualization of condensation is the early morning dew drops on meadow grass.
Air circulation keeps moving the air near the garage floor to minimize the temperature differential and reduce condensation.
How Much Ventilation Does a Garage Need?
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) as:
Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) refers to the air quality within and around buildings and structures, especially as it relates to the health and comfort of building occupants.
On the same website they give the recommended air changes per hour as per ASHRAE
ASHRAE (formerly called the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) recommends (in its Standard 62.2-2019, "Ventilation and Acceptable Indoor Air Quality in Residential Buildings") that homes receive 0.35 air changes per hour but not less than 15 cubic feet of air per minute (cfm) per person. as the minimum ventilation rates in residential buildings in order to provide IAQ that is acceptable to human occupants and that minimizes adverse health effects.
Source: The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
How do I Keep my Garage Cool in the Summer?
Garage Insulation by itself is not one of the garage ventilation options. But it has a very important role to play. It stands to reason that when your garage is well insulated, your need to cool it in hot summer will be less. So you will have less need for garage ventilation.
The most common way to insulate the garage is buying an insulated garage door or insulating the garage door. A lot of heat comes into the garage through the garage door, especially if it is exposed to direct sunlight most times of the day.
To find out more about garage door insulation check out my earlier blog post An Easy Guide To The Best Garage Door Insulation
You can and should insulate the garage walls, especially the ones exposed to outdoors, too. I have a complete blog post on Insulating Garage Walls Is Better, But You Need To Know Why?
Last but not the least is adding insulation to the garage ceiling and garage floor. Find out How To Insulate Your Garage Floor And Save More!
Do keep in mind that garage insulation helps you reduce the need for garage ventilation, not eliminate it!
The Door is one of Garage Ventilation Options
It sounds simplistic, but keep the garage door open, when you are working there. It is a really easy way to vent a garage with no windows. Of course the weather has to be cooperative. It works well in spring & autumn, but may not work during hot summers & cold winters.
Garage Door Screens
The problem with keeping a garage door open is that bugs & pests can get in. But no worries, garage door screens can solve this problem. Learn more about them through my post How Are Retractable Garage Door Screens Helpful And Better?
Garage Door Vents
To be honest, I am no fan of Garage Door Vents. I think that the garage door is an important and beautiful part of the house facade. Garage door vents, even when they are color matched, take away a lot of the curb appeal of a garage door.
But the fact is that garage door vents work. And they cost nothing in running costs. They work on the simple scientific fact that hot air is lighter and rises up. Cooler air from outside enters through the lower vent and exits from the upper vent.
Maybe your garage door does not face the street and curbside appeal does not matter to you. In which case you can check at Amazon by clicking the link below.
The Side Wall is another Garage Ventilation Option
If your garage had windows, it would have been on this wall. The one perpendicular to the garage door and exposed to outside. Not having a window is not a problem. Maybe it's even better as it improves security.
You have three garage ventilation options here.
Exhaust Fan
The exhaust fan is a relatively cheap garage ventilation option. You can mount it on the side wall (or even above the garage door, if you have the space). Personally I prefer the side wall. From an aesthetics point of view, above the garage door is a bad idea.
The exhaust fan should be mounted high. The hot air in the garage rises up and the exhaust fan can then push it out. Should this option interest you, you can shop at Amazon using the link AC Infinity AIRLIFT T14, Shutter Exhaust Fan 14-inch with Temperature Humidity Controller.
Window Air Conditioner
Looking for more features than an exhaust fan. Spend some more money and get a window air conditioner.
A window air conditioner will not just ventilate, it will cool the garage as well. But installing a window air conditioner is a lot of work. You need to cut a hole in the wall, the size of the window air conditioner (typically 30″X30″). And then you need supports.
Not the best of options in my opinion.
Mini Split Air Conditioner
A Mini Split Air Conditioner is an even better garage ventilation option. It cool, heat, dehumidify and of course ventilate. It is quiet and does not need a big hole in the wall. The Indoor Unit and the Outdoor Unit can be mounted as per your need & convenience.
It is important to get the model which has sufficient cooling power for your needs. Typically an 18000 BTU should be fine for a 3 car garage. Check out 18000 BTU Mini Split Ductless Air Conditioner with 1.5 Ton Heat Pump AC/Heating System on Amazon.
- 18000 BTU Mini Split Ductless Air Conditioner from Air-Con Int.
- It is a high efficiency air conditioner, heater and dehumidifier all in one.
- Built with pro-grade materials for a long life.
- WIFI ready with optional additional remote.
The only catch. It costs twice as much as a Window Air Conditioner. But it is great if your objective is to get a Climate Controlled Garage.
Even the Garage Roof is a Ventilation Option!
If your garage has an attic then the attic roof offers a few garage ventilation options.
Roof Wind Turbine
A wind powered roof turbine is an energy neutral way to get the hot air out of your garage. It cools as it ventilates and does not cost anything to run. Needs minimal maintenance too.
Get 12 in. Mill Finish Aluminum Internally Braced Whirlybird Wind Turbine at Home Depot
Roof Mount Attic Fan
Maybe the wind in your area is not enough. In which case a roof wind turbine may not be able to do the job. In that case you can install a roof mount attic fan. Think of it as an exhaust fan for the roof.
Check out 1000 CFM Mill Power Roof Mount Attic Fan from Masterflow at Home Depot. It is available in Electric, Solar or Hybrid options.
How do I Circulate the Air in my Garage?
Air Circulation is not the same as Ventilation. There is no "air change" in air circulation. Air circulation is about moving the garage air from one area to another. Air circulation has its own benefits.
Heat moves from high temperature zone to low temperature zone either by conduction, convection or radiation. Air circulation is basically forced convection. So air circulation can be used to dissipate heat in the garage.
Air circulation will ultimately average out the heat in the garage. This way there are no pockets of high heat.
Air circulation also helps in cooling by evaporation of moisture or sweat. In fact swamp coolers use fans blowing air over water or ice to cool a space. Another benefit of air circulation is that it will dissipate odor too. Spray some air freshener, start the fan and the entire garage will start smelling fresher.
Air circulation can be used independent of or in conjunction with ventilation. There is a choice of ceiling fans, wall fans, table fans and pedestal fans. Pick the one that works for you.
Portable Air Conditioners & Swamp Coolers are also an option, but they are really not very effective.
Bottom Line
The bottom Line is that you need to vent a garage to cool it down, reduce condensation, remove fumes & odors and for health & well being. There are many really easy ways to vent a garage without windows.
- Insulate: Insulation is not Ventilation. However, insulation helps to reduce the need for ventilation just for cooling the garage. Insulation does not require any running costs and will save you money on energy costs.
- Use the Door: Keep it open as much as possible but use Garage Door Screens. Door Vents are another option.
- Use the Side Wall: Exhaust Fan is a cheap option. A Mini Split Air Conditioner is expensive but the best option. You can also consider a Window Air Conditioner.
- Use the Roof: Install Roof Wind Turbine or Roof Mount Attic Fan to move the hot air out. First is wind powered and the second can be solar powered.
- Air Circulation: Not really ventilation but very useful for dissipating heat & odor. Use it independently or in conjunction with ventilation.
Thank you very much for reading the post. I do hope you found it informative and useful.
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