Scottish Garage/ Man Cave - temp and humidity

[triathlonstu]

Evening folks,

We've recently moved and I am now the lucky occupant of a double garage. It's attached to the house, concrete floor and brick walls.

My original plan was to have a reasonably nice car in there and one half dedicated to bikes, football shirts and zwift training.

We live in very north west Scotland. NC500 north west. And it has only just dawned on me that my plans to have a television and games console in there with a sofa might have been a bit daft. Im aware that the garage will always essentially match exterior temp and humidity unless I was to seal the door up. Is there a way this can work that doesn't cost me a fortune or is it just a place for tools, bikes and the car?

Cheers
Stuart

[triathlonstu]

This is what I'm dealing with (excuse the mess)

[loskie]

stick a multi fuel stove in it. Buy a second hand one.

[OutInTheShed]

Insulated sectional door worked well for a mate.

Some heat and a dehumidifier is a good option, ventilation is good when the air is drier outside, not so much when the garage is cold and outdoors is damp.
No simple answer!

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

I have a dehumidifier in my garage. (Well, two actually )

I have them on timers and they don't cost much to run. Keeps everything just so.

[sherman]

Unless the door, window and any airbricks are pretty well sealed you will be fighting a losing battle in the far NW.
Insulated floor will also help too if you are planning on using it for anything other than storage.

[Condi]

Insulated door, sealed as well as possible is the best idea.

Keeping the inside warmer than outside will help with the humidity, doesn't need to be "warm" just something to stop the warm air hitting cold objects. How much this costs depends on what you are heating it with (electric is expensive, gas or heat pump a lot cheaper), and how well insulated the room is.

[Leithen]

Keep the air moving. Electric fan in the corner.

[8-P]

If you Zwift, like I do, you’ll generate a lot of humidity. I always have one of my doors half open even on a cold night. I have an air mover and fan that helps a lot.

[8-P]

Just spotted you have a window which is helpful, also I replaced my two crappy fibreglass doors with quality insulated electric doors which made a huge difference.

[triathlonstu]

Thanks all, think I’ll start having a look at insulated doors! We’ve got a dehumidifier but didn’t want to try and dehumidify an entire IV postcode.

[Leithen]

Humidity on its own shouldn’t be an issue. Rapid temperature changes with moisture in the air will lead to condensation. Keep the air moving and a relatively steady temperature and you should be good. Looks like you have some pipework in there (HW?) that ought to stop the space getting too cold.

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

triathlonstu said:

Thanks all, think I ll start having a look at insulated doors! We ve got a dehumidifier but didn t want to try and dehumidify an entire IV postcode.

That’s why mine are on timers