The internet inspired, free from work, modified window air conditioner just wasn’t cutting it in the garage.  It is very similar to a turbine engine.  It turns very expensive fuel/electricity into noise.  Combined with an uninsulated metal garage door facing 265 degrees, the garage is a hot place.

Not anymore!!  I finally found an insulation kit for the door that was reasonable and functional.  It was also way cheaper than paying $1500 for a new door, especially considering ours is only five years old.  These panels are just Styrofoam with a polystyrene backing on them as the exposed face.  They have slits cut so you can bend them a bit and pop them inside the door panels.  Great stuff, installed in about an hour and makes a massive difference.

I also broke down and bought a mini-split AC/heat pump system from Amazon.  This one had great reviews and pretty reasonable.  Best of all, it was pre-charged and easy to install.  I ran a dedicated 15 amp circuit, hooked up a disconnect switch, put in some conduit and turned it on.  It’s super quiet, a lot smaller, and cooled the garage from 81 to 74 in under 30 minutes.  It’s also drying the air out a lot which is never a bad thing with the Carolina humidity.  Plus, I got to buy tools (refrigerant gauge set and vacuum pump) which look great in the shop!

It’s so much nicer to work out in the garage now and I’m keeping it cleaner and bug free with having the door closed.  Plus, this winter will be great with heat!  With a long term project like this, it’s well worth the cost and effort to install to improve working conditions.