Summers are here, and the heat is only going to soar. If you own a garage, this heat can get unbearable in the warmer months.
It gets even more irritating working in such terrible conditions. You can turn on the fan or open the garage door for some air, but this doesn’t always help.
Garages get so hot due to proper lack of ventilation. The air heats up due to the surrounding temperature and is then trapped in the room, making it overly warm.
Poorly insulated garages and concrete floors are also significant factors increasing the garage’s temperature.
A garage is not just a place to store your vehicles. It is a place for you and your family to do the work they cannot do inside the house or in their rooms.
You will store tools and other expensive machinery that can wear out due to heat. So, keeping your garage cool in summer is more important than you think.
Why Does My Garage Get Hot?
The factors mentioned below are probably the culprit for your garage getting hot.
Look into them and follow the solutions to fix these problems.
1. Your Garage Is Not Insulated or Poorly Insulated
As neither your walls nor your garage door is built from insulating materials, the heat travels in your garage’s boundaries, making it hot inside.
Besides that, the materials within the garage also become hot as most of them would be metal, giving off even more heat.
Insulation materials are long-lasting, but there is a lifetime for everything. Once they start wearing out, you will have to get a new coat to keep the temperatures down.
2. Your Garage Does Not Have Sufficient Ventilation
Ventilation is another major reason for the garage boil up. If your garage does not have a cross-ventilation system, including windows, garage door, vents, etc, the air will likely become hot, dense, and full of moisture due to the surrounding temperatures.
This will increase the temperature of your garage more than the temperature outside.
Some people install one air source, thinking it will be enough to let in the breeze and keep it cool.
However, this will only work if the weather outside is hot and humid.
3. Your Garage Floor Retains Heat
Sometimes, it is the most unexpected factor that results in keeping your garage’s temperature up. If you often have your car started inside the garage to warm it up or during routine maintenance, the heat from the car transfers into the ground.
Most garages have concrete floors that can retain both heat and cold for an extended time. If your garage matches these conditions, this can be the real culprit keeping it hot.
4. Your Garage Door is Damaged
A damaged door is a wild card entry for the heat into your garage. There are many reasons for a broken garage door. You might have scraped or bumped into it while backing the car in a hurry.
Some people use autopilot to drive the car out of the garage but forget to open the door in time. A garage door is also a popular receiver for neighborhood basketballs.
These bumps and hits distort the door, affect its mechanisms, and bend it out of shape. This can result in gaps and lifted corners on the gate, allowing space for hot air to travel in.
Since the hotter air is denser, it will push out the colder air through the gaps and lifted corners, increasing the temperature in your garage.
How to Keep Your Garage Cool
1. Insulate Your Garage
Insulating your garage doors and walls will not only block the heat from traveling in, but it will also protect the materials and equipment for extended life.
Insulation is also vital if you have an HVAC system in your garage. It will help in maintaining temperature in lower the cost.
2. Upgrade Your Ventilation System
You do not necessarily have to have an HVAC system to promote ventilation in a room. Some cheaper solutions include making two windows.
You can also have one window and keep the garage door open, so there is room to move air. You can even open the home entrance door from your garage alongside the garage door.
However, dedicated ventilation systems are powered by giant fans and designed to provide the most efficient ventilation.
3. Invest in Cooling Solutions
Some garages are located in an odd direction that does not align with the air passage. Unfortunately, most ventilation solutions won’t work except the dedicated ventilation system.
Nevertheless, you can bring the temperature down with cooling systems. Air conditioning is the most effective cooling system you can install.
However, it can be expensive and another maintenance task you might not be willing to take. Other cheaper yet effective solutions include a ceiling fan and a room cooler.
These solutions are more effective when paired with insulation and ventilation.
4. Fix Your Door
Sometimes it is the simplest thing you might need to do instead of scratching your head over huge and expensive solutions.
Hire a professional and get your door fixed. If your door is too old and rusty, it is best to replace it with an insulated model.
5. Park Your Car Outside
We won’t tell you to change the concrete floor because it absorbs the car’s heat. You can if you want to, though!
However, a much cheaper and effortless solution is to park the car outside until it cools down.
Let the heat disperse outside so your garage stays cool.
Summing Up Why Garages Get Hot
Many garages get overly warm, especially in the hotter months of the year. This is mainly due to a lack of ventilation.
This can be easily fixed by insulating your garage, installing an air conditioning unit, or a few other easy fixes. Make sure you stay cool as you work out in your garage this year!
