Keeping the space warm in winter when not in use

[B Gib]

Hi All,

I'm sorry if this has been covered innumerable times but i have a detatched garage which i'm putting my simulator in and it's poorly insulated.

I'm in the west of scotland so temperatures (and humitidy) can vary quite a lot.

I was just wondering what everyone elses solutions are to keeping their areas warm - i can put a electric heater or oil heater in there with a thermostat but that would undoubtedly cost a fortune so i was thinking might it be possible to make a small enclosure for all the electrical items (computer, sim and projector) and just almost have a heated box in the garage - or am i just being stupid?

[Jb50]

I bought a natural gas wall heater for my garage. Haven't received it yet but it says it should heat up a 1000 sqft room which should be plenty for my space. Not sure if you have a gas line close by? I was able to tee off of my gas line to my water heater. This model does not have a thermostat though. It only has different settings. I believe they sell them with thermostats though. They also have electric ones but that would probably be very expensive to run.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Dyna-Glo-30...ater/999976644

[Lynchdpm]

My sim is on the second floor of a barn that is not insulated in NJ, USA. Gets rather cold here during the winter months, generally below freezing. When using the sim during those months I have a franklin wood stove in the adjacent room that adds "some" comfort, but in the actual sim room I use a kerosene heater works great. As far as the electronics, I have a gaming laptop, skytrak and a projector. I spent considerable time aligning my skytrak device, removed the balancing legs from the protective case and ran screws through the holes provided for the balancing legs to permanently affix to mat and subfloor. As a result I can now just simply unplug usb from skytrak unplug gaming laptop and bring in my home when not in use. As for the projector it does take time to warm up. Never had an issue last year.

[triplebogeysrbetter]

Im sure if you insulated it would make a world of difference.
I did my garage over the summer and it made an instant difference.

Now fast forward to the late fall - winter. We have been in the 30s. With a little electrical heater I can get it to 50-55 inside my sim, Last winter it was so cold.

Great idea about taking everything inside after use.

[Ozmodion]

I am in the south of England and also have my sim in my detached garage. As im in the Army and am living in Army Accommodation i cannot permanently insulate the garage, but i had to do something to keep things warm as i was noticing my enclosure curtains were getting damp.

I used cardboard boxes and covered them with silver Radiator insulation (the stuff you are supposed to put behind radiators in your home to reflect the heat lost into the wall back into the room) and laid them on top of the beams across the ceiling shutting off the roof area. I also did the same to the garage door. I then got an oil filled electric radiator and a halogen heater in there and connected them to a thermostat that switches off at 12 deg C or whatever i set the temperature too.

When i want to play i go in and set the temp to 18 deg C and after about 15 mins its nice and toasty to comfortably play. I have only just set this up so will have to see how it works in the deep winter nights next year.

hope these tips help...

[andygg1986]

I’m not sure if they are sold In Scotland, but you might check out Mr Heater Big Buddy propane heaters. They are popular hear for hunters and campers and are pretty inexpensive without requiring installation fees as they are portable.

[Ozmodion]

hmm £366 on Amazon....wont be rushing to get that soon...

[andygg1986]

Only $104 on amazon in the US.

[Fran M]

I am going with a mini-spilt. I am in CT so heat was a must but AC sounded good too!

Details here:

https://golfsimulatorforum.com/forum/golf-simulator-forum/simulator-builds/173241-motorized-sportscreen-skytrak-garage-build

[Mdsypher]

I take my laptop inside my house when it gets super cold. Most electronics will be ok in the cold. Like you said. It may take a bit to warm up. One thing I would worry about is the heat and humidity when it gets warmer. I have a mini split in my room in my outbuilding. For now I turn it off when I am not out there. It only takes about 15 minutes to warm it up so that is why I do that. Come summer time I will have it running most of the time to control humidity.