Quote:
Originally Posted by RobertSmalls
Set it up for winter. In Buffalo, which is much milder than MN, there are about 15 times as many Heating Degree Days as Cooling Degree Days.
I like Frank's idea, too.
I don't plan to include radiant barriers in any of my designs (except in high-temperature gadgets), because I'd rather have a fiberglass batt than a radiant barrier and an air gap.
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You can use radiant barriers with batt insulation which is what I'm thinking about doing in my garage, then the radiant barrier reflects heat that radiates through the batt insulation. The exterior of the garage is going to be metal, then I was thinking about putting batt insulation in the walls and covering it with the barrier. It will still do it's job because the air in the interior of the garage will act as the needed air space. You don't have to have an air space on both sides of the barrier. I used a double aluminum sided foam insulation (1/4" foam) in my garage at the house I have in NC and it made the garage warmer in the winter and much cooler in the summer without using heat or a/c. It made enough difference in the summer that it was actually cooler feeling in the garage than it was outdoors most of the time. I used the barrier/insulation on the bottom of the trusses and on the interior walls without any other insulation, so I had about an average of 1' air space above the insulation and 3 1/2" air space between the exterior wall and barrier/insulation. I never checked the temperature in the garage prior to or after the installation, but my guess is that it lowered the interior temperature at least 20* in the summer and I've worked on cars in there at night in the winter when the temperatures would be in the 20's and 30's without any heat other than what 3 40 watt light bulbs put out.