Think dry walling the ceiling was what I planned to do, just hadn'yt got round to researching enough to see what it was called 
Garage Conversion For Fish House
- Thread starter kniesh
- Start date
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Hello; From the pictures I cannot tell if there is a ridge vent or soffit vents. If you do drywall the ceiling you will create a dead air space above the drywall. If you do not have some sort of ventilation that space will likely grow mold. Even with "attic ventilation" I suggest you look into what is called a vapor barrier.
A vapor barrier can be as simple as plastic sheeting attached to the ceiling joists and then the drywall over that. There are also types of drywall more resistant to mold growth. With all the moisture that will be evaporating from the warm tanks, some condiseration will need to be given for controling it.
As a quick addition a double layer of heavy sheeting can be attached to the ceiling for a temporary fix. A layer on top of the ceiling joists and a layer on the bottom. This will give some insulating value right away. A friend did such in a green house made of heavy PVC pipe. It was reasonably warm but also extremely humid inside.
I have seen advertisment for a product that may be of interest. It is called InSoFast and can be found at www.insofast.com/go I have not yet used it so cannot personally reccomend it. The product appears to be a quick and simple way to insulate a wall such as the garage you have. A drawback might be using glue on the brick, but there may be other ways to attach it. It may also be able to be used on the ceiling as both a vapor barrier and insulation. In th ad it looks like drywall can be attached to it. I believe there are other such products around that may do the job..
Good luck
A vapor barrier can be as simple as plastic sheeting attached to the ceiling joists and then the drywall over that. There are also types of drywall more resistant to mold growth. With all the moisture that will be evaporating from the warm tanks, some condiseration will need to be given for controling it.
As a quick addition a double layer of heavy sheeting can be attached to the ceiling for a temporary fix. A layer on top of the ceiling joists and a layer on the bottom. This will give some insulating value right away. A friend did such in a green house made of heavy PVC pipe. It was reasonably warm but also extremely humid inside.
I have seen advertisment for a product that may be of interest. It is called InSoFast and can be found at www.insofast.com/go I have not yet used it so cannot personally reccomend it. The product appears to be a quick and simple way to insulate a wall such as the garage you have. A drawback might be using glue on the brick, but there may be other ways to attach it. It may also be able to be used on the ceiling as both a vapor barrier and insulation. In th ad it looks like drywall can be attached to it. I believe there are other such products around that may do the job..
Good luck
Thanks for the info SK, I will look into it, I'll be honest though, I don't know if its got any ventilation, other than the gaps in the metal doors. My plan, as I am not that fussed about paying a little extra electricity, was to keep the gaps at the top of the overhead lift front doors for ventilation. I know this would cause extra heating costs in winter where it gets to about -2/3 at worst, but it seems silly to add a big vent system when this is already doing the job? That may sound daft to someone who knows better, it just seems to make sense to me, but as I say, I know nothing on this stuff really
Also, just to clarify, there wont be that many tanks in here, when I say a fishroom, I will be keeping about 4 or 5 show tanks, and a couple of breeding, there certainly wont be anymore than 10 tanks, hopefully about 5 of those will be 40gallons an less. The big tank however will hold hopefully well over 1000 Gallons. It wont be your typical fishroom with rows an rows of tanks
Thanks for the info SK, I will look into it, I'll be honest though, I don't know if its got any ventilation, other than the gaps in the metal doors. My plan, as I am not that fussed about paying a little extra electricity, was to keep the gaps at the top of the overhead lift front doors for ventilation. I know this would cause extra heating costs in winter where it gets to about -2/3 at worst, but it seems silly to add a big vent system when this is already doing the job? That may sound daft to someone who knows better, it just seems to make sense to me, but as I say, I know nothing on this stuff really
hello; The issue will come about if you cover the ceiling with drywall or some other material. This will create a space above which could be called an attic. It has been my understanding the garage is to be insulated and insulation on the ceiling is where the most savings will come. The idea is that the space above that insulation and under the roof should be vented. As the roof will be cold there will be a lot of condensation in that attic even from the few tanks you describe.
One way to avoid the issue is to not drywall the ceiling but instead spray foam under the roof itself. This will likely give a better insulation effect and avoid the dead air space. I suppose you could also put batt insulation between the top roof boards and add a vapor barrier over that and save some cash.
If you drywall the ceiling, then the gap over the top of the doors seems unlikely to help with the attic space. It will not take long for the expense of heating to overtake the cost of sealing the gaps around the doors and a proper insulation job. Also the cost of this heating will be ongoing while the insulation will pay off over time.
It seems you need someone who knows this stuff to give you some onsite pointers.
Also, just to clarify, there wont be that many tanks in here, when I say a fishroom, I will be keeping about 4 or 5 show tanks, and a couple of breeding, there certainly wont be anymore than 10 tanks, hopefully about 5 of those will be 40gallons an less. The big tank however will hold hopefully well over 1000 Gallons. It wont be your typical fishroom with rows an rows of tanks
Hello; Not sure what you are saying. The number of tanks you describe will make a lot of moisture in the air. It will also take some cost to heat that much water in an uninsulated garage.
Good luck
I have my fishroom in a basement. It had a concrete floor that got very cold (before I moved the fish in). I put treated 2 x 4 on the floor (nailed to the cement with special fasteners), 16 inches on center. Then I cut 1.5 inch styrofoam sheets to fit between the 2 x 4. Then I put 3/4" inch plywood and vynyl flooring over that. It was very labor intensive and kind of expensive, but it makes a difference.
You are right, you really need to insulate the floor, ceiling and walls to get maximum benefit, especially the ceiling, as heat rises. But if you can't do the floor, do what you can.
Insulation makes a huge difference. I have the water heater in my fish room and the furnace. I have no vents from the furnace. Well insulated, and an exterior door closes it off. The rest of the basement is maybe around 60 F in the summer, but the fish room stays at 80-82, with just the background heat from lights, water heater, and furnace (no vents from furnace).
You are right, you really need to insulate the floor, ceiling and walls to get maximum benefit, especially the ceiling, as heat rises. But if you can't do the floor, do what you can.
Insulation makes a huge difference. I have the water heater in my fish room and the furnace. I have no vents from the furnace. Well insulated, and an exterior door closes it off. The rest of the basement is maybe around 60 F in the summer, but the fish room stays at 80-82, with just the background heat from lights, water heater, and furnace (no vents from furnace).
hello; The issue will come about if you cover the ceiling with drywall or some other material. This will create a space above which could be called an attic. It has been my understanding the garage is to be insulated and insulation on the ceiling is where the most savings will come. The idea is that the space above that insulation and under the roof should be vented. As the roof will be cold there will be a lot of condensation in that attic even from the few tanks you describe.
One way to avoid the issue is to not drywall the ceiling but instead spray foam under the roof itself. This will likely give a better insulation effect and avoid the dead air space. I suppose you could also put batt insulation between the top roof boards and add a vapor barrier over that and save some cash.
If you drywall the ceiling, then the gap over the top of the doors seems unlikely to help with the attic space. It will not take long for the expense of heating to overtake the cost of sealing the gaps around the doors and a proper insulation job. Also the cost of this heating will be ongoing while the insulation will pay off over time.
It seems you need someone who knows this stuff to give you some onsite pointers.
Hello; I thought of another way to describe what I am thinking. Think of the spaces in the garage as either heated (warm) and unheated (cold). If you drywall the ceiling the attic area becomes a cold space. That cold space will need to be vented with circulating outside air in order to let it dry out. Usually a building has soffit vents and a roof vent of some sort.
If venting is not paractical then the next best will be to make the entire garage space a heated space. That is why I suggested the spray foam applied directly to the underside of the top (roof).
(Seems odd to quote my own post.)
hello; The issue will come about if you cover the ceiling with drywall or some other material. This will create a space above which could be called an attic. It has been my understanding the garage is to be insulated and insulation on the ceiling is where the most savings will come. The idea is that the space above that insulation and under the roof should be vented. As the roof will be cold there will be a lot of condensation in that attic even from the few tanks you describe.
One way to avoid the issue is to not drywall the ceiling but instead spray foam under the roof itself. This will likely give a better insulation effect and avoid the dead air space. I suppose you could also put batt insulation between the top roof boards and add a vapor barrier over that and save some cash.
If you drywall the ceiling, then the gap over the top of the doors seems unlikely to help with the attic space. It will not take long for the expense of heating to overtake the cost of sealing the gaps around the doors and a proper insulation job. Also the cost of this heating will be ongoing while the insulation will pay off over time.
It seems you need someone who knows this stuff to give you some onsite pointers.
Hello; I thought of another way to describe what I am thinking. Think of the spaces in the garage as either heated (warm) and unheated (cold). If you drywall the ceiling the attic area becomes a cold space. That cold space will need to be vented with circulating outside air in order to let it dry out. Usually a building has soffit vents and a roof vent of some sort.
If venting is not paractical then the next best will be to make the entire garage space a heated space. That is why I suggested the spray foam applied directly to the underside of the top (roof).
(Seems odd to quote my own post.)
Hello; Not sure what you are saying. The number of tanks you describe will make a lot of moisture in the air. It will also take some cost to heat that much water in an uninsulated garage.
Good luck
Thanks for the info again SK......Sorry, the Garage WILL be insulated regardless, I think I am using the spray insulation for the walls, and if like you say the ceiling is ok to be left without boarding across those beams, then the ceiling will be done with spray insulation too. I suppose I could still fit 1 or 2 of those Bathroom vent systems with the fans. Instead of fully insulating the gaps on the doors, I planned on putting up some pretty big curtains. I know thats not perfect but it will do a job as I see it, and is a lot less labour intensive than trying to redo those metal pull up garage doors. I will not be creating an attic now if I can avoid it.
I have my fishroom in a basement. It had a concrete floor that got very cold (before I moved the fish in). I put treated 2 x 4 on the floor (nailed to the cement with special fasteners), 16 inches on center. Then I cut 1.5 inch styrofoam sheets to fit between the 2 x 4. Then I put 3/4" inch plywood and vynyl flooring over that. It was very labor intensive and kind of expensive, but it makes a difference.
You are right, you really need to insulate the floor, ceiling and walls to get maximum benefit, especially the ceiling, as heat rises. But if you can't do the floor, do what you can.
Insulation makes a huge difference. I have the water heater in my fish room and the furnace. I have no vents from the furnace. Well insulated, and an exterior door closes it off. The rest of the basement is maybe around 60 F in the summer, but the fish room stays at 80-82, with just the background heat from lights, water heater, and furnace (no vents from furnace).
Thanks for your info.........The floor I was planning on either painting with that glossy Garage stuff, or adding simple carpet, I know thats not overly ambitious, but the carpet especially seems like it would work for keeping in some heat
