Passive Solar Garage Door

bennelson · 02-09-18, 10:12 AM

Hi Folks!

I recently built a Passive Solar Garage Door!

Not a new or original idea, but still a good one. I loosely based mine on the one Gary Reysa wrote about in Home Power #117 (Link HERE)

My garage has two 9'x7' insulated garage doors. They are steel on both sides and filled with urethane foam - about the best R-value you can get before going to some sort of a custom modified door.

I built a "Storm Door" for the right-hand side door out of wood and plexiglass. It is split in half and hinged so that it opens to the outside.

It's dual pane, by using the plexiglass and then adding a plastic window insulator kit to the inside.

On a sunny day, I just open the garage door to let in the heat and light. At night and cloudy/snowy days, the garage door is left down to keep the heat inside.

Full write-up on the project is posted on Instructables.
https://www.instructables.com/id/Pas...r-Garage-Door/

Temperature inside the garage can be 20+ degrees warmer inside than ambient temperature.

I could still add glazing to the other garage door, but I'm still using that side for parking a car. I wouldn't want to add additional glazing unless I can figure out a good way to still make it convenient to move a car in and out.

Daox · 02-12-18, 10:13 AM

Very nice Ben! That looks like a great solution. And it looks like you did a really nice job. How much did the materials cost for it out of curiosity?

bennelson · 02-12-18, 10:19 PM

Materials cost was a bit high.

Plexiglass was $120 a sheet (and I needed two 4'x8' sheets)
Lumber was on the pricey side too, but I was using NICE lumber which is pre-primed. That pre-primed is kind of a life-saver as it's winter, and it's kinda hard to do a good exterior paint job in the cold outdoors! I simply assembled the project, and it looked very finished because of the priming.

I'll add a coat of real paint once the weather is a little nicer.

Twin wall polycarbonate is less expensive, but also slightly less transparent, and I like the nice view through the window.

In total, my cost was about $500. The project certainly can be done cheaper than that, but I am pleased with the overall results.

GaryGary · 03-09-18, 12:17 PM

Hi,
Looks great!

Mine is more than 10 years old now and still going strong.

Only change I've made was to change the lower glazing panels from Acrylic to twinwall polycarbonate after banging into with with the car

Aside from the nice solar heat its great to work in a shop/garage with good solar lighting.

Gary

02-12-18, 10:13 AM	#2
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	Very nice Ben! That looks like a great solution. And it looks like you did a really nice job. How much did the materials cost for it out of curiosity? __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

02-12-18, 10:19 PM	#3
bennelson Home-Wrecker Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: SE Wisconsin Posts: 546 Thanks: 3 Thanked 165 Times in 96 Posts	Materials cost was a bit high. Plexiglass was $120 a sheet (and I needed two 4'x8' sheets) Lumber was on the pricey side too, but I was using NICE lumber which is pre-primed. That pre-primed is kind of a life-saver as it's winter, and it's kinda hard to do a good exterior paint job in the cold outdoors! I simply assembled the project, and it looked very finished because of the priming. I'll add a coat of real paint once the weather is a little nicer. Twin wall polycarbonate is less expensive, but also slightly less transparent, and I like the nice view through the window. In total, my cost was about $500. The project certainly can be done cheaper than that, but I am pleased with the overall results. __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

02-09-18, 10:12 AM	#1
bennelson Home-Wrecker Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: SE Wisconsin Posts: 546 Thanks: 3 Thanked 165 Times in 96 Posts	Passive Solar Garage Door Hi Folks! I recently built a Passive Solar Garage Door! Not a new or original idea, but still a good one. I loosely based mine on the one Gary Reysa wrote about in Home Power #117 (Link HERE) My garage has two 9'x7' insulated garage doors. They are steel on both sides and filled with urethane foam - about the best R-value you can get before going to some sort of a custom modified door. I built a "Storm Door" for the right-hand side door out of wood and plexiglass. It is split in half and hinged so that it opens to the outside. It's dual pane, by using the plexiglass and then adding a plastic window insulator kit to the inside. On a sunny day, I just open the garage door to let in the heat and light. At night and cloudy/snowy days, the garage door is left down to keep the heat inside. Full write-up on the project is posted on Instructables. https://www.instructables.com/id/Pas...r-Garage-Door/ Temperature inside the garage can be 20+ degrees warmer inside than ambient temperature. I could still add glazing to the other garage door, but I'm still using that side for parking a car. I wouldn't want to add additional glazing unless I can figure out a good way to still make it convenient to move a car in and out. Attached Thumbnails __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Last edited by Daox; 02-12-18 at 09:45 AM..

03-09-18, 12:17 PM	#4
GaryGary Apprentice EcoRenovator Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: SW Montana Posts: 139 Thanks: 1 Thanked 21 Times in 15 Posts	Hi, Looks great! Mine is more than 10 years old now and still going strong. Only change I've made was to change the lower glazing panels from Acrylic to twinwall polycarbonate after banging into with with the car Aside from the nice solar heat its great to work in a shop/garage with good solar lighting. Gary