Workshop heating and dehumidifying

Hello everyone,

I have set up a workshop in an old agricultural barn and am now looking for a good concept for heating and dehumidification. The floor area is 32m2 with a ceiling height of 3m. Two walls are exterior walls made of 36cm bricks, and two interior walls are constructed with OSB boards and 10cm insulation.

In winter, the room temperature has never been below 0 degrees so far. I only want to heat the workshop when I am working in it, and then preferably quite quickly. Although I don’t need it to be 21 degrees...

What worries me more is the humidity... Currently, I have 81% relative humidity... That is not acceptable for my machines and tools.

As heating, I could imagine an air conditioning unit... Would that be something in combination with decentralized ventilation because of the humidity?

Maybe someone has similar requirements and already has experience or recommendations for me.

Best regards,
Tom

Are the walls inward-facing walls or with a door on the other side asked: Does air come from the living area into the workshop? If yes, you will not get the humidity down without heating analogously to the living space.

The building stands alone and has no connection to the living space. The workshop is only separated from the rest of the former stable. The other area is storage space.

Best regards
Tom

I think I would consider using a cellar fan. Simply put, it ventilates automatically as soon as the absolute humidity of the outside air is lower than that of the indoor air. It is also available with heat recovery.

I would definitely also consider a ventilation system (in any case) WITH heat recovery, in order to keep the humidity at least reasonably under control permanently. Relatively easy to install and with low fixed costs. Additionally, for quick heating to work, install a fireplace/workshop stove (if feasible).

Hi,

What worries me more is the humidity... Currently I have 81% relative humidity...

That is probably about the same as the outdoor humidity... Ventilation won't really help you there. In the end, you're just exchanging the indoor humidity for the outdoor humidity. That will only work if it is very cold and dry outside. With typical damp winter weather, it won't work. In other words, without heating you probably won't be able to reliably reduce it.

I would also consider a split air conditioner. They can heat with about 2-4 kW and also dehumidify the air. And you don't have to deal with a chimney including inspection and chimney sweep like with a stove.

Best regards,

Andreas