Hot Craft Room Help
 

Okay... this is going to sound weird but my craft room is hot. Well, it gets quite toasty. I have shop lights which are probably the culprit but I would not want it any other way.. Yesterday there were 3 of us in my room and we had an iron and 3 machines going plus the overhead lights. We were joking that I had a literal sweat shop going in my house. Okay, we weren't sweating but it was warm in here to say the least...

Does anyone else have this problem or had this problem and solved it? I'd love to get some ideas on how to fix this. I wonder if a fan would help or if it would just blow hot air around...

can you open a window? is it cooler outside? a dehumidifier may help too- my quilting room lights are pretty warm-sometimes i have to make sure the register is closed in that room & i set a fan up outside the room in the hall-to give some circulation- but it does move hot air around---you may want to shop for lights that do not get so hot- there are many to choose from- maybe more expensive but worth it in the long run---cooler lights & a dehumidifier (or window air conditioner) may be the answer- since it's below zero here today I can only (dream) of your warm room :)

How about changing your lights out for bulbs that are cooler yet bright or maybe an air-conditioner??

Can you install a ceiling fan with a light? I have one in my studio and the fan does make a difference.

I am not sure what you mean by "shop lights". To me that means four foot fluorescent and they do not create heat. If they are halogen bulbs they will create a lot of heat. I have those in my sewing room for multiple reasons. One, they DO create heat. Two, they don't flicker like fluorescents and three, they give truer color readings to me.

My room is never too warm (extremely cold natured!) but I am extremely light sensitive. Maybe some of my methods would help you. What I do is turn them off while I am at the machine if it starts to get to warm in there. I prefer to sew with only the light on the machine, though. Also, my ironing board is in another room with poor lighting. I keep a floor lamp that has a reading light on it at my ironing board. I just turn on the reading portion while I iron.

I think there is an OTT lamp that would work for that, too but this was much less expensive and I detest OTT lamps. I can see them flicker and they trigger migraines.

I am sorry your craft room is too warm. Mine is rarely warm enough! Grass is always greener!

I am curious now... It doesn't get hot when I'm just in here unless the sewing machines and iron are on. Maybe it's just body heat lol. It is a large room. I should bring a thermometer in here and see what the temp does in here and when...
Maybe it isn't the lights at all.

Its amazing how much heat an iron puts out into a room. I have a basement sewing room , and this time of year its a bit chilly. Once I turn on my iron.. the room gets warm very quickly.. so much so I don't need a space heater. I think you have several heat sources. Incandesent light bulbs put out alot of heat, so switch to the flouresant type where ever possible. Your iron if not needed should be off ( I know this is a tough one ..as I want my iron hot and ready). The motor of the machine does reject some heat into the room , but not very much. I think your issues are the iron, the lights and ... people. Remember we are all about 98.6 degrees and the more people in a room the warmer it gets.
You need to exhaust the hot air .. can you open a window? A fan to help move cooler and circulate cooler air should provide some relief... but you need to draw air from a cooler source.

Do you have a window you could open?

Was the heat on in the house, do you have central heat or electric baseboards in each room?

Was the door closed?

I don't have a solution, I'm just chiming in to say that when I read "Hot Craft Room Help" I was pleased that you had a hot craft room helper...

Alison

i've got fluorescent lights... the door is open. I did open a window but sadly it felt just as hot outside as it was inside. We've got central heating & air. I think it just must be body heat and movement warming up the room. I'm okay with it warm. I like it warm but I felt bad for my friends. We'll just plan to wear short sleeves.. I started off with long sleeves and was ready for short sleeves very quickly. I have to remember to dress in layers. When my guild has Sewing Saturdays I dress in layers because you just never know...

Oh how I wish I had some of your heat in my upstairs nook. My frugal woman in me, just will not do it. In order to heat this room, I have to turn on another furnace that would heat 1200 other square feet of spare space (guest bedrooms, open hallways, etc). So I use a tiny space heater, and leave the door open as most of the hallway is open to the heatalor downstairs. Right now it is 60 degrees in here, feels almost warm.

These are all good ideas. I have a ceiling fan with a light on it.

excitement can make you get warmer. perhaps you should not get excited about what you are doing...especially with other people! NOT! enjoy! and i hope you find a solution.

My laundry room always seemed too hot and stuffy so DH installed a vent fan, the kind found in the bathroom. It works great to keep the room comfortable. That would be the less expensive way to go. It took DH about 2 hours to install it.

This is going to sound like a strange question - how much sun does the roof & walls of the room receive. We have a back bedroom and it receives a LOT of sunlight on the roof & one side wall. Our house is well insulated, but this room gets very warm in during Georgia's summers.
If you can't install a ceiling fan, at least try a floor or pedestal fan.

i have a small fan i use when it gets hot. i have no windows in my basement sewing room and it does get very warm at times.

I am usually too warm in my sewing room too. I have bare feet, legs, and arms while sewing. Now that it is winter my sewing room is set to 54 degrees which is perfect. Once I get the iron going the room is a comfortable temperature for me. Last summer was a different story! I moved a box fan so that it was blowing on me where ever I was working: the sewing machine, the cutting station, the ironing station, etc.. The fan really works to make me comfortable. I'm sure it is just blowing hot air on me but it is cooling none the less. I hope you find a solution - I really hate being too warm.

My studio was always really warm until my husband changed out the lighting for me. I had regular fluorescent fixtures in there and they are hot. He changed them out with the new T8 fluorescent fixtures and bulbs. I can't believe the difference. The room is not hot any more and the bulbs are brighter. I know it sounds silly that it could make that much difference but it does. Please try it.

Check with Lowes or Home Depot and get "COOL" lights. Maybe put an oscillating fan (vertical type) on an upper shelf to cool the warm air. Remember warm air rises, so if you cool it off closer to the ceiling the cool air will drop.

I've complained about how hot my room gets also. I have many lights all around my room. I can't have an air conditioner in the window. I have central air and that's not enough. I have a tower fan and it helps a bit. The iron is hot, the sewing machine is hot, the lights are hot. I have the expensive lights that aren't suppose to heat up, but I still get hot and I'm suppose to be over my hot flashes. I am freezing in the rest of the house. So, I stay in my sewing room until I'm cooked and turn off all the lights and leave the door open and go sit in the living room until I'm frost bitten and then head back into the sewing room. I repeat as necessary.

Sew naked :)

I couldn't resist.

The flourescent lights don't give off much heat. The iron does. I'm at that wonderful age when all of a sudden I've become my own whole house heater. This is all relatively new to me ... a voyage of discovery. I have noticed certain triggers though. My iron IS indeed one of them. When I'm using it ... hot flashes. Another trigger is a "flurry" of activity. If I've had my iron on all day I can definately feel the differnce in the overall temperature of the room.

I'm glad I'm not the only one with a hot craft room.
My room gets the sun all day long. It comes up behind the house and just moves across the sky, behind the house... That's got to be a main culprit that I had not even thought of...
I also love the idea of installing ceiling vents. that might really help a lot.
I do have the T8 fluorescent lights. I think it must really be the iron, the sewing machines and three women all moving around that put it over the edge. Hubby has come in here and said wow, it's hot in here and he isn't meaning me lol. :D

I'm sure something will give. I love the suggestions that everyone is giving. I'm going to bounce some off of my father in law (he's the handy one. My husband is not - hanging a picture is a big ordeal for him lol) and see if he has any ideas on what I can do to fix it.

Sorry, but this made me chuckle. I must be the only on you loves a hot room. I keep a small radiator type heater under my sewing table, Drag the poor thing over to the cutting table when I am over there. I even close the floor vent in the summer when the central air is on.

I wish I had some of those hot flashes y'all talk about. I went through menopause with no issues what so ever.

A ceiling fan would help you a lot. Even if it blows warm air around it will still feel better then still dry hot air. Also close the vents and if they can't be closed put something over the vents to block off the heat. But only if the vent themselves don't get hot. I do agree with you that I wouldn't give up my good lighting in there. Good lighting is very important in a sewing room.

Now I could be lying through my teeth, but I thought I had seen a 'tower' that was both air chiller and heater. Can't remember if I read an advertisement or saw it on TV. Since I really don't watch TV all the much it was probably the first. I used to have a unit in my longarm room that was a window unit that was both hear and air con so I know its possible. This wasn't true air con that I was looking at as it didn't dehumidify (no 'running' water) so you don't need a window.

" I did open a window but sadly it felt just as hot outside as it was inside. "

There's your problem....join us here in northern Michigan! We don't have that problem. :D Seriously, my sewing room is quite small and especially in the summer, it gets very warm in the room when I use the iron. I did change the light bulbs last summer, which helped a little, too. In the summer, I have a small fan on low.

I wouldn't give up my ceiling fan for all the tea in China.

I can only agree with ckcowl. It's 3 above (balmy) here in Northern Indiana. I've been outside and my fingers are too cold to sew or cut.

I have a small fan near my machine that I use. Also have one I take to guild and UFO. No, I no longer suffer from hot flashes, just find that I prefer the 70's as outdoor temperatures.

I have a sewing room that's 10x14' w/a bay window & I get the sun on it most of the day. I shut off the heat vent, installed a short bladed ceiling fan, & put daylight led lites in it. This has seemed to solve most of my problems. I still need more room but I'm just happy to now have a dedicated sewing room.:cool: Although this morning it's -17 degrees so not sure about the heat vent being closed.

Can you pipe some of that warmth to southern Ohio?? With the wind chill it is -5 degrees! Even with wood burning and electric heat on it is still cold in my house! Oh, and my sexy outfit for today you ask?? Long johns, sweat suit, socks and crocs....Oh yeah, I'm sexxxxy! LOLOL

Yeah, mine gets warm, too, plus when you add in hot flashes, it's downright hot. I just open and case the window as needed. If you don't have a window, I'd get a fan.

I tend to be the warmest person in the room. So when I have 3 people in my sewing room, I use a tower fan under my sewing machine that blows directly on my legs. And if that's not enough, another fan on my face. I'm well past menopause but still get power surges. Also, I ask if anyone else is warm. If yes then on goes the ceiling fan (but if it's fast enough for me, it blows everying around).
The room's general lighting is floresent lights that are wired with a regular outlet plug. They have full spectrum bulbs. They're about 16 inches long and can sit on any flat surface or be hung on nails. They have a frosted cover over the light so it isn't a glaring light. I got them at Orchard Supply Hardware. Being portable, they can also be used for a light table.
Then for pressing: my big board is on a butcher's type shelving unit with castors. When there are friends over (or it's a hot day), it is moved into the hallway (very close to the thermostat-I wonder if that's the reason it helps so much) to get rid of a heat source and make more space in the room. If my project requires pressing after every seam, I use the Clover mini wand, it uses 1/60th the amount of power as a regular iron.
Today the outside temp is 68 F, so I open the window. Then there's ice tea. Staying hydrated helps. I usually wear cotton. No shoes or socks. And the most comfortable underware. Or a thin cotton loose fitting dress, with the fan blowing up my dress. These are desperation measures. Hubby won't let me lower the AC temp as low as I'd like- too much $. He says very little about $ spent on my hobby, so it's a small trade off.

Alison,

I laughed when I read your post! I read "Hot Craft Room Help" just the way it was intended......I must be getting OLD!

There was a day I would have seen it the way you did........lol

I have that problem in the summer and my ceiling fan works well. Now, in Wisconsin, my room is freezing!!! Yikes maybe I could ship you some cold air your way

I know what you mean, my ac vent blows right at my work area and it is open to the fullest. If you are in a cold climate where the heater is going you may want to partially close it when this occurs, or a small portable fan, I installed fluorescent bulbs which helped but usually the most machines I have going are 2 at a time, opening a window wouldn't help much in hot and humid Florida.
Pat

I had a similar problem in my basement studio (in Florida where it is hot most of the time). I had 4 ceiling fans and a dehumidifier (which adds heat when it runs but in Florida the humidity is high nearly all of the time). I had a window but that added heat and humidity when open so I finally got a window A/C unit that will keep my room under 80 most of the time. The fans do help and I also set a small fan in front of the A/C and pointed the fan up on an angle. That kept the cold air from blowing on me when I am at my Bernina right in front of it and cooled the air near my Pfaff and sergers. I keep my iron as far away as possible which also helps. Sometimes when I know I will be ironing large amounts, I put up my ironing board with a second iron in the adjacent room. I hope all the ideas you get here on the QB cool your room

It is the iron that warms up my room. I look forward to turning it on in the winter months but it is a bear in the summer months. I have my sewing sanctuary upstairs in a slanted ceiling farmhouse. The heat has nowhere to rise with pitched ceilings.

Sandy