My husband is going to build me a shed this spring. I’m not sure if I should keep my glowforge in the house or move it to the shed. What are the temperatures the glowforge can withstand? It gets cold here in the winter and a few times in the summer it gets over 100. I am trying to think of the most economic and efficient layout. I am looking into heaters and AC units but not sure about running them constantly.
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I had mine in the shed for awhile but I just got tired of walking in the snow to get to it. It was fine, my shed was insulated and I just used a space heater and it kept it at 74 when it finally warmed up. Mine is now in the garage I turned into my wood shop, insulated and same space heater keep the garage at 74 degrees.
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My opinion only… If I remember correctly the recommended low limit for Glowforge storage is something like 40F. Certainly if your area gets below freezing it’s probably wise to have heat, even for storage. 100F probably won’t destroy anything but 100F outside might mean the shed is much hotter. Either way, having the GF at an extreme and turning it on is not a good idea. It needs to acclimate to get near the operating limits before applying power.
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Thank you. I’m sitting here visualizing it all. I don’t think I want to go out to the shed turn the heater on and wait for it to get warm enough for me to work. I’m going to look into a heater so I can just keep heat on in the winter time, not only to keep me comfortable but to keep my glowforge comfortable too. Thanks for your reply.
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This might be useful.
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The snow is a big downer. My husband is building the shed to get me out of the garage. This laser thing blew up over night. I have taken over every spare space in the house. I need to get organized. I think I will look into a heater and just run it continues during the cold months. Thanks for your response
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I am setup in a shed, and it’s awesome. I don’t get snow, but Georgia is cold in winter and warm in summer. I have a space heater and an AC unit.
There are space heaters that have timers (look at delonghi oil radiator style heaters, Very low fire risk, perfect for unattended use like a timer). I set mine to be about 50 degrees at night, and warm up to room temperature at 7 AM in advance of my arrival.
At this point I would never want my glowforge in a space that is attached to the house. I love having a fully separate space for it, laser smells never get in the house this way. It’s perfect.
Of course, not all sheds are created equal. Mine’s fairly large (12x18), insulated, and has 2 rooms with a door separating the two halves. I can close the laser room off and isolate the noise and airflow if need be. I use my front room as an office and workspace, I have a sit/standing desk set up in there, and a nice workbench. In addition to the laser table/workbench in the back room, it also has large storage shelves for all sorts of items, one of which is a flat file cabinet for storing laser materials.
Overall, it’s a really good situation. If the shed weren’t insulated and finished on the inside it would be far less pleasant.
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At least an oil heater will not stop when the freeze shuts down all the power. If the Glowforge gets to the point that the coolant freezes you will have a paperweight or doorstop. Not worth much more.
In the winter I disconnect the exhaust hose and stuff it with a rag so the cold air doesn’t get inside the machine. Or you can print the gate at Glowforge mounted blast gate
Oh no, it’s not oil powered, it’s oil filled and electric.
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Oil powered ones are very problematic as you need to replace the wick if it ever runs dry (or you will have CO issues) but they work in an emergency when the power is out.
It’s expensive, but if you are already building a shed, this might be a good option. I love these things, they are heater, a/c, and dehumidifier all in one. It’s what they use in Japan, though don’t quote me on a brand, I was just looking for one that can be bought from here.
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The Glowforge Basic is designed for use between 60 degrees Fahrenheit (16 Celsius) and 75°F (24°C). The Pro has an expanded operating range up to 81°F (27°C).
He’ll answer better but I assume it is this one which uses oil as for heat capacity and not for power.
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Yes I realized that when it was pointed out. I have had both types, and the oil for heat ones are very problematic as folks will repeatedly let them run dry which makes the wick uneven, and that puts the flame in a mode that produces CO and sometimes that kills them. This gives the oil powered heaters a very bad reputation,
But if you are living without electricity (or a proper wood stove or fireplace) and especially if you have electricity up to when the severe winter storm hits, that has killed folks too, and knowing the Lore of kerosene heaters can be a life saver or in the case of the OP a Glowforge saver.
It is weird to think about Lore as very little of it exists today, where it used to be everything. Sailboats still retain some if less than historically and horsemanship also has a lot. That is different than the technical understanding that is more common and technology has eliminated in a lot of ways,
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Having attempted to use a GF at MFNY in those high temps it really couldn’t sustain operation without having to pause and cool down frequently (we tried everything). And to be honest we could barely sustain ourselves at those temps, despite @Bailey getting us popsicles to cool ourselves.
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thank you
I just use a louvered vent cover, and then leave the front door open. The glowforge interior never gets lower than room temp, and air backflow is blocked.
Something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Deflecto-Supurr-Vent-Louvered-HS4W-18/dp/B00R1X7S5Y
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Mine is connected to that on the outside, but, it doesn’t stop all the cold winter air from coming into the GF.
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