Make a little hot box

[James Taglienti]

I've heard a couple people mention already that they don't have a heated shop, and stuff freezes on them. Mine isn't heated regularly either, just a wood stove. Just wanted to remind you of the benefits of a "hot box" im sure there are other names for it.

Mine is a base cabinet with one big door. I just drilled a hole in the side, ran a cheap little task light through, and plugged the hole around the cord. I put a little wood mounting bracket inside for the light. if somehow you don't have an empty base cabinet () i bet a hot box could be made of OSB or MDF in a matter of minutes.

If i keep it plugged in, and the cabinet door closed, it stays relatively dry and toasty in there. I'm in north-central illinois and we do get some nasty weather. I keep glue, a jug of water, and some finishes and tools in there that I don't want getting damp or cold. It's got a 75W light bulb. I don't pile the stuff though- i'd be curious to see how much that bulb will actually heat. maybe today i'll add some foam board to the walls and floor.

an old boss taught me how to do this on the job site and even though it strikes many people as common sense i thought it was a revelation.

[Andrew Gibson]

I have read about making boxes like this a few places before. But alas I live in the south and we only have a chance of dropping below freezing a few times a year, and that is only for an hour or so.

I would think that the lower base cabinet of a mechanics tool chest would work very well for this. Line the inside with some foil faced foam insulation and I bet it would be very warm.

I wonder if flammability could be an issue with a hot box.

[David Weaver]

It's a good idea, and a lot cheaper than keeping the shop heated to a certain level when you're not in it. Could probably do the same with a gun safe to keep it dry (or reduce the relative humidity) in the safe, instead of spending the money on a rod "dehumidifier".

Back when people kept dogs outside commonly, my relatives always covered the dog door with a plastic flap or a piece of old coat and put an incandescent bulb in the dog house for heat. I'm sure it wasn't 70 degrees in those dog houses, but it was warm enough. Look out the window and you can tell if the dog's heater "went out" easily, too.

When we get a stray cat, my mother still always puts a box out for it with a light bulb in it and a coat over the side.

[Jeff Bartley]

Years ago when I worked for a geotechnical engineering firm we would build a box with a light bulb in it to store concrete test cylinders after big concrete pours....on many jobs it was written into the testing specs to do so.
We lined the boxes with 1" foam and used (I think) a 75w bulb...temps were usually a toasty 70 or so inside the box. We were also required to keep track of high and low temps in the box.
Thanks for the reminder of this technique!
Jeff (who would love to know how many test cylinders I've cast!)

[Don C Peterson]

I have read about making boxes like this a few places before. But alas I live in the south and we only have a chance of dropping below freezing a few times a year, and that is only for an hour or so.

Talk about a stealth gloat/taunt! Greetings from a new fellow Floridian who doesn't miss the cold and snow of the Midwest.

[David Keller NC]

One reminder guys - if you go with James' idea, be sure to buy a case of incandescent bulbs in the near future. At least enough to last you for the next 15-20 years or so. Incandescents will be not be manufactured after 2012-2014 (depending on wattage - 100 watts will go first in 2012, followed by 40 watters in 2014), so the only one's you'll be able to get are NOS on fleabay. You can bet that the price will go up significantly then, and even before the ban as major manufacturers shut down production lines and convert them over to fluorescent compacts or LEDs.

[James Taglienti]

It's too bad... they put off a nice light, much nicer than the fluorescent. When we moved into this house, I found a case of light bulbs from the 40's... very thick glass with beefy filaments.

Would you call me crazy if I spent $400 on light bulbs? I just might.

[Mike Siemsen]

Here is a link to a source for heating elements other than light bulbs used to keep reptiles warm in their cages
http://www.customcages.com/index.cfm...t&categoryid=3
In an earlier life I worked for a plumber/well driller in northern Minnesota, Many rural houses and farm yards had their wells outside (prior to submersible pumps) The well house was about the size of a large dog house and had hay bales stacked around it for insulation. It was typically heated with a 100 watt bulb. We got to come out in the early morning and thaw things out after the bulb had burned out on a 30 below evening, the cows must be watered.
Mike

[Roy Griggs]

Call me cheap but I like the idea of using an old refridgerator. Rig the light to stay on all the time; insulation already built in, door seal, etc. We used old fridges for rod storage in the welding shop. Works a champ!

[Charles Goodnight]

I have read about making boxes like this a few places before. But alas I live in the south and we only have a chance of dropping below freezing a few times a year, and that is only for an hour or so.

I would think that the lower base cabinet of a mechanics tool chest would work very well for this. Line the inside with some foil faced foam insulation and I bet it would be very warm.

I wonder if flammability could be an issue with a hot box.

Heck Panama is the first place I ran into hot closets. Of course there is was for humidity, not temperature. Field stations all had a room that had a vented slat door and a bunch of lights that kept it 20 degrees above ambient. When you came in out of the constant rain you would strip down and hang your clothes in the hot closet. It was the only way to keep them from growing mushrooms.

[Jim Koepke]

Here in Southwestern Washington, we keep our well house heated with a 60 watt bulb during the freeze months. I check it often to make sure it hasn't burnt out.

Incandescent lights are very inefficient at making light. They make more heat as a percentage of energy used. That is why they are being phased out.

James, I bet you could lower your wattage and still keep things warm. Dropping to 40 - 60 watts might save a buck or two over the year.

I also remember something from my youth when my dad serviced appliances. A customer had a refrigerator that was running a lot and not getting cold. My dad told the customer to check the light inside to see if it was warm, it was. The door switch failed and the light stayed on. The refrigerator could not keep up with the heat put out by the inside light. The solution was to unscrew the light until my dad could get the switch and come out and replace it.

jtk

[James Taglienti]

I think the EZ Bake oven works on the same principle...

the brownies are terrible by the way, though the potatoes au gratin are decent

[Pedro Reyes]

I think the EZ Bake oven works on the same principle...

the brownies are terrible by the way, though the potatoes au gratin are decent

A light bulb is really a heater whose side product is light, it sounds weird but it is the truth for incandecent bulbs, terrible sources of light. Something around 10% or less is light, the rest is heat. We use lamps on some of our tools to get things up to 1,000+ DegC.

I wouldn't go on a panic buy of these, they will stick around as sources of heat (for many applications from warming up reptiles to flash thermal processing of semiconductors).

Back on subject, stealth gloat/taunt, I'm in Texas (well in Austin which is inside Texas) so what is this hot box nonsense? ;-)

peace

/p

[Pam Niedermayer]

...Back on subject, stealth gloat/taunt, I'm in Texas (well in Austin which is inside Texas) so what is this hot box nonsense? ;-)

Yeah, me, too. I have to admit I was a lot more confident about the weather until the length cold spell we had last year, made me start thinking about central heating for the first time since we lived in Boston.

Pam, who lives in Austin, NOT Texas (:

[Russell Sansom]

Slightly eccentric from your post, but as an amateur baker, I built an insulated proofing box just like your hot box, but with a thermostat. It holds 78 degrees +/- 1 degree using a very small oven bulb.
Thermostats with set points for brewers and keepers of reptiles are readily available. Not dirt cheap, but worth considering if you'd like a box that you don't have to think about.