Implemented Showcase / garage functionality

[Nik]

Add a personal showcase of your ride, garage, tractor, personal floatation device etc.

We had this feature long ago but became abandonware due to lack of use. Hoping round two will have you updating your personal showcase page with some cool pics and stories.

 

[YFCvii]

Watching … got a YYC demolition with a new 36x24 garage with 12ft ceiling on the board (well, on my screens) for a winter development permit submission before a spring-build start. Potential car lift and for storing 2 vettes and/or H1. Good chance for adding a thread and photos here as that progresses in 2024
- researching heat-pump heating versus the traditional AB nat-gas option - concerned heat-pumps are not that great/efficient in very cold conditions (-30s and colder) but no one is owning up to this speculation yet.

I have been drawing a lot of new triple detached garages with residences this past year in a YYC area development. Many adding 220v EV rough-ins even though 200amp service is not guaranteed for every build yet.

 

[Murray20c8]

Watching … got a YYC demolition with a new 36x24 garage with 12ft ceiling on the board (well, on my screens) for a winter development permit submission before a spring-build start. Potential car lift and for storing 2 vettes and/or H1. Good chance for adding a thread and photos here as that progresses in 2024
- researching heat-pump heating versus the traditional AB nat-gas option - concerned heat-pumps are not that great/efficient in very cold conditions (-30s and colder) but no one is owning up to this speculation yet.

I have been drawing a lot of new triple detached garages with residences this past year in a YYC area development. Many adding 220v EV rough-ins even though 200amp service is not guaranteed for every build yet.

I am kicking myself for not getting a heat pump, but circumstances screwed me. With 10K in possible rebates it's worth looking into.
Yes, the colder it gets the less heat can be extracted from the air so you do need an alternate heat source. Many heat pumps come with a small electric furnace to compensate.
In ground heat pumps require 20 to 30 years to see a return on investment so not practical for older types.

 

[YFCvii]

Have a heat-pump in the NB residence and it is liked we have alternative hydro-radiant heat in the floor too and can completely relate

Heat pump rebates can be like “free oil” changes by getting used up real quick with sustaining costs not being factored in. On the good side of nat-gas/propane, a back-up heat source might not be necessary other than for the furnace blower motor needing a generator. Without getting political, the carbon tax comparison is buried in both nat-gas/propane and electricity in most provinces and there is no way outta this part that will also factor-in and gobble up every penny of a fishing-lure heat pump rebate. But yes it is noted and concerning when a back-up heat source may be required if a heat pump experiences power loss. Appreciated

This kinda stuff is a part of everyday in my business of recommending components in the residences and accessory buildings that I design and technically put together. I am “spending” other people’s money all the time and am now spending “mine” …

 

[Rruuff Day]

I am kicking myself for not getting a heat pump, but circumstances screwed me. With 10K in possible rebates it's worth looking into.
Yes, the colder it gets the less heat can be extracted from the air so you do need an alternate heat source. Many heat pumps come with a small electric furnace to compensate.
In ground heat pumps require 20 to 30 years to see a return on investment so not practical for older types.

Once the outside temp goes below about -12, heat pumps aren't the answer. They will suck energy trying to keep up. I know a person that built only with heat pumps in the house and is now regretting even getting one. Then he thought another one would help. He now has 4 of them and is still cursing his decision. maybe in the Maritimes where the winter temps seldom get past that they might be ok but not for -30 climates. When I remodeled and added on to our 100 year old home last year I beefed up the insulation and air tightness and installed a Vermont Castings cast iron air tight wood stove. At -30, if I want to keep the fire burning, it's eaay to keep the entire house uncomfortably warm. Our N/G furnace never ran at all last winter other than a couple days per month to keep the unfinished basement from turning into a freezer.
@Black 03 Z06 has a heat pump and may chime in with his thoughts.

 

[YFCvii]

Once the outside temp goes below about -12, heat pumps aren't the answer. They will suck energy trying to keep up. I know a person that built only with heat pumps in the house and is now regretting even getting one. Then he thought another one would help. He now has 4 of them and is still cursing his decision. maybe in the Maritimes where the winter temps seldom get past that they might be ok but not for -30 climates. When I remodeled and added on to our 100 year old home last year I beefed up the insulation and air tightness and installed a Vermont Castings cast iron air tight wood stove. At -30, if I want to keep the fire burning, it's eaay to keep the entire house uncomfortably warm. Our N/G furnace never ran at all last winter other than a couple days per month to keep the unfinished basement from turning into a freezer.
@Black 03 Z06 has a heat pump and may chime in with his thoughts.

No … heat pumps are secondary in the NB builds. Mainly used for summer cooling. My new build there has a big electric-tank in-floor hydro-radiant system as primary. No basement. Others on the street have in-room on-demand electric baseboard heaters. This is why I added a propane generac (no nat-gas service)
Old Maritime abodes are pretty much heated by burning wood. It is amazing what I see out there with century old houses and some I really worry about for safety. Thats a completely different topic though.

 

[Black 03 Z06]

We have a Mitsubishi Heat Pump with four in room units. Our basement was finished and to install a forced air gas/propane unit would have required us to rip the entire basement apart. Thus the heat pump which to be honest ended up making a significant mess in the basement to run the high pressure lines. Does it work? Well yes it does even with really cold temperatures. We needed a heat source if we were away from home, in really cold temperatures we would freeze but it keeps the house warm enough to prevent freezing damage.

Wood heat with our Pacific Energy stove keeps the place warm when we are here. We also have electric baseboard heaters. My wife stays warm with Scotch. Would I buy a pump again? Probably not but the technology keeps improving.

 

[OL Yeller]

We installed a mini split 4 years ago and in the first full month of operation (February) my electricity bill dropped by 30%. Down $130 from the previous month. We heat the entire main floor with the mini split and have baseboard heaters in the basement. Its nice to also have the A/C option for the 3 days a year that we could actually use it.

 

[YFCvii]

… and with all the above added and perhaps more to follow … research for the big AB garage build of mine next spring continues.

 

[Nik]

Errrrr, what's happening here...

 

[Blu427]

My shop is 40x50 and I heat with a ceiling drop down 80,000 BTU propane heater.
Living in the country (NG not available) my choices were limited.
I have some friends who built their shops and used in floor heating, and it is what I
would do if I were building new.
It heats the entire shop from floor to ceiling, no fans blowing and consistent temperature
over the entire space.

 

[Rruuff Day]

Errrrr, what's happening here...

They didn't tell her they were headed for the dentist....

 

[Nik]

I've enabled the Showcase feature back here. It's an opportunity for members to list their pride and joy (your vette of course). Think of it as your garage. Items are tied to your username so your member card should show them.

Currently only one category is open for Corvettes only and anyone can post to it. All submissions will be held for approval as I iron out the kinks.

There are optional fields in there to help make this into a more useful searchable database of cars, colour combos etc. You don't have to fill those out but are encouraged to do so.

Same goes for location, you can put as close of an address as you want in there or skip it but it will allow a map view of all submissions.

All items have reviews and comments enabled so others can chime in. Keep it civil please or we will ban you from using the showcase feature.

Give it a whirl!

 

[Nik]

Showcase functionality has been extended to our supporting vendors to showcase their featured items such as listings, deals and merch. You may see some of these coming in the next little while. Big plans for this.