You might've insulated your garage door, but did you weatherize it? You can get decent weather stripping to go along all 4 edges of the door to block off the cracks. As far as insulating your garage ceiling, it's something I've considered too, but one thing I don't have an answer too is how that would affect the airflow or code compliance for my gas furnace and gas water heater, which are both in the garage.
Also, when we did an exterior remodel, we discovered there was no insulation in the exterior garage wall, only in the walls shared with the interior of the house, so you may be contending with that. We had that wall insulated when we did the renovation, and it made a noticeable difference. I've also planted trees to shade that garage wall, otherwise it gets blasted with afternoon sun.
If I had the energy and time, I would put batt insulation above the garage ceiling and also replace my attic stairs, which are old and poorly sealed. A mini split AC would also be pretty sweet.
You might be interested in watching videos by Matt Risinger on YouTube, he does a ton on insulation projects in 70s-80s builds in Texas
Get/borrow a thermal camera, and use that to see where the heat is coming in. Some libraries have thermal cameras, but that might be rare. You can also get very cheap and nasty thermal cameras from Aliexpress for $60 AUD
You need some kind of vent fan to blow that air out of there. Like a thermostat attic fan for example, In the garage. I've seen people crack a window if you got it. Crack the garage door or back/side door when you're home. Nothing is going to get rid of that heat except some ventilation of some kind.
First and foremost please please please remember water is F***ING heavy.
I know it sounds stupid to say but it's so easy to forget how fast it adds up.
Is your shed wood floored?
What is it sitting on?
Would you be comfortable grabbing a 50cm diameter boulder and placing (Not dropping) it on the floor and not have it buckle let alone break?
If yes then you might be alright.
MIGHT!
is the outlet 110? Check the fuse and not how many amps it's rated for.
If it's just you and you have at least 20 amps I would seriously consider one of those inflatable hot tubs.
You can get one from anywhere between $200 and $600 and they will work for that wattage AND distribute the water weight enough you won't crack a concrete base, even a not too thin one.
If you are thinking of a cast iron tub or something similar maybe with higher walls or smaller footprint as the shed isn't big enough for a hot tub then you need to seriously worry about that it will be sitting on.
Finally dumping the water once in a blue moon with 2 squirts of soap isn't great but it will do minimal damage but 2 or 3 times per week is a LOT of water that will concentrate in a small area and if you plan on washing at all that adds to a lot more soap and detergents then you realize concentrating in your lawn.
Consider doing some filtering before you dump. Charcoal or sand to start and that will help quite a bit. It'll mean very slow drain but you don't really are about that do you?
If you're looking for a commercial product it's called a whole house fan. The tl;dr is there are vents in the places you want cooled connected to this fan that sits in your attic. Twice a day or so it exhausts the hot air letting it be replaced by the cooler basement air. Depending on the humidity you might need to run the AC to dehumidify the air a bit.
I’ve seen either a video of someone having done exactly what you’re talking about (including the prefab shed) or maybe it was a pic. So yes. Go for it!
The concept is doable for sure, but I'd reconsider the draining issue. The volume of a hot tub is quite something, and if you're using any kind of soap or other chemicals, you've got a potential environmental challenge on hand. Even if you only use biodegradable stuff, that doesn't mean that plants will rejoice being smothered with soapy water.
For the heater you'll need something with a decent wattage to get it up to temp in short enough time, so make sure you're not overloading the circuit. Those outlets in some shed are often not the best.
Propane/butane would work as well, but in that case you'll need to take care of proper ventilation as well. Or just leave the door open.
Sounds very doable! My friend has an old claw foot tub that he lights a fire under. If you want something a little less country, you can buy on demand electric or propane water heaters and hook your hose up, though I'd expect the electric one wouldn't be able to keep up at 120v. Hardest part of this project is probably moving the tub. I say go for it!
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My house has a similar issue with a lower level that is perpetually much colder than the upper level. The main way we have somewhat alleviated the problem is by opening/closing registers. In the summer, we close all the registers in the lower level, forcing all the cold air from the HVAC into the upper level, then letting it sink down naturally. Our lower level is still cooler, but it isn't as stark a difference. Due to the layout of the stairs linking the two levels, a fan is not terribly effective at exchanging a lot of air between the two on its own.
I know there's a floor insulation issue, but what about redirecting air, and other sources of leaks? Does your basement have vents in it? Turn them off and maybe consider getting bent covers that can seal in the summer. Close the vents on the first floor so that (the majority of) the cool air comes in at the second floor and sinks down. Weather-strip and baffle the basement door.
Also, see if your electric company offers a home energy assessment. It takes about an hour, and there are usually two tiers: free, and a second tier where you pay for a blow test. They can make some recommendations on making your home more energy efficient.
You can circulate the air if you want to balance it out, but the basement is going to get colder again.
If you're talking about saving energy:
At about 3pm circulate the air. That's a little before your AC is going to start experiencing it's highest workload.
At around 6pm or when ever, stop.
Try it for a couple of days with just a fan. If it's a noticeable difference and you like it, you can get a vent installed that pushes up from the basement, and another somewhere else that just goes straight to the basement. You can put the fan/blower on a timer. I'd recommend one of those "smart plug" things, they work as a timer and you can also controll locally from your phone.
But if you're circulating air 24/7, it's just making your AC cool even more air.
So you just want to use it to dump a bunch of cold air when you need it most, and then let it naturally cool down the rest of the nigh/day.
Whether or not this adds up to more than negligible benefits for energy use...
I have zero idea.
But it's essentially just an inefficient heat pump. The theory behind it is sound.
When I was a kid some family friends had put an air-moving fan in the floor from the basement to the first floor. On hot summer days it would pull the cool air from the basement, and in the winter it would circulate the air from near their woodstove in the basement to the upstairs.
Maybe that would help? Wiring would be the hardest bit to figure out. After that it's just cutting a hole in the floor.
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