The best time of year is finally back. That's right: It's football season. For a lot of us, that means weekends spent in front of the TV. If you're lucky enough to have a decked-out “man cave”, you’re set to host the ultimate football Sunday. For others, basements and garages are being transformed into football-watching safe places complete with memorabilia, good-luck charms, and plenty of seating.
Whether you already have a tricked-out mancave, are setting up your seasonal garage man cave, or gearing up to spend hours in the basement this season, there are affordable ways to make it more comfortable no matter how many people gather around or how heated the game gets.
Garage Man Cave Ideas: How to Stay Comfortable Year-Round
The garage can be an ideal place for watching sports: It’s separate from the rest of the house, and you can usually get as loud as you want. The main problem with garage man caves is the temperature. A lack of insulation means temperatures can range from unbearably hot to nearly freezing in just one football season. Here are our picks for the best ways to keep your garage man cave comfortable all season:
Avoid Stagnant Air
A garage fan will help avoid stagnant air that's sure to arise in garages without access to AC. Keep the airflow moving with a quality fan.
The Patton 18-In. All Metal High Velocity Air Circulator Fan is a customer favorite for air circulation and cooling in any garage or workshop mancave. Featuring 3 fan speeds that can generate up to 2,000 CFM of airflow and a tiltable design, this powerful fan can keep even the most heated football fan cool throughout the season.
Transform the window in your garage into a low-profile air circulator with the Vornado TRANSOM Window Air Circulator Fan. This Wi-Fi-enabled circulator can reverse the airflow to exhaust out the garage before the big game and then use one of the 4 fan speeds to bring in fresh and cool air, keeping the garage cool. Featuring an integrated thermostat and Wi-fi connectivity, keep an eye on the temperatures and stay in control of the fan speeds from your phone, so you don’t miss a minute of the game.
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Keeping Your Man Cave Cool
With people and TV equipment in a confined space, your man cave can feel warm well into football season. The easiest way to keep your basement cool is to install a portable air conditioner. All you need is a window to vent out warm air, and a portable AC will cool you down immediately. Select portable air conditioners also come with cooling and heating capabilities and are popular options for year-round comfort. You can even wheel it to a different area or into storage after the season.
Mini-Split ACs are another option to help manage the temperature highs and lows, keeping your basement mancave ready from the first to the last game of the season.
Popular mini-split systems like the Seneville AURA Series are professionally installed heating and cooling solutions that keep your basement ready for game day with smart control right from your phone.
For the certified DIY mancave, the MRCOOL DIY 5th Gen Series is a perfect weekend project to upgrade your mancave before the big game.
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Evaporative coolers may be another good option, particularly if you're watching football in a garage or on a covered patio. If you're not familiar with them, evaporative coolers are portable cooling solutions that use the power of evaporation to reduce temperatures. They're perfect for garages or outdoor cooling. Learn more about cooling your garage with an evaporative cooler.
Stay Warm During Winter Games With A Heater
It may be hot in your garage right now, but temperatures drop quickly once football season really gets going. If you can deal with a few more weeks of warm weather, consider only buying a heater for your garage.
For rugged places like an unfinished garage, the Stiebel Eltron Wall-Mounted Electric Convection Heater 240V w/Digital Thermostat is a great option to keep the space warm for the end of the season. This wall-mounted heater uses its digital thermostat to maintain the exact temperature you want, regardless of how many people are there to support your team.
Basement Man Cave Ideas: Protect Your Man Cave “Stuff”
Sports memorabilia can be expensive and sentimental, so you want to keep it in top condition. If you collect basketball cards, leather baseball gloves, or signed footballs, preserving them can be a challenge. Sometimes a case isn’t enough, particularly if your man cave is in a basement with humidity issues. Mold and mildew become a serious concern. The best way to maintain a healthy humidity in your basement is with a dehumidifier (mold and mildew can prosper in areas with humidity levels above 60%).
The Santa Fe Compact70 is a customer favorite, designed specifically for any finished or unfinished basements. This heavy-duty dehumidifier removes up to 5.5 pints per kWh, providing peace of mind that your favorite team jersey or trading cards are protected.
Other Man Cave Ideas
There are endless ideas for improving the man cave experience, including before and after your friends leave:
Don’t Dread the Clean Up
The worst part of any party is the mess everyone creates. Your guests leave as soon as the game ends, and you’re stuck cleaning up after them. You probably don’t want to haul your vacuum to the basement, so consider the SEBO FELIX Premium Upright Vacuum. You won't find an easier way to clean up after a long day of football. It's small and lightweight - so you can use it to clean crumbs off furniture, rugs, or bare floors. Cleaning up after a group, large or small, will take less time than a commercial break.
Avoid Smells & Air Quality Issues
With food, alcohol, and a lot of people around, man caves can create some funky smells. On top of that, man caves can become a breeding ground for germs and bacteria. The best way to remove airborne particles like allergens is with an air purifier. Adding an air purifier will clean your air before, after, or during the game. You'll avoid smells and breathe healthy air, keeping you in the zone for game time.
Having people over to watch a game? Unfortunately, the flu season follows alongside football season. High-quality air purifiers have enough filtration to trap even the tiniest airborne particles like viruses. They can help remove virus particles.
The Coway Mighty Air Purifier with True HEPA Filtration is a 4-stage air purifier that captures and removes odors, allergens, bacteria, and viruses using charcoal-activated and True HEPA filters and Coway's exclusive Vital ION technology.
When it comes to the perfect man cave, it can’t just look the part. It needs to feel the part too. The college football kick-off was only the beginning of months of ups and downs for your favorite team. Use these man cave items to stay comfortable from now until February.
How Are You Keeping Your Man Cave Comfortable?
It’s time to make a game plan so you can win this football hosting season. Put together your star lineup of air quality, climate control, and humidity solutions to make you the MVP of the season. Have other ways to stay comfortable in your man cave? Tell us on Facebook or Twitter.
