I salute your innovative spirit! Love the Dr. Pepper glue gun holders and the Sprite(?) lumber rack. Here's hoping you have a successful Spring launch and that the garage is still standing :)

Ian

: Hey guys,
: This is my first time building a kayak so don't take my word as
: gospel. Also, in a previous life i did a lot of electrical and
: control work so the content herein might not be comfortable for
: a few people out there. It's just basic electrical stuff though.

: The kayak is my winter project and I only have a garage, unheated,
: and for the most part open to the elements - there's a
: noticeable gap under the garage door and open eaves, and no
: insulation, so on a given day the temperature inside the garage
: is a few degrees colder than outside. Also, I live in NE PA on
: the top of a mountain so it ain't exactly balmy. Temps are
: normally in the single digits at night.

: What I did was wire some light fixtures between the stations of my
: strongback and use incandescent bulbs controlled by a remote
: thermostat to heat the kayak. Trying to heat the entire garage
: would be ridiculous given the fact that it's "open"
: and I didn't want a $700 electric bill, although I do have a
: kero heater I use when I'm working in there. I cover the kayak
: with as many old blankets as I could find. The temp controller
: keeps the kayak at a toasty 61-65 degrees (I have it set for a
: 4-degree differential) even when the rest of the garage is in
: the teens. Colder than that outside and it still holds in the
: high 50s. I'm using Titebond III b/c it buys me an extra 10
: degrees of curing temp (45 vs. 55 degrees for normal TB
: according to the manufacturer's instructions).

: I have 100-watt bulbs in the center, 60s further out and 40s in
: both of the last 2 end stations. Not all stations have a bulb,
: and the temp sensor is located inside an un-bulbed station so I
: can be sure the coldest stations are the ones calling for heat.

: Disclaimer: Consult a licensed electrician. Potential fire hazard.
: Don't leave stuff on the lightbulbs (glue drips come to mind).
: If you burn your house down you didn't get this idea from me.

: A suggested place to find the Johnson A419 controller I used is any
: online supply shop for homebrewing beer. These are commonly used
: for fermentation temp control.

: Pics to follow.