HINTS FOR HOMEBUILDERS
Framing in the hut.
Heat Hut
A hangar within a hangar
BY CY GALLEY
HAVE YOU EVER HAD a project in your hangar that you wanted
to work on but you couldn't because your hangar was too
cold due to outside temperatures? As you may know, there is
nothing colder than an airport in winter up north. Going into
a metal hangar doesn't make it any warmer.
This fall, Keith Williams of EAA Chapter 75 sold his
instrument panel of steam gauges from his RV-6 to replace
it with a couple of glass panels similar to what he has in his
RV-12. Planning ahead, he knew that he needed to have a
warm spot to do the work, as winter was coming. He built
a lightweight "heat hut" in which to do the work; making it
small in volume meant that he didn't need much heat if it
was well insulated and sealed.
Pictured here is the basic 2-by-2 framing that he built
around his plane. Note that he put his roll-around light stand
inside with the diagonal bracing. It also gives some lateral
bracing to the hut.
The 2-by-2s are on 24-inch centers. The space between
the studs is filled with 24-inch-wide insulation batts, with
the paper on the outside and the plastic vapor barrier on
the inside. Ceiling insulation was laid on top of the hut with
1-by-2s used for support. The only real protection for the
insulation is an inexpensive brown tarp that was laid on top
of the ceiling insulation. It is just visible in the picture as the
edges were taped down on the sides. He also taped paper
around the wings to seal those openings.
There are three 3/8-inch plywood doors that are faced
with insulation. You can see the front door in one of the
photos. The other two are on each side of the tail so one
24 Vol.3 No.1 / January 2014
A door on either side of the fuselage makes walking around the aircraft easier.
Photography courtesy of Keith Williams