| Author | Message | ||
     Geoff Wootton Prolific User Username: dounraey Post Number: 293 Registered: 5-2012 |
Are there any recommendations for a garage heater? I will be wanting to heat a double garage during the winter when the outside temperature is likely to at or below freezing. I have thought of using a propane space heater however, given the area I wish to heat will be fully enclosed, would there not be a risk of dangerous CO/CO2 buildup. Electric fan heaters powerful enough to heat a large garage may be very expensive to run. I was wondering how owners living in colder climes manage during the winter months. Geoff | ||
| Randy Roberson Prolific User Username: wascator Post Number: 149 Registered: 5-2009 |
Best garage heat I ever experienced, was tubing in the concrete slab, with hot water circulating through it. It is just...warm. So nice. Downside: if it warms up suddenly, you are opening all the doors and windows. Plus of course you have to put the tubing in the slab when you pour it. if I build another garage-workshop, I plan to salvage the old central unit from my home, which is gas, and install a new one in its place. It should be fine for occasional use and our winters are mild anyway. Summers are killers, though. You can include a carbon monoxide detector which you should have for any heat which burns fuel. A smaller central furnace or industrial gas heater which is vented to the outdoors through the roof, should be safe, as long as there are no combustible vapors present. Safest would be electric heat; alas, it is expensive to operate if your electric power is high. Some use wood heaters and only fire them when they are working in the garage; I think they are effective but messy.There are also waste motor oil heaters if you have access to enough used motor oil and the enviro regs allow you to use them in your area. | ||
| Geoff Wootton Prolific User Username: dounraey Post Number: 294 Registered: 5-2012 |
Randy Thanks for your reply. The problem for me is I will be renting, so cannot make any mods to the property. It's starting to look like electric will be the only way to go, although a propane space heater might be ok with a CO monitor. I will have to check out if you can buy CO2 monitors. That's useful info for when I eventually buy a place. I'll be looking for a small, easy to maintain house with a huge garage attached. Geoff. | ||
| Brian Vogel Grand Master Username: guyslp Post Number: 595 Registered: 6-2009 |
Geoff, Carbon monoxide detectors/monitors are readily available, as commonly as smoke detectors (see the listings at Amazon.com, for starters). I've got one at the top of my basement steps just in case the gas furnace or water heater happened to go wonky and try to asphyxiate me. Of course, my blue and gold macaw would probably play "canary in a coal mine" detector role and have a fit (or become quite disoriented) before the electronic detector detects anything. He's closer to the furnace. Also, certain propane space heaters are routinely used to heat interior spaces without venting. The wood shop in my partner's mostly unheated industrial building used an unvented propane heater to heat the space, which is quite large. Brian | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 1326 Registered: 4-2003 |
Depending on your location, you might consider investigating a heat pump especially if there is access to a free water supply to use as the heat source if air temperatures are less than 20deg F for extended periods. As a rule of thumb, the heat pump will deliver heated air which is 3 times greater than that of the air used as the heat source i.e. if the outside air is 20 deg F, the output air will be 60 deg F. | ||
| Geoff Wootton Prolific User Username: dounraey Post Number: 297 Registered: 5-2012 |
Brian and David Many thanks for your replies. I checked out heat pumps but since I will be renting I will not be able to install this kind of unit. I am now decided that I will use a space heater with a CO alarm and CO2 monitor. This should be the cheapest way of heating the garage area. Geoff. | ||
| Randy Roberson Prolific User Username: wascator Post Number: 157 Registered: 5-2009 |
Geoff, are you wanting heat for just when you are working in the garage, or heat to keep the garage warm all the time? If it is just periodic heat, when the garage is attended, there are a lot of inexpensive possibilities. Go on line at Northern Tools and Equipment, fro example: I just got their new catalog and there are pages of different kinds of portable heaters. Just be careful whenever flammable liquids like gasoline or cleaning spray are around, of course. I am not certain if I would leave any portable heat on when I was not there. | ||
| Geoff Wootton Grand Master Username: dounraey Post Number: 303 Registered: 5-2012 |
Hi Randy I am pretty much decided on a small propane space heater with a CO monitor on the wall. Some space heaters come with low oxygen sensors as well. The ones I have checked out are designed for double garage sized spaces. I will not be running the heater continuously, just when I am in the garage. I am shortly moving to Cleveland Ohio and so will be keeping the car off the road and away from the salt this winter. With a three month lay-up it is a good time to replace the engine and suspension rubbers, hence the interest in the best way to heat the garage. I will check out Northern Tools. Geoff |
