Garage heat

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Captainkirk

Old School Mopar Warrior
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Here in the bowels of the Midwest (Chicago area) winter can be a Really Big Deal. So much so that it puts the binders on any serious work from mid-November through May, give or take depending on unseasonably warm or cold weather. My 2-1/2 car garage is un-insulated, unheated, and wired for 15 amps/110V, and fuses at that. Looking to find a reasonable solution for heating while I'm out working during the winter months. Given the wiring issues, I'm thinking electric heat may be out of the question for the immediate future. There is no provision for natural gas, either...which leaves me with very few options. And I don't want to get fumed out by a kerosene heater either. Anyone had good luck with a propane-fired heater or electric infared heaters that don't draw a lot of wattage?
 
Electric........there is no magic. "So many watts" (amps) = so much heat. There is no such thing as a magic more efficient electric heater. Heat is about 3400 BTU per kilowatt, PERIOD. A typical bathroom / portable heater is about 1000-1500 watts if that gives you some idea. A leaky uninsulated garage? Almost zero effect. A 1500W heater is going to draw about 13A at 120V so you've "used up" one 15A circuit right there

Consider LPG Maybe score a used heater/ furnace VENTED if possible. Portable / infra red / salamander stuff can be an explosion/ fire hazard when coupled with solvents, etc.

NAT gas, do you have it in house? How far is the garage? I have no workable shop, but I have a big shed I heat when I HAVE to, with an old nat gas furnace. I "cheat." I installed a nat. gas "barbecue" quick connect and valve outside the house, and then scored a big length of barbecue gas hose. I just hook it up when I need it

Oil.....Might look for an old but servicable oil furnace. "If you are handy" you can do some research and install it in one corner

Wood...already mentioned.

I have NO idea the codes you are fighting, I bet it is "plenty." If you are doing ANY painting/ solvent/ other flammable, ANY unvented combustion heater and some electric heaters will be an ignition hazard.
 
If it were my shop, I would check into insulation for the walls & put insulation in the crawl space above the shop itself. Since it's not insulated, you be putting more money trying to heat the outside world. I'm in a different climate area but when I extended the storage shed next to my carport from 10' x 8' to 20' x 8', I bought 4 bundles of insulation & put it between the studs before putting up the interior walls. I put a small heat/ac unit in the wall & it keeps my storage area cool in the summer, warm in the winter & I don't have to worry about stuff stored there rusting.
 
I have NO idea the codes you are fighting, I bet it is "plenty." If you are doing ANY painting/ solvent/ other flammable...

Being within city limits, I'm sure there are a ton. I'll bet there's even one against wood burning stoves in an outbuilding. Hell, we can't even burn leaves. LPG might be the way to go, albeit expensive. Any natural gas would require the gas company to trench and install it...not cheap, I'm sure.
 
If it were my shop, I would check into insulation for the walls & put insulation in the crawl space above the shop itself. Since it's not insulated, you be putting more money trying to heat the outside world. I'm in a different climate area but when I extended the storage shed next to my carport from 10' x 8' to 20' x 8', I bought 4 bundles of insulation & put it between the studs before putting up the interior walls. I put a small heat/ac unit in the wall & it keeps my storage area cool in the summer, warm in the winter & I don't have to worry about stuff stored there rusting.
Planning on insulating and paneling, but one step at a time. I built a workbench in one corner and put up R19 and pegboard behind it but that only covers about 12 feet of wall space.
 
I survived 1 and a 1/4 winters in very cold Korea with two kerosene heaters to heat my 1 bedroom apartment. No supplemental heat either except a Coleman white gas camp stove while fixing dinner. It was enough to make us feel comfortable, but we had to shut it off at night to avoid asphyxiation.
 
I survived 1 and a 1/4 winters in very cold Korea with two kerosene heaters to heat my 1 bedroom apartment. No supplemental heat either except a Coleman white gas camp stove while fixing dinner. It was enough to make us feel comfortable, but we had to shut it off at night to avoid asphyxiation.
Above all it needs to be safe.
 
whatever you do, dont ask @pishta for help

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how tall is the ceiling? Menard's and others have gas furnace to hang from ceiling...mine is uninsulated so I guess I'm adding to global warming.
 
how tall is the ceiling? Menard's and others have gas furnace to hang from ceiling...mine is uninsulated so I guess I'm adding to global warming.
It "could" be tall enough to hang one in the corner. IF...I was able to get natural gas run out to the garage. That would have to be a summertime thing, I'm guessing, if within a reasonable price range.
 
LP gas hanging furnace ,insulate walls and ceiling, 80k btu is what I have in my 24x30 garage and works fine, that's what I would look into, just put a 100lb tank outside and plumb pipe into heater.
 
I've got the same issues. My garage is has no insulation to the attic, and I'm not sure about the outside wall. Right now I have a 5kw electric heater in the upper front corner. It knocks the edge off but takes forever to warm up. When it is 20 out I can get to about 45 maybe 50. I'm going to add a LP torpedo heater to get up to temp in about 15 minute and then the electric will hold temp long enough. Eventually I want to put it natural gas up by the ceiling or maybe one of those radiant bar heaters on the ceiling if I can find one I can afford.
I need to insulate the attic, but I have so many car parts up there it would take me a week to clear it out so that may wait til the car is back together
 
Get a used LP furnace from a mobile home. All you need is a 100 lb.. propane tank outside the garage and a line into the garage
 
About used..............and if you do the install yourself........

Again, be aware of combustion hazards. Been a few years, but ignition sources in a garage are supposed to be 18"? 24" off the floor? This is supposed to be "above" low lying gas vapors, etc, so keep that in mind.

It would be better if you find one that is known as "sealed combustion" or "outside air for combustion. Older furnaces draft the intake/ combustion air into the burner right from the heated space.

Ideal would be a "downflow" and you could hang that thing up into the "rafters" to get it out of the way and direct the heat downwards

Best to-and required most places I'm aware--to keep the LP tank out doors. Be aware that small tanks may not vaporize properly in extreme cold weather. They need enough space in the top to form vapor and keep up with use. So if you are "going cheap" with portable tanks, you may need to run two in parallel to combat the problem

Research and be aware of "clearance to combustibles." Many furnaces, overall, only require 1" clearance. "B" vent needs 1" and "C" or single wall pipe is 6". This can be reduced in certain instances with shielding, IE stand off metal sheet with airspace both sides The previous was for gas/ LP and not oil or wood. You can run "B" vent clear outside with a what is called "listed cap." Easy way to avoid roof damage is to elbow it out the gable end, or depending on garage construction, out through high on the side wall and then up past the roof with support brackets. You must have a certain amount of roof clearance depending on roof pitch.

So basically you need an LP furnace that's appropriate/ fixable/ useable, some vent, some piping for LP gas and some hose/ connections, and a cord/ cap to plug it in. It does not need to be "hard wired." And of course a cheap wall stat
 
The kerosene torpedo heaters work good when new or if you know how to repair them. I used them for many years without a ceiling in my garage. They also make a propane torpedo heater. I used 2 kerosene heaters in my garage 28x28 12 foot ceiling a 150,000 and a 50,000. I'd keep the small on on and cycle the large on as needed. Worked great.
 
With the limitations you have, I would go wood, BUT do it safely
FYI I have a suspended 45kbtu MaxHeater that runs off propane. The orifice I bought was $30 to switch it to NG. Without insulating, any gas burning furnace is gonna be a waste of $$.
 
Electric is out of the question, especially if you dont have 220v.
This propane "sunflower" is the quickest and easiest way to stay warm in a pinch.
Maybe work on a more permanent solution next summer.
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When I first built my garage (20'x28') I put plastic vapor barrier on all walls and the ceiling. I used 2 of the " sunflower" top of the tank models( propane) . As I insulated each wall , I just tore the plastic down and replaced it. Now insulated , I use a small construction box heater (220 v) and once it gets to 65° , it barely kicks on.
( I used a regular household box fan behind the sunflower heater to blow the air further, It helped)
 
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Check with your local code enforcement before setting up a wood burning stove.
Alot of municipalities frown on the smoke, especially if its affecting your neighbor
 
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