Shop/Garage Heater

[Old Red]

I run a mini split HVAC in my shop and I live in Kentucky. Works wonderfully in keeping my shop warm in the winter and cool in the summer. It doesn't smell or make any noise and is very inexpensive to operate. I would recommend you look at a mini split system.

edit: more info: I paid less than a thousand dollars installed. I bought a Pioneer brand off amazon (August 2015). It is a 1.5 ton unit and has been heating my shop even during this cold blast. I am not sure how it does that being that it is a heat pump, but for some reason these mini splits can produce heat without resistive backup heat strips down to ver very cold unlike traditional HVAC heat pumps like I have at my house. The heat it produces and blows out of the vent is actually very warm to the touch. Very nice, constant heat and the beauty of these things is that they are inverters and it can put out 1/2 ton up to 1/5 ton based upon what the demands are....unlike a traditional single stage HVAC that blasts you with basically full on or full off. Do yourself a favor and stop fooling around with this and get your garage comfortable 365 days a year, inexpensively, and efficient....with no obscene smells or noise or unsightly devices in your garage....I have lots of stuff...and this is hands down the best.

 

[RSKY]

You've ruled out NG, LPG, oil, & wood. Have you looked into some form of passive solar augmented by a heat pump?

I recently had an addition about the size of your garage put on a house and we went with a heat pump. Very efficient, easy to install.

Thanks for your input but, once again we are looking for economy. We have a Mitsubishi heat pump for our sun room/utility room added rooms. It is quiet, efficient, and effective. It was also massively EXPENSIVE. That knocks it out of running. My daughter and her family recently added one of those that has five room units capability. They have an outlet with thermostat in three bedrooms, the upstairs play room, and a space for a future added on master bedroom. The cost was very high.

Once again, no open flames, no tending every day, no expensive gas lines or tanks to install. Unless somebody can come up with a magic solution it looks like all electric will be the way to go. I will just have to pay the higher utility bills for three months of the year.

RSKY

 

[RSKY]

I run a mini split HVAC in my shop and I live in Kentucky. Works wonderfully in keeping my shop warm in the winter and cool in the summer. It doesn't smell or make any noise and is very inexpensive to operate. I would recommend you look at a mini split system.

edit: more info: I paid less than a thousand dollars installed. I bought a Pioneer brand off amazon (August 2015). It is a 1.5 ton unit and has been heating my shop even during this cold blast. I am not sure how it does that being that it is a heat pump, but for some reason these mini splits can produce heat without resistive backup heat strips down to ver very cold unlike traditional HVAC heat pumps like I have at my house. The heat it produces and blows out of the vent is actually very warm to the touch. Very nice, constant heat and the beauty of these things is that they are inverters and it can put out 1/2 ton up to 1/5 ton based upon what the demands are....unlike a traditional single stage HVAC that blasts you with basically full on or full off. Do yourself a favor and stop fooling around with this and get your garage comfortable 365 days a year, inexpensively, and efficient....with no obscene smells or noise or unsightly devices in your garage....I have lots of stuff...and this is hands down the best.

Are you in the Jackson Purchase area? I am slightly east of Mayfield.

RSKY

 

[Old Red]

Im in the Paradise area, where they had the world's largest shovel.....

 

[shui5612]

(1)I run a mini split HVAC in my shop and I live in Kentucky. Works wonderfully in keeping my shop warm in the winter and cool in the summer.

edit: (2) I am not sure how it does that being that it is a heat pump, but for some reason these mini splits can produce heat without resistive backup heat strips down to(3) ver very cold unlike traditional HVAC heat pumps like I have at my house. Very nice, constant heat and the beauty of these things is that they are inverters and it can put out 1/2 ton up to 1/5 ton based upon what the demands are....(4)unlike a traditional single stage HVAC that blasts you with basically full on or full off.

(1) while I agree a minisplit is a good solution for heating AND cooling, there are a couple of drawbacks in installing a minisplit to heat a garage or shop. Namely that the majority of minisplits lack the cfm needed to properly heat a large area and do not create enough airflow. The benefit of a central HVAC is that there is a supply and return which simply is receiving pre-heated air and adds heat as opposed to heating up the air from scratch. This is where their efficiency comes from as opposed to minisplits. In order to make a good and efficient minisplit system where would need to be something else that circulates air better...

(2) they essentially work by being a pump.. for heat... the heat pump is essentially the same as an AC with the flow going the other way. Meaning the outside coil is cooled and the inside one is hot. It not only gets the heat from the surrounding air (despite it being "cold outside, there still is some "heat" yet there is less of it. Essentially there is no such thing as cold. Just a lack of heat). The coil heats up because the fluid loses its compression and due to friction. When compressed the fluid becomes cold, the heat pump just decides where this cold fluid goes. Inside for ac or outside to heat the inside.

(3)most mini splits only work until about -12 or -15 C which is 5f to 10f. There are models that will go down to 0f but most of them lose the majority of their efficiency around the 20f. While they still work, the amount of electricity needed to extract the heat increases and there are chances that the outside coil freezes over, causing the unit to simply shut off.

(4) while most HVACs are single or step stage, there is a point/benefit to it.
That running for half or full blast for x minutes is better than a unit always hunting and sending off 10% then 50% then 20% then 70% then down to 5%, while this promotes constant airflow, it is usually insufficient for the whole house or shop, as it can only measure at the thermostat, meaning one place will be cold and the other hot and where the thermostat is, it will be the set temperature.

The only way to fight this issue is by AIRFLOW which is key in a shop or garage to circulate as much air as possible and slowly heating it up.

Not only is the cost sometimes an issue with the minisplits and installation, it doesn't guarantee frost protection as the unit may freeze over.

A good minisplit will have resistive elements and "auxiliary heat" which are either elements or a function that reverses the unit to thaw the outdoor coil, but that again increases the cost of the unit and complexity.

I think OP is better off with two electric heaters due to their lack of maintenance needed, one to maintain the heat and the other to help with airflow or to help bump the heat up when they are working in the shop. After a year of use, they will be able to judge whether a gas line could be beneficial or not (sometimes it isn't, it depends on the price, consumption, etc).

On a side note, for summer a simple dehumidifier/air exchanger will help keep the shop colder and in the winter easier to heat. If OP or anyone is interested I can explain the design which is pretty much DIY for about 100-200$ depending on the size of the garage. It's pretty much an inline fan with some ducting and a humidistat.

 

[Old Red]

(1) while I agree a minisplit is a good solution for heating AND cooling, there are a couple of drawbacks in installing a minisplit to heat a garage or shop. Namely that the majority of minisplits lack the cfm needed to properly heat a large area and do not create enough airflow. The benefit of a central HVAC is that there is a supply and return which simply is receiving pre-heated air and adds heat as opposed to heating up the air from scratch. This is where their efficiency comes from as opposed to minisplits. In order to make a good and efficient minisplit system where would need to be something else that circulates air better...

(2) they essentially work by being a pump.. for heat... the heat pump is essentially the same as an AC with the flow going the other way. Meaning the outside coil is cooled and the inside one is hot. It not only gets the heat from the surrounding air (despite it being "cold outside, there still is some "heat" yet there is less of it. Essentially there is no such thing as cold. Just a lack of heat). The coil heats up because the fluid loses its compression and due to friction. When compressed the fluid becomes cold, the heat pump just decides where this cold fluid goes. Inside for ac or outside to heat the inside.

(3)most mini splits only work until about -12 or -15 C which is 5f to 10f. There are models that will go down to 0f but most of them lose the majority of their efficiency around the 20f. While they still work, the amount of electricity needed to extract the heat increases and there are chances that the outside coil freezes over, causing the unit to simply shut off.

(4) while most HVACs are single or step stage, there is a point/benefit to it.
That running for half or full blast for x minutes is better than a unit always hunting and sending off 10% then 50% then 20% then 70% then down to 5%, while this promotes constant airflow, it is usually insufficient for the whole house or shop, as it can only measure at the thermostat, meaning one place will be cold and the other hot and where the thermostat is, it will be the set temperature.

The only way to fight this issue is by AIRFLOW which is key in a shop or garage to circulate as much air as possible and slowly heating it up.

Not only is the cost sometimes an issue with the minisplits and installation, it doesn't guarantee frost protection as the unit may freeze over.

A good minisplit will have resistive elements and "auxiliary heat" which are either elements or a function that reverses the unit to thaw the outdoor coil, but that again increases the cost of the unit and complexity.

I think OP is better off with two electric heaters due to their lack of maintenance needed, one to maintain the heat and the other to help with airflow or to help bump the heat up when they are working in the shop. After a year of use, they will be able to judge whether a gas line could be beneficial or not (sometimes it isn't, it depends on the price, consumption, etc).

On a side note, for summer a simple dehumidifier/air exchanger will help keep the shop colder and in the winter easier to heat. If OP or anyone is interested I can explain the design which is pretty much DIY for about 100-200$ depending on the size of the garage. It's pretty much an inline fan with some ducting and a humidistat.

Sounds like you know your stuff. Good info. The OP and I live in the same state and therefore the same climate. My little cheap pioneer mini split will melt that Ice I've seen out there on the unit when it defrosts. Not sure what that is doing that, did not realize it was not a feature they would add on all of the units. This thing has been great. 1.5 ton (18,000 BTU) and total costs installed was right at $1,000 or less if memory serves me correct. Granted I had 220 where it was needed already. I believe comment #4 is basically experienced in any system no matter what it is unless you have thermostats in all rooms in the space you are controlling.

Anyway, a mini split for his garage would serve him well I believe based upon the climate we live in. My 1.5 ton Pioneer is perfectly sized for my 750 square foot garage. I am insulated and have an insulated garage door. I have 10 feet ceilings in here. And to be honest I enjoy the air conditioning part of it as much or more than the heating part. I love love love it when I come in from mowing grass and plop down in here with a beverage, turn the tv on, and relax after beautifying my lawn!

 

[prichard]

(1) while I agree a minisplit is a good solution for heating AND cooling, there are a couple of drawbacks in installing a minisplit to heat a garage or shop. Namely that the majority of minisplits lack the cfm needed to properly heat a large area and do not create enough airflow. The benefit of a central HVAC is that there is a supply and return which simply is receiving pre-heated air and adds heat as opposed to heating up the air from scratch. This is where their efficiency comes from as opposed to minisplits. In order to make a good and efficient minisplit system where would need to be something else that circulates air better...

(2) they essentially work by being a pump.. for heat... the heat pump is essentially the same as an AC with the flow going the other way. Meaning the outside coil is cooled and the inside one is hot. It not only gets the heat from the surrounding air (despite it being "cold outside, there still is some "heat" yet there is less of it. Essentially there is no such thing as cold. Just a lack of heat). The coil heats up because the fluid loses its compression and due to friction. When compressed the fluid becomes cold, the heat pump just decides where this cold fluid goes. Inside for ac or outside to heat the inside.

(3)most mini splits only work until about -12 or -15 C which is 5f to 10f. There are models that will go down to 0f but most of them lose the majority of their efficiency around the 20f. While they still work, the amount of electricity needed to extract the heat increases and there are chances that the outside coil freezes over, causing the unit to simply shut off.

(4) while most HVACs are single or step stage, there is a point/benefit to it.
That running for half or full blast for x minutes is better than a unit always hunting and sending off 10% then 50% then 20% then 70% then down to 5%, while this promotes constant airflow, it is usually insufficient for the whole house or shop, as it can only measure at the thermostat, meaning one place will be cold and the other hot and where the thermostat is, it will be the set temperature.

The only way to fight this issue is by AIRFLOW which is key in a shop or garage to circulate as much air as possible and slowly heating it up.

Not only is the cost sometimes an issue with the minisplits and installation, it doesn't guarantee frost protection as the unit may freeze over.

A good minisplit will have resistive elements and "auxiliary heat" which are either elements or a function that reverses the unit to thaw the outdoor coil, but that again increases the cost of the unit and complexity.

I think OP is better off with two electric heaters due to their lack of maintenance needed, one to maintain the heat and the other to help with airflow or to help bump the heat up when they are working in the shop. After a year of use, they will be able to judge whether a gas line could be beneficial or not (sometimes it isn't, it depends on the price, consumption, etc).

On a side note, for summer a simple dehumidifier/air exchanger will help keep the shop colder and in the winter easier to heat. If OP or anyone is interested I can explain the design which is pretty much DIY for about 100-200$ depending on the size of the garage. It's pretty much an inline fan with some ducting and a humidistat.

I'd enjoy learning about the dehumidifier cooling. Perhaps you could start a thread explaining it? I imagine a lot of us could benefit from that.