shop heat

[SunnyJim]

I have one of these. I see it's more expensive than I remembered, or maybe the price is up from two years ago. $350

Dayton G73 5000 Watt Electric Garage Heater

5000 watts, 230V 17,100 BTU
If you were paying .15/KW it will cost about $0.75 per hour to run it on max. Since the heat element likely isn't on all the time, it would be a bit less than that.

I can't really tell you how well it works. I have mine incase I need to be in the detached garage to fix something when it is real cold outside. So far, that hasn't happened.

I have tested it and it gives off very nicely warmed air.
Dave.

Granted my garage is not insulated but 17k BTU is not enough to make much difference to me. I had a 20k BTU heater and you had to be within 1 foot of it to notice much. I would buy at least a 40k BTU heater. I would rather turn it down or off then not be warm enough. We have a unit at work that is similar in a common area that is concrete and brick and very drafty. I cannot tell when it is running, it seems to make no difference at all.

 

[dave1949]

Granted my garage is not insulated but 17k BTU is not enough to make much difference to me. I had a 20k BTU heater and you had to be within 1 foot of it to notice much. I would buy at least a 40k BTU heater. I would rather turn it down or off then not be warm enough. We have a unit at work that is similar in a common area that is concrete and brick and very drafty. I cannot tell when it is running, it seems to make no difference at all.

I should explain my set-up. My garage is 28x48 with 10' ceiling. The overhead door on the east end is 16' wide by 9' high. It is well insulated and has earth berm on the most of west and all the north sides for the lower 8' of wall. Across the south side are eight 46"x76" double pane clear glass windows.

Our low this morning was -4* and now it is 14* with a light NW wind and clear skies all day. Inside the garage right now it is 59*, with no heat other than sunshine.

As long as we get reasonable sunshine, I don't really need a heater. If the tractor broke and we had 2-3 days of cloudy, cold weather, I would probably turn the heater on for comfort while working on it. Passive solar buildings work pretty well in my area.

The OP said his garage is well insulated and normal sized, he may not need a lot of heat. I agree 17K btu isn't near enough for an uninsulated building. But, better to have some extra capacity than to be almost warm
Dave.

 

[Mark_in_NH]

Good stuff here. Especially the part about safety.

If you hired a contractor to install a heater in your garage and it blew up from breathing fumes and caused damage would you expect the contractor to pay for the damages??? Then you probably shouldn't be using a similar heater installed by yourself. Shop fires aren't cool.

That depends on whether or not the heater that was installed, was a heater that was chosen by the homeowner or on a recomendation from the contractor.
If the homeowner selects the heater and it is inappropriate for the location then the competant and qualified contractor installing it needs to inform the homeowner of potential safety issues and should get the homeowner to sign a liability waver absolving the contractor of any liability.
If the same contractor selects and recomends the heater and it blows up because it was the wrong heater for the application then YES I would fully expect the contractor to take full responsability for the damages.
I can sure agree that a shop fire wouldn't be cool. Infact a fire in general is just a scary thought.

 

[ChuckinNH]

I have used the smallest Monitor kerosene direct vented heater in my 275 sq ft workshop. It would heat a much larger area if it were insulated (my shop is). These heaters are programable, and so you can leave the heat off, but have it nice, and toasty when you get home, or for the morning, etc. Mine uses about a gallon of kerosene to heat my shop for a day of 0 degree, or colder weather. I've been using it for 20 years, or so now, and have been very satisfied. Monitor heater Systems - Direct vent heaters stoves heat central heating

 

[gazoo1]

hey buddy i just purchsed a $400 infrared heater with thermostate and timer my shop is 35 x 24 it keeps it comfortable to work in

 

[SunnyJim]

I should explain my set-up. My garage is 28x48 with 10' ceiling. The overhead door on the east end is 16' wide by 9' high. It is well insulated and has earth berm on the most of west and all the north sides for the lower 8' of wall. Across the south side are eight 46"x76" double pane clear glass windows.

Our low this morning was -4* and now it is 14* with a light NW wind and clear skies all day. Inside the garage right now it is 59*, with no heat other than sunshine.

As long as we get reasonable sunshine, I don't really need a heater. If the tractor broke and we had 2-3 days of cloudy, cold weather, I would probably turn the heater on for comfort while working on it. Passive solar buildings work pretty well in my area.

The OP said his garage is well insulated and normal sized, he may not need a lot of heat. I agree 17K btu isn't near enough for an uninsulated building. But, better to have some extra capacity than to be almost warm
Dave.

I envy you Dave. If its 30 over night the garage will be 30 in the morning. With the sun it can warm up maybe 20 degrees. Since I tend to be working at night I need all the heat I can muster. If it was -4 in this area the world would stand still. Much like the OP teens at night does happen but not normally that often. Living not far from Kitty Hawk, NC and the coast we have constant wind. In Jan. and Feb is the coldest and normally some of the windiest times of year barring a hurricane of Nor'easter like we had in Nov.

 

[dave1949]

I envy you Dave. If its 30 over night the garage will be 30 in the morning. With the sun it can warm up maybe 20 degrees. Since I tend to be working at night I need all the heat I can muster. If it was -4 in this area the world would stand still. Much like the OP teens at night does happen but not normally that often. Living not far from Kitty Hawk, NC and the coast we have constant wind. In Jan. and Feb is the coldest and normally some of the windiest times of year barring a hurricane of Nor'easter like we had in Nov.

We had a chance building new to do the passive solar thing, it has worked out pretty well. Winters can get long here. This year has actually been fairly mild until the past two days. It's been hanging at zero this evening so far. Tomorrow should be a tad warmer. Then we will be back into normal temps with highs around 25-30 for late December.

It's all relative, I can't imagine the -35* they have up in Manitoba and Alberta.

Been through Kitty Hawk just once and that was about 25 years ago. I remember it as being a pleasant area. It was summer and a bit warm for me, a local person told me they were having what he called a 'wet hot'. That pretty well described it. The Outer Banks are certainly beautiful. We tried a little shore fishing and caught one skate? Barbed tail with poison. Fortunately, as I was pondering what to do with the thing a fellow came over and warned us.
Dave.

 

[ultrarunner]

I was able to pick-up a 50k btu gas ceiling mount heater for free... it throws out a lot of heat quick.

Lots of the mechanic shops here use gas infer-red above the work area... no cold tool or parts...

Before, I would drive my car into the garage shop after work... let it run about 2 minutes, turn it off and close the door. After supper, the garage was noticeably warmer just from the heat thrown-off from the car.

 

[SunnyJim]

Been through Kitty Hawk just once and that was about 25 years ago. I remember it as being a pleasant area. It was summer and a bit warm for me, a local person told me they were having what he called a 'wet hot'. That pretty well described it.

"Wet hot" That does discribe it. My neighbor mowed his grass one last time earlier this month, I quite last month. We have had a bit to much of the wet since August. This is already one of the 5 wetest (precipitation) years on record. Each time it rains we just move a bit further up the list.

I don't know if you would like the OBX these days compared to 25 years ago. It has always been touristy but it has gotten quite bad in the last 10 years or so. The traffic is always a complaint, which is why I only go down that way during the winter months when no one is around.

 

[dave1949]

"Wet hot" That does discribe it. My neighbor mowed his grass one last time earlier this month, I quite last month. We have had a bit to much of the wet since August. This is already one of the 5 wetest (precipitation) years on record. Each time it rains we just move a bit further up the list.

I don't know if you would like the OBX these days compared to 25 years ago. It has always been touristy but it has gotten quite bad in the last 10 years or so. The traffic is always a complaint, which is why I only go down that way during the winter months when no one is around.

Looks like more on the way tomorrow or Saturday. Hopefully some of those droughty areas around Georgia are catching up.

I know what you mean about the traffic and tourists. That's one reason we decided to move away from the coast in S. Maine. You almost needed a reservation to get on Route 1 in July and August. Condos going up left and right, we just wanted something more rural. Like you, we didn't go out much in summer with the crowds, plus planning our trips around the traffic surges. Coastal towns are neat in their own way.

Up above the Piedmont in NC is a beautiful place you know. Get above the bugs, tourists and humidity It's never too late.
Dave.