Freezing, what's a good garage heater?
 

Hi everybody. Well, it's winter in New England again, and my truck doesn't have an engine in it, again..... which combined, means that I am gunna be very chilly, and as a result, not so inclined to get out and get work done pretty soon.

I've always worked out there with no heat all through winter, and it's been annoying, but I've dealt with it, but last year with big stuff like engine and trans work the fact that I couldn't move my fingers fully actually caused some problems, so I'm upgrading.

I have a 2 car garage that was just redone recently, insulated covered walls, cement pad floor. I would put a wood stove in there, but the garage is attached to the house, and my grandmother lives above it, and I don't want to risk smoke or fire.

What are some different types of heaters I should look at, what are some good brands, and which, if any (?) can I operate for hours at a time in a closed space?

Thanks, AleX

I have a couple commerical propane heaters that are AWESOME.....they're designed for large open spaces and heat quick and are efficient. I have a Rinnai 1004 (38k BTU's) and they retail for a few thousand, but I've found some for sale locally for 500-1000.....a lessor brand name would be the old Empire DV's which come in 55k and below BTU's. These are supposed to comfortably heat 1200 square feet of space and need to be vented.

Northern Tool (northerntool.com) has various 'ventless' gas heaters in both natural gas and propane.

Be advised that the cheap one that I got a few years ago suggested 'venting' for fresh air. Hasn't been a problem, my garage is insulated, but it's not that tight.

I don't know about which brand, if you have a store near you, you could look them over. I've run mine for 3 or 4 hours with no problem, and I'm sure that others have gone a lot longer.

I do have a Carbon Monoxide alarm in the garage.

You do want to hook up to a pipe no matter which type you use. I have propane, and when I first got it, I used a 20 pound bottle. Doesn't work very well when the temp drops (I'm in MN). Fortunately, my supply line goes right past it, so I had them put in a feed.

I just have a cheap one ( around $100 when I bought it), but it seems pretty good.

I use a 120,000 btu kerosene torpedo space heater, but in your situation, you might consider an electric 220v ceiling hung with fan. Thats dependent on if you have the neccesary wiring in there to do it.

Nah I don't have 220, and I don't have propane or gas, hmmm.

If your home is all electric, you have 2 options. Either run a propane type space heater or do some electrical work in your garage to run electric heat. If you don't already have a panel in the garage, you would need to put one in.

I use a natural gas, ceiling hung furnace that was pulled from a UPS warehouse. It's actually too large for the area but it was fairly new, came with a thermostat and only $100. It will heat my 2 car garage from 20 degrees to 70 degrees in under 30 minutes.

Northern Tool also has some reasonable electric heaters for shop use.

pk:-headbang

Propane is always a portable option but be advised that for every pound of propane burned you're introducing a pound of water vapor to the atmosphere.

Beyond the risks of CO poisoning, water vapor is pervasive and when you have cold steel or iron in the same space it is sure to condense on it and start to rust.

Too bad you didn't think to put some radiant tubing in that slab when you poured it.
An electric water heater, circulator and thermostat wouldn't cost much.

Then it pretty much has to be a kerosene heater. Either a torpedo that plugs in or one of those convection ones that requires no electric. For a two car garage it wouldn't need to be all that big. You probably don't want it 75 in there. 50-55 is pretty comfy working on cars.

What do ya heat yer house with? Electric? If so that may be best. The other option I am thinking of is a Toyo or Monitor diesel fuel heater. I have also used an over head waist oil heater but can't remember who made it. Depending on yer cost for electricity it may be the way to go.

We have oil heat for the house, and ya, bumping the temp up like 30 degrees is all I need. The lowest we ever see is -a couple, and that's at the end of the night of course, 20* is a very average afternoon temperature for the coldest couple months, so I don't need thaat much heat. I like the kerosene idea the best, that's what I originally had in mind, but will that need to be vented?

I know you don't want a wood stove, but what about a pellet stove?
They're supposedly really safe, vent outside easily enough, and can run unattended for hours without any issues.
Kerosene or diesel heaters need to be vented, and could potentially smoke up the place if something goes wrong. CO is an issue as well. Plus the potential for a fuel spill (fire hazard and a big mess to clean).

You say you have oil heat for the house and the garage is attached. If the house has hot water heat why not tap off near the furnace, add a zone valve, and hang a fan backed hot water coil heater in the garage. Sure there's a bit of plumbing involved but soldering copper pipe isn't that hard and the heating system is already there - no additional fuel sources needed.

Put a pellet stove in mine years ago after I about gassed myself with a propane torpedo heater. Love the pellet stove.............have it on a thermostat.

My garage is by no means airtight with no ceiling or insulation. I work in there everyday, all day and haven't died yet. I will even paint in there during the winter, but cut heater off when painting and air out the garage good before cutting back on. Getting one that runs dual fuel, kerosene or home heating oil would save some money if you get a tank/barrel and have it filled when they deliver your heating oil.