Garage Heater

[walhondingnashua]

So eventually I will have a woodstove in my garage/ shop and have had a thread on the topic before. But I want to use another heat source. I have concluded that I am going to use a wall mounted propane unit that I can hook a 100# tank up too and refill as needed. I have read plenty online but as usual, nothing as good as direct advice. Do I buy a radiant unit or a blue flame unit? I know I am going to buy a 30,000 unit. understand the science behind both of them, but want to hear from people that have some experience.
My garage has 9' ceilings, 39'x27' interior dimensions. 1' double foil polyiso on the walls and the ceiling (might add blow in to the walls or fiberglass rolls to the ceiling as I find it on sale).

 

[festerw]

1st thing to do would be to check with your insurance company and ask about it. They typically don't like open flames in 'hazardous' places.

 

[Gearhead660]

Are you referring to the vent less wall mount heaters? Have you looked into the ceiling mount vented propane heaters? I have one and it works well for my 18x30 shop with 10' ceilings.

 

[walhondingnashua]

My insurance is good with pretty much anything as long as I follow some guidelines.
Yes I am talking about the ventless wall mounted units. I have not looked into the ceiling one you references. Would you mind send me a link and or pictures?

 

[blades]

Pretty much anything associated with heat has to be ceiling mounted for garages and shops around here. On the lp side of things the tank has to be outside. As I have seen a lot of the 100# bottles right up against the building not sure of code on those but above that has to be 10 ft away.

 

[Bad LP]

I have yet to be installed 3 units.

A ceiling mounted LP fired Modine and 2 Dayton high bay IR heaters for the rear garage.

 

[Gearhead660]

My insurance is good with pretty much anything as long as I follow some guidelines.
Yes I am talking about the ventless wall mounted units. I have not looked into the ceiling one you references. Would you mind send me a link and or pictures?

https://m.northerntool.com/shop/too...-pla&utm_source=Google_PLA&utm_medium=Heaters %26 Stoves %2B Fireplaces > Natural Gas Heaters&utm_campaign=Mr. Heater&utm_content=27457&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI__2UpqSV7gIVA77ACh2MSwKZEAQYAiABEgKWh_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
Something like this.

 

[walhondingnashua]

The big ceiling unit is a little more than I am looking for especially since I am going to invest money in a wood stove too. I am just looking at one of the simple wall units to keep things comfortable to work if its in the 40s or 50s outside and I'm not going to be in there too long. Otherwise, I'll light the stove. Propane isn't free lol.

 

[fbelec]

i know you said that you the ups and downs of vent verses ventless. i personally would stay away from ventless. if not vented no matter how clean it burns, carbon monoxide. if you ever had the headache from it you would say the same. what type of electric is out there? how long in years do you think you'll be using it?

 

[walhondingnashua]

I have 50amps to the garage and considered electric heaters but electricity is expensive. I can get a 100# tank filled for $75 at the local hardware store.

 

[zrock]

Of course your insurance will let you install a flame in your shop they make more money off you... Not sure of your local laws but here wood stove or gas heat source has to be mounted min 18 inches of the floor

 

[SpaceBus]

I would never consider a room vented appliance of any kind at this point in my life. This goes for gas range ovens as well. It's not just the CO that is emitted, there is a ton of water vapor released as a combustion by product as well. This is bad news for a workshop in my opinion.

 

[walhondingnashua]

I'm hoping the little it is used won't make too much of a moisture issue. Adding the garage to my homeowners insurance only raised it $20 over 3 months and I told them how it would be heated. I wasn't given an 18" minimum but I had plans to mount higher than that anyway.
I'm mostly looking for opinions on the blue flame vs the radiant option if anyone has any experience with the two of them.

 

[zrock]

Check your local building code... They want it off the floor as fumes tend to stay low if you have any type of fuel leak or such.. Personally if i was doing a heating system in my shop i would pay the extra and go with the ceiling mounted radiant heating system. Talk to any shop owner that uses that type of system and it costs 1/4 to 1/2 of what a traditional system uses and gives a much better heat output. Anyone i know that has installed it saved the extra cost payed for itself very quickly with the savings...

 

[Bad LP]

Check your local building code... They want it off the floor as fumes tend to stay low if you have any type of fuel leak or such.. Personally if i was doing a heating system in my shop i would pay the extra and go with the ceiling mounted radiant heating system. Talk to any shop owner that uses that type of system and it costs 1/4 to 1/2 of what a traditional system uses and gives a much better heat output. Anyone i know that has installed it saved the extra cost payed for itself very quickly with the savings...

That's kinda why I snagged the two High Bay IR units.

Of course any heater in the space is going to leave you with a cold floor and feet unless you build a box duct and fan moving the stratified air around. My buddy has one (he's using a monitor wall heater) and damn that contraption works excellent.

 

[walhondingnashua]

Check your local building code... They want it off the floor as fumes tend to stay low if you have any type of fuel leak or such.. Personally if i was doing a heating system in my shop i would pay the extra and go with the ceiling mounted radiant heating system. Talk to any shop owner that uses that type of system and it costs 1/4 to 1/2 of what a traditional system uses and gives a much better heat output. Anyone i know that has installed it saved the extra cost payed for itself very quickly with the savings...

By Savings, do yo mean that it used less fuel to run or do yo mean an electric one? Also, do those ceiling mounted units run off of a 100# tank. I don't mind the cost of the Mr. Heater ceiling mounted system one referenced above until you see that the vent kit is separate and costs as much as the heater. I would need a significant savings in energy consumption for some thing I only plan on using a few hours a week for a portion of the year. Heck, if winter in Southeastern, Ohio is going to be like this in the future, I don't need heat lol.

 

[walhondingnashua]

Of course any heater in the space is going to leave you with a cold floor and feet unless you build a box duct and fan moving the stratified air around. My buddy has one (he's using a monitor wall heater) and damn that contraption works excellent.

I actually have a good solution for this... summer or winter. My dad has been saving a few cage style furnace fans. He wires them with a basic receptacle plug and boom, you have a monster air mover.

 

[Bad LP]

I actually have a good solution for this... summer or winter. My dad has been saving a few cage style furnace fans. He wires them with a basic receptacle plug and boom, you have a monster air mover.

His was a little desk fan and two strips of plywood nailed into corner running from just off the floor to a 12 inch or so opening up top.

 

[Gearhead660]

By Savings, do yo mean that it used less fuel to run or do yo mean an electric one? Also, do those ceiling mounted units run off of a 100# tank. I don't mind the cost of the Mr. Heater ceiling mounted system one referenced above until you see that the vent kit is separate and costs as much as the heater. I would need a significant savings in energy consumption for some thing I only plan on using a few hours a week for a portion of the year. Heck, if winter in Southeastern, Ohio is going to be like this in the future, I don't need heat lol.

Mine is running off a 100 lb tank. Didnt need a Vent kit for mine. 1 section of vent pipe and cap.. Straight out the wall. All parts on shelf at home improvement store.

 

[fbelec]

for that size garage 30,000 is on the small side. even with insulation the doors will be a major heat loss. my calculations say 36,500. if you plan on a ventless go cheap and get a small torpedo style. if you wind up going electric it will be a 7500 watt heater. in my opinion i would shoot for around 50,000 btu for heating faster and if you have to work out there when it's 0 degrees

 

[walhondingnashua]

I have used the propane torpedo heaters and they work well but they seem to just fly through the propane. Could just be me not paying much attention.

Gearhead660- you have me very interested now actually. I see that you are in Wisconsin so I am sure you deal with some cold temps. I know there are a lot of factors involved in this answer, but roughly how long does a 100# tank last you with that unit? I do like it being up in air. I plan on setting a little concrete slab behind the garage and just running the gas line in through the wall but if its on the ceiling, I can run it straight up.

 

[Gearhead660]

I have used the propane torpedo heaters and they work well but they seem to just fly through the propane. Could just be me not paying much attention.

Gearhead660- you have me very interested now actually. I see that you are in Wisconsin so I am sure you deal with some cold temps. I know there are a lot of factors involved in this answer, but roughly how long does a 100# tank last you with that unit? I do like it being up in air. I plan on setting a little concrete slab behind the garage and just running the gas line in through the wall but if its on the ceiling, I can run it straight up.

All depends on how much I work out in the shop. I only have it running when I am working out there. Some weekends its on all day if I am in and out doing things. Usually 1 refill per season. I only have it set to 50 degrees. I feel that's comfortable for me while working out there.

 

[John Galt]

I got one of the torpedo/salamander/jet engine/whatever they're called type. It burns diesel if you don't want t o spend $11 a gallon or kerosene. Not sure if it would work for what you want but might be worth looking at for $400. This one burns about a gallon and hour, they have a smaller one too. Certainly not a run it 24 hrs a day machine but nice for a quick warm up. I have it in an uninsulated basement the same dimensions as your shop and it'll heat up quick. If you point it towards your work area you'll have an 80 degree bubble to enjoy. There is a slight smell when it first kicks on but burns cleanly. Don't let it run out of fuel, it will throw a few nasty diesel clouds at you.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/DEWALT-210...erosene-Diesel-Construction-Heater/1001045860

 

[walhondingnashua]

Sounds like you use yours the same way I would. I am really leaning towards the Mr. Heater ceiling unit now. Going to start doing my research. I am a semi- competent person (depending on who you ask lol) so how was instillation?

 

[Gearhead660]

Sounds like you use yours the same way I would. I am really leaning towards the Mr. Heater ceiling unit now. Going to start doing my research. I am a semi- competent person (depending on who you ask lol) so how was instillation?

Hardest part was holding the unit to mount it to the ceiling. A bit heavy. A couple ladders and buddies would make it easy.