Radiant Tube Heat...?

[PatrickW]

I live in Minnesota, and would like to be able to do more projects (car stuff) in the winter.

Regarding a Radiant Tube heater, I have some questions for anyone who has one and can share their experience:

Is it a DIY project to install?

About how much would one cost?

Are they economical to run

My ceiling is about 10 feet or so high. Are there problems with the radiant heat beating down on a car all winter (I have an old Mercedes "hobby car" car that I park for the winter).

I did the epoxy floor. Any problems with this kind of heater on epoxy floors?

Any insurance or fire risk or Carbon Monoxide considerations to worry about?

Has anyone had a Radiant heater and then sold it and bought something different? Or has anyone switched from some other heat source *TO* radiant heat?

My 3 car garage was drywalled (walls and ceiling, by the previous owner) but not insulated. I'll definitely insulate the ceiling myself, and am considering blow-in insulation for the walls.

Thanks,

- Patrick

[jptbay]

I have a 30' long radiant tube heater in my shop in northern Mn. 10' ceiling.

Me and some friends installed it in one afternoon.

75k BTU propane unit cost $878.99 delivered complete with thermostat.

Over head radiant heat is extremely efficient, only in floor radiant would be better. Both are far better than forced air.

There are minimum clearances that have to be met. I leave my vehicles in the shop all the time.

No problem with any floor covering.

No insurance risk that I'm aware of. These systems are all safety certified by the underwriters lab (UL) or other certification body. They are very safe. Follow the instructions and maintain minimum clearances to combustables or get a certified installer if your unshure. I'm NOT a HVAC guy and I had no trouble.

My air intake and exhaust vent to the outside so no issues with fumes.

I used to heat the shop with wood. It's so nice to just turn the thermostat up now.

DO INSULATE! Walls and ceiling. Money well spent.

Check out www.combustionresearch.com

[PatrickW]

I have a 30' long radiant tube heater in my shop in northern Mn.That's the kind of advice I was looking for!

Thanks for sharing your experience.

- Patrick

[Stuart in MN]

Radiant tube heaters work well, but you do have to be concerned about the mounting height and clearances from combustible materials. A lot of commercial heaters are designed for garages with high ceilings, but there are some specifically made for residential garages. Here's another example: http://www.patioheating.com/heatwave.htm

[Bruce T]

How about the gas consumtion? Natural gas in my gas. Does it use A LOT of it? I'm building a new shop and am trying to decide between that and floor heat. I would think the rising cost of gas would be a deal breaker.

[krooser]

January heat was $66.00 for me...40' tube heater...on all month @ about 65 degrees shop temp

[Bruce T]

That cheap! Wow, I was thinking it would be in the 200 range a month during winter. Those must be pretty efficient. Now I gotta weight the cost differences of that and floor heat.

[Tom]

January heat was $66.00 for me...40' tube heater...on all month @ about 65 degrees shop temp

What fuel?

[PatrickW]

How quickly do they heat up a garage...?

I'm thinking that on an ordinary winter evening, I get home and turn on the heater, then go in the house and have dinner, then go into the garage.

Will it be warmed up much?

Say my 3 car garage has a temperature is 10 degrees F when I get home. After I run the heater for an hour or so, will it be comfortable to work in...?

Thanks!

- Patrick

[krooser]

What fuel?
NG....I'll elaborate...I keep it above freezing all the time...about 45 degrees....I crank it up when I work out there...that $66.00 was my bill for December that I received in January...The January bill was about $90 something BUT I was home
working out there about 10 days...when I'm gone, it's turned down.

[krooser]

How quickly do they heat up a garage...?

I'm thinking that on an ordinary winter evening, I get home and turn on the heater, then go in the house and have dinner, then go into the garage.

Will it be warmed up much?

Say my 3 car garage has a temperature is 10 degrees F when I get home. After I run the heater for an hour or so, will it be comfortable to work in...?

Thanks!

- Patrick
Any radiant heat is most efficient if you keep it on....the concrete and the objects in the room store the heat. When i'm around I keep it at 65 or so. When I'm gone for a week or so I turn it down.

It takes about 20 minutes for the tube to heat up and get real hot..BUT if your shop isn't COLD it won't take long to get it REAL TOASTY!!!! Like August toasty...so I crank mine up then turn it down when it gets hot enough to weld without the welder....

www.superiorradiant.com

[krooser]

Update...My February gas bill for my shop was $41.00...but I was gone most of the month. I probably had the heat full on for about 5 days (24 hours per day)...the rest of the time it was on idle...just warm 'enuf so you don't see your breath...

[Lu47Dan]

Try injected foam in the walls it is more thermally effiecent than other types of insulation and will seal out air infiltration . it is not cheap but it is the most effiecient . Dan

[steve392]

I have a Re-Verber-Ray radiant tube heater in my 24 x 32 shop. Its a two stage unit with 15' tube length. The shop is fully insulated (R19 walls & R30 ceiling) with concrete floor.
The heater works awesome...Mine is a propane model. I installed it in late December of last year, and had the tank filled (100 gal. tank) in February.
Over 56 days, I used 69.9 gallons of propane. Propane here in the Northeast is currently going for just over $2.00/gal. Works out to about $2.50/day to heat.
I keep the thermostat at a fixed 55 deg. all the time...The way the heater works, is that the first stage (28,000 BTU) comes on and if the heater can't raise the temperature fast enough, the second stage (40,000 BTU) will kick in.
The heater has no trouble maintaining the 55 just with the first stage.
I think the trick is to set one temperature, and leave it, instead of trying set it back real low when the shop is not in use. I do have a programmable thermostat and will experiment on setting back the temp at night or when I know I won't be in the shop, probably by 5 deg. at most. I'll see if my fuel consumption changes much....
The heater was easy to install, definitely a do-it-yourself job. Cost was just under $1000 installed.....you can see it in attached pic running down center of shop. Takes in fresh outside air for combustion and vents exhaust out back wall.

Steve

Steve

[ng8264723]

steve392 and krooser,
What do you guys have for insulation? Steve it looks like you have none! I have a radiant tube heater but I haven't firedit yet
thanks
chris