Budget heating

[asp125]

First post here.

We have a ~1000sqft insulated garage. 10ft ceiling, 1 man door, 4 windows, 1 double rollup door, 1 single rollup high bay door. 100amp panel (2x15A, 2x20A, 1x30A). No gas line. Climate zone 5, 7000ft elev.

I want to keep the ambient temperature above freezing, but able to turn it up fairly quickly for working a few hours at 60-65 degrees. Shop work is mostly mechanics with the odd paint or woodwork project.

Budget is $1000 on the high side, realistically $500 is what I want to spend.

Should I go electric baseboard for general heat, and propane portable for work heat? Or space heater on a thermostat switch?

Annnnd discuss.

 

[TractorJeff]

Nothing with a hot surface that will ignite sawdust from your woodworking and or fumes from the gas drip from your mechanic projects!

 

[jclem40c]

Used mobile home furnace. Many are around 86000 BTU and will take the chill off a 1000 sq ft garage. Run on kerosene or fuel oil or a mixture of.

 

[EOC_Jason]

Is the existing 30A circuit 240v or 120v?

I'm in zone 4, for my little 3-car garage I found a 5600W / 240v electric heater new in the box at a yard sale for $20... Takes the chill off in the garage pretty quick, I usually only end up running it for like 10-15 minutes initially and I'm good...

Anything that is going to be close to the floor you really need to be able to clean it easily as dust and dirt and such will work their way in there and you don't want a fire hazard.

I'm not a fan of any burning fuel in enclosed spaces as that means a reduction in oxygen.

If I had to buy a heater new I would get the kid you can mount high on the wall / ceiling, like:

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/newair-electric-garage-heater?cm_vc=-10005

or

https://www.menards.com/main/heatin...5-c-5617.htm?tid=-2928317452342567229&ipos=51

 

[Bolson32]

I just installed one of these and ran an external thermostat using the Aube controller. My garage is only 330sq ft but it takes the chill off of that in about 10 mins tops.

https://www.menards.com/main/heatin...873-c-6328.htm?tid=1016623147551310496&ipos=7

I'm sure it will do just fine keeping it above freezing as well but I'm not sure how well it would handle a 1000sq ft garage. Is it well insulated? I'd probably go up to the 7500 but you need a 40amp circuit for that.

Lastly, if money is an issue now, you'll want to consider heat costs. Not sure how much electricity is in your neck of the woods.

 

[asp125]

We just bought the place, so I'd have to get up into the attic to check the R value. But it feels pretty air tight. That would be concern with propane and kerosene - oxygen depletion especially at 7000ft, especially when using solvents and such (but then again, I'd crack open a window). OTOH there might be sparks from grinding and welding.

The 20A circuit is 240V, so I max out at 4800W, the 30A circuit is, assuming 240V maxes out at 7200W. Heating a smaller area works too, near the workbench or at the back away from the doors, for example. Still unsure about how to maintain a temperature economically when I am not in the shop, though; small 120V space heater? Electric baseboard? I have a couple of small portable ceramic heaters lying around. https://images.homedepot-static.com...-ceramic-heaters-754200-64_400_compressed.jpg

 

[theoldwizard1]

Budget is $1000 on the high side, realistically $500 is what I want to spend.

Should I go electric baseboard for general heat, and propane portable for work heat? Or space heater on a thermostat switch?

Electric heat is the cheapest and easiest to install and also THE MOST EXPENSIVE to operate.

Portable propane heaters put a LARGE amount of moisture in the air. Good for short usage.

More expensive to install, but cheaper in the long run is something like a propane Rinnai Direct Vent Wall Furnace. If it is important to maintain the heat, you will need a large tank.

 

[Bolson32]

Any idea what electric rates are there?

 

[EOC_Jason]

There it is, I was looking for that one at Menards! Yeah that's probably the best bang for the buck.... Even if you have to install a couple of them.

FYI for the OP, most (like the one below) have a thermostat so you can set your temp.

I just installed one of these and ran an external thermostat using the Aube controller. My garage is only 330sq ft but it takes the chill off of that in about 10 mins tops.

https://www.menards.com/main/heatin...873-c-6328.htm?tid=1016623147551310496&ipos=7

 

[Streetbu]

Used mobile home furnace. Many are around 86000 BTU and will take the chill off a 1000 sq ft garage. Run on kerosene or fuel oil or a mixture of.

Ditto. You may only NEED 40k btu to warm it up, but having a larger one means it will warm up quicker. I do the same thing in my 24x34 shop. Keep it at 40 when I'm not out there, then turn it up to 60ish when I'm working. Heck, we even had a beach party in it two years ago and had it 80° during the middle of February. I run it on diesel or kero, which ever is cheaper. I'm only using a 15 galon gear oil keg as my fuel tank, otherwise I'd have it filled with fuel oil when my house tank is filled. But since it's not rated as a fuel tank they wont touch it.