gumbudah
Well-known member
So I've been reading a LOT on here about radiant heat, as well as some about small ceiling mount gas heaters, trying to figure out what the best combination is for a garage I'm planning to build.
I love the idea of radiant, so I plan on installing it. I live in northern wisconsin, so my primary desire for floor heat comes from the ability to melt snow and ice off of vehicles and send it down a floor drain. So I'd like to keep the garage somewhere above 40 or so all the time in the winter. My problem though, is like others, I'm not in the garage 8 hours per day, so I don't want to keep it too warm in there. The problem then becomes how do I heat it up when I want to work in there. That's where the ceiling mount comes in. So, long and short of it, keep garage at 40-45 minimum by radiant heat, then heat to 70ish when I'm working in there.
Based on this usage, I'm trying to figure out what's the best way to go for the radiant heat source. I know many people say use a modulating condensing boiler, which I'd love, however looks to me like they are $3,000 minimum. Did i mention it will all be natural gas powered? At first I was thinking that was the way to go, however realizing that I'll be keeping the garage at such a low temp (I definately won't keep it higher than 50), I'm thinking maybe an on demand water heater, or a tank style water heater would work. I like the idea of using a wall mount tankless style, as it'd free up some floor space. I looked at menards and found a unit for less than $1k. That'd save $2,000 which I think it'd take a long time to make up if I went with the modulating boiler instead.
This seems like it'd be a good combination between the luxury of floor heat, the low capital cost of construction, and the killer cost of the monthly gas bill.
Does this seem reasonable?
Oh, while I'm at it, I do want the option to be able to completely shut the system off (i.e. if gas prices get too high I might choose not to heat the garage at all for the winter). As a result, I want to go with antifreeze in the lines rather than water. Any idea how this would effect the design?
On a similar note, I managed to find R15 garage doors at menards the other day. gonna try to go with those.
I love the idea of radiant, so I plan on installing it. I live in northern wisconsin, so my primary desire for floor heat comes from the ability to melt snow and ice off of vehicles and send it down a floor drain. So I'd like to keep the garage somewhere above 40 or so all the time in the winter. My problem though, is like others, I'm not in the garage 8 hours per day, so I don't want to keep it too warm in there. The problem then becomes how do I heat it up when I want to work in there. That's where the ceiling mount comes in. So, long and short of it, keep garage at 40-45 minimum by radiant heat, then heat to 70ish when I'm working in there.
Based on this usage, I'm trying to figure out what's the best way to go for the radiant heat source. I know many people say use a modulating condensing boiler, which I'd love, however looks to me like they are $3,000 minimum. Did i mention it will all be natural gas powered? At first I was thinking that was the way to go, however realizing that I'll be keeping the garage at such a low temp (I definately won't keep it higher than 50), I'm thinking maybe an on demand water heater, or a tank style water heater would work. I like the idea of using a wall mount tankless style, as it'd free up some floor space. I looked at menards and found a unit for less than $1k. That'd save $2,000 which I think it'd take a long time to make up if I went with the modulating boiler instead.
This seems like it'd be a good combination between the luxury of floor heat, the low capital cost of construction, and the killer cost of the monthly gas bill.
Does this seem reasonable?
Oh, while I'm at it, I do want the option to be able to completely shut the system off (i.e. if gas prices get too high I might choose not to heat the garage at all for the winter). As a result, I want to go with antifreeze in the lines rather than water. Any idea how this would effect the design?
On a similar note, I managed to find R15 garage doors at menards the other day. gonna try to go with those.