Heater for 30x48 Pole Garage?

[robertrov]

Hello all, I have a 30x48x14 pole garage with an insulated ceiling, non insulated walls and concrete floor with moisture barrier. I want to put a heater in it before the cold weather sets in here in Wa. I have one 110v line out to the garage. My goal is to keep it around 50 degrees when not in use and up to 55-60 degrees when I'm working out there. What do you all recommend? I'm leaning towards electric heat but don't know much on the subject. Thanks

 

[c6matt]

do you have access to natural gas? electric is going to be your most expensive option....

and a single 20A 120 will not be enough power to do it..

 

[robertrov]

do you have access to natural gas? electric is going to be your most expensive option....

and a single 20A 120 will not be enough power to do it..

I don't know if I do or do not have access to natural gas. My house has forced air for heat.

 

[c6matt]

I woud bet its gas, do you get a gas bill? gas stove? chimney out of the hot water tank?

 

[robertrov]

I woud bet its gas, do you get a gas bill? gas stove? chimney out of the hot water tank?

Come to think of it, I do get a gas bill. Would I have to run a line to the garage then?

 

[c6matt]

yes, but you will save the cost of running the gas line in the first few months of heating. and you would not need to up grade the EL service. that being said, while you are running, run and wire a sub panel in the garage.. you will be glad you did.

 

[robertrov]

yes, but you will save the cost of running the gas line in the first few months of heating. and you would not need to up grade the EL service. that being said, while you are running, run and wire a sub panel in the garage.. you will be glad you did.

That will be my long term plan then. I don't have the money to run a gas line this autumn. What options are out there for me to still somewhat heat the shop this winter? Even if I can't get it to my desired working temp.

 

[Diesel Dan]

Nat gas would be the best, easiest.

Not large enough power supply for electric heat, as stated.
Large torpedo heater and lots of kerosene/diesel fuel, and fumes.
Small 110v LP furnace feed by 100lb cylinders, still expensive fuel.
$700 buys a good wood stove or small high efficiency home furnace.

Odds of keeping a pole barn with non-insulated walls warm in the winter? Low but doable with enough BTUs.

I'd recommend a torpedo heater to warm the area only while your out there until you get it insulated. Until you get it right you will just have to tough it out or spend $$ in fuel this winter that could go toward insulation/furnace etc.

 

[bullnerd]

"Come to think of it, I do get a gas bill. " - yeah I try to block that stuff out too, LOL!

 

[TheEquineFencer]

How do you feel about burning wood as long as the heater is outside? If that is an option, build a heater with some 55 gallon barrels inside and air box and duct the heat inside. The shop I used to rent was heated this way. The up side to this, the heated air was hot enough I could wrap a chicken in foil and cook it while I worked in the duct. I also had a return back to the air box, this is where I had my blower fan. I could burn used oil, filters, trash, if it burned, I fed it to it other than tires, they smoked too bad. Just joking about the tires.

 

[bcbsox]

Pellet stove would be great, not cheap, but require a lot less attention than a wood stove and are cheaper than elec/gas options to operate. Get one with an external thermostat, run a couple Big *** fans to circulate the air and you'll be good to go with a few tons of pellets through the winter.

 

[robertrov]

Thank you all for your advice. I guess I'm at a bit of a stand still. I am going to insulate the garage fully eventually. I was hoping for a temporary heating solution this winter so the garage doesn't get damp and a little moldy. The dehumidifiers last winter kept it dry but it didn't stay warm enough. I like the appeal of the natural gas heater and will probably go that route when I get full electricity to the garage. I would consider a pellet or wood stove but I am almost always on the go or spend an hour or two at a time in the shop so I couldn't keep it heated that way consistently.

 

[Highbeam]

Shop for any of the various portable propane heaters. If you only need heat for a couple hours at a time then I have really been happy with those propane overhead patio heaters that look a little like palm trees. Quiet and effective.

In WA our propane is about 2.50 per gallon and electric is 10 cents per kwh. Almost the same per btu. Sure, NG is cheaper but only if you have a device that can burn it and a line to the shop. Until then, an LP portable will be sufficient.

They also make propane salamanders but they are noisy and require electric. The patio heater can have a second life on your patio.

 

[James-W]

That will be my long term plan then. I don't have the money to run a gas line this autumn. What options are out there for me to still somewhat heat the shop this winter? Even if I can't get it to my desired working temp.

This may or may not be a good idea, it all depends on how you look at it. Where I live the gas company will run a natural gas line from the street to your garage for free, provided it isn't over 100 feet from your property line to your garage. Anything over over 100 feet we have to pay $6.25 per foot. The downside is that there is a monthly charge for the gas meter, $10 per month. But on the plus side the cost of the natural gas is fairly cheap, at least around here it is. I suggest you contact the local gas company and just find out what they will do for you. You may be pleasantly surprised at the low cost to get this done.

 

[6768rogues]

I have a 36 by 48 building in upstate NY and I use a 100,000 BTU Reznor natural gas fired heater. It hangs from the ceiling so it uses no floor space, is out of the way and does not get hit by anything moving around the shop. It easily keeps the building at 50 degrees and will raise it to whatever temp I set the thermostat to. You could run one on propane until you get natural gas to the building, then convert it as long as you buy one that is convertible.
I have a separate gas meter at the barn. That way the gas company provided and installed all the piping up to the meter and all I had to do is pipe inside the building. I have to pay a small amount each month in the summer, though, when I am not using any gas.

 

[onewaydave]

Robert
'I have heated a 30x36x12 shop for several years with a barrel heater (kits can be had from HF or rural HW stores). I have slab with 6" insulation on the walls and ceiling. If the outside temp is 20' or up, it does fine. I can work in a light shirt without discomfort. Below that it takes a lot of tolerance on my part and frequent visits to stand by the stove (ie. not working).

For the last few years we have had record lows in temps and record duration of low temps. -19' one Christmas and below 10' for over a month another year. One stove didn't cut it.

Typically, I'd light a fire a couple of hours before I went down to work. If I heat all day, the temp inside wouldn't fall too low the next morning, until the global freeze started.

My shop is a wood shop with lots of large cast iron equipment. Huge heat mass if I could keep up with it, but a huge ice cube if not. I am going to install a split system this year and keep the wood heat as supplement. I also have 200 amp 240 to the shop.

I'm smaller, tighter, better insulated and have better power. I still would like better heat in the winter and cool in the summer (100' 95 humidity).

These comments are just for your reference. BTW, I'm dead center mid-west.

Dave, hope this helps.

PS Consider walling off sections with a heavy plastic (may have to roof also) to contain the heated area(s).