Heating with SIR Sun Star tube

[ceramic artist]

I'm considering heating my garage with a SIR Sun Star tube. I'm wondering if any one has personal experience with this type of heater

 

[Steve W.]

Where are you?

How big is your garage?

How warm do you want the garage?

What do you plan on doing in the garage?

How often will you be doing this?

Will you be keeping it at temp, or raising it occasionally, as needed?



.

 

[Buckgnarly]

Love mine. Look up radiant tube heater, lots of discussion on here. Most who have one love them.
You do need ceiling height, and have to be aware of keeping distances from stuff, but I really like how quiet it is and how efficient it is.

 

[Bert_]

Radiant tube heater, made by lots of different manufacturers.

They are great. Much better than forced air. You really should have 14' ceiling or better but there are a few low headroom models.

 

[Snip]

I have an older Reznor tube heater in my shop, (66x40x14) and love it. Very quiet and IMHO extremely efficient. I am in a moderate winter climate compared to some on here. 75k btu unit with 40' of tube, can upgrade it to 100 with just an orifice and inlet opening change but at 75 it is doing the job.

 

[ceramic artist]

Where are you?

How big is your garage?

How warm do you want the garage?

What do you plan on doing in the garage?

How often will you be doing this?

Will you be keeping it at temp, or raising it occasionally, as needed?



.

I'm in Southern Utah (St George) near the Arizona Border. Elevation is about 2800' It gets surprisingly cold here. Fresh snow on the Mountains in April
the ceiling is 12' high. Flat roof with 7" high Parapet. the garage is 18 x 30. I will be working with clay; the plan is at least 5 days or evenings out of the week.
I want it warm. Because it's so dry here, it always feels colder than it actually is. Working with cold wet clay is difficult.
I think it's best to keep it at some kind of warm temperature at all times. At times when working on large pieces, I will be working on the concrete floor
until pieces can be transferred to a work table.
I have some concerns on how fast things will dry out which causes cracking.
Thank You

 

[ceramic artist]

I'm in Southern Utah (St George) near the Arizona Border. Elevation is about 2800' It gets surprisingly cold here. Fresh snow on the Mountains in April
the ceiling is 12' high. Flat roof with 7" high Parapet. the garage is 18 x 30. I will be working with clay; the plan is at least 5 days or evenings out of the week.
I want it warm. Because it's so dry here, it always feels colder than it actually is. Working with cold wet clay is difficult.
I think it's best to keep it at some kind of warm temperature. At times when working on large pieces, I will be working on the concrete floor
until pieces can be transferred to a work table.
I have some concerns on how fast things will dry out which causes cracking.
Thank You

The manufacturer recommended the smallest tube heater SIR Sun Star Eclipse 25,000 BTU natural gas single stage. The entire assembly is 9'2" He said I will lose some BTU's due to the high elevation but felt it was more than adequate and recommended against going to a larger size.

 

[ceramic artist]

Love mine. Look up radiant tube heater, lots of discussion on here. Most who have one love them.
You do need ceiling height, and have to be aware of keeping distances from stuff, but I really like how quiet it is and how efficient it is.

Can you give me more insight on needing "to be aware of keeping distances from stuff"

 

[Stuart in MN]

Many radiant tube heaters are designed for higher ceilings, so if they're used in a conventional garage with lower ceilings they may be too close to objects inside the garage - in other words they could cook the paint on your car. You just have to make sure the Sun Star model you're looking at is compatible. You said your ceiling is 12' high, so it may not be as critical.

 

[Steve W.]

I'm in Southern Utah (St George) near the Arizona Border. Elevation is about 2800' It gets surprisingly cold here.

I have been up and down I-15 many times, back when I was driving truck.
I know the area. My sister lives 'next door' in Hurricane.

May I suggest adding your location to your profile? It can help with some general questions like this.

.

 

[Buckgnarly]

Can you give me more insight on needing "to be aware of keeping distances from stuff"

Just what was said above....the IR heats objects, so if you get stuff like cars too close it can cook them or their paint.

 

[ceramic artist]

I have been up and down I-15 many times, back when I was driving truck.
I know the area. My sister lives 'next door' in Hurricane.

May I suggest adding your location to your profile? It can help with some general questions like this.

.

Good suggestion Steve if I can figure out how to do it

 

[no704]

In a past life I worked at a car accessory shop in Mi. Had radiant tube heating in the shop area. Had to put cardboard over glass lift gates when pulled in from the cold or they had a tendency to shatter. Luckily we did auto glass too.

 

[Mr onetwo]

You mean like this one?

 

[Mr onetwo]

I installed this SIR35 around 14 years ago.... it has been very reliable and has done the job nicely.Back in the day I used to install Detroit Radiant and Dayton commercial versions of these heaters so I am very familiar with these type heaters. When I added on to my shop I bumped it up to 45K with factory parts.When I took it apart it was still as clean as new. Now it is a little louder and rattles a bit , but is stone cold reliable.I will say that the intensity of the heat is not the quite same after all these years...I need to call SunStar about that.I would say the height of the heater is very important to get some spread of the infrared heat.At around 11ft you should be fine...I question the 25K sizing, you may be underestimating the heat loss thru the overhead door. Ask the factory if you can convert 25K to 35K. You will LOVE the feeling of the sun on your face!

 

[Mr onetwo]

A little tip....4" exhaust pipe and band clamps works great for the exhaust side of things

 

[ceramic artist]

I installed this SIR35 around 14 years ago.... it has been very reliable and has done the job nicely.Back in the day I used to install Detroit Radiant and Dayton commercial versions of these heaters so I am very familiar with these type heaters. When I added on to my shop I bumped it up to 45K with factory parts.When I took it apart it was still as clean as new. Now it is a little louder and rattles a bit , but is stone cold reliable.I will say that the intensity of the heat is not the quite same after all these years...I need to call SunStar about that.I would say the height of the heater is very important to get some spread of the infrared heat.At around 11ft you should be fine...I question the 25K sizing, you may be underestimating the heat loss thru the overhead door. Ask the factory if you can convert 25K to 35K. You will LOVE the feeling of the sun on your face!

The Factory engineer thought moving up to 35 K would be too hot. The garage door is insulated but generally they are not air tight around the fringes.
I don't know what is the right thing to do. He also said as far as damaging any surrounding areas was not a concern. He said you can have items 4" away and my ceiling height was more than adequate. I will have to move an overhead light in order to mount the tube in the center. Putting it on the wall would work but he said It would not give me the best coverage.

 

[Buckgnarly]

The Factory engineer thought moving up to 35 K would be too hot. The garage door is insulated but generally they are not air tight around the fringes.
I don't know what is the right thing to do. He also said as far as damaging any surrounding areas was not a concern. He said you can have items 4" away and my ceiling height was more than adequate. I will have to move an overhead light in order to mount the tube in the center. Putting it on the wall would work but he said It would not give me the best coverage.

4" away from the back/reflector yes, 4" in front of the tube HELL NO.

 

[ceramic artist]

I wish I could go into a store and talk to someone to work out the details. It looks like you buy it on line from a dealer.
Factory recommended one stage. Can't tell if there is a thermostat with one stage. 2 stage there is.

 

[Mr onetwo]

2 stage is a waste of money.You use a thermostat with a 120v relay to modulate the unit.I would try the 25K unit for a winter and up fire it if need be to 35K. All you change is the orifice and air restrictor plate...less than $50. Parts here https://www.mcssl.com/store/sunstarheatingproducts/catalog/search?keyword=SIR

 

[Bert_]

Don't oversize the heater. These work best with long run times.

I did a shop last fall, 60x120 18 high overhead door is probably 20x16. I installed (2) 80,000 tube heaters. Some said it should have had double that amount. Guy has nothing but good to say about it.