Does anyone have recommendations for a heater for 566 sf shop
[OP]
Member
Does anyone have recommendations for a heater for 566 sf shop
It would help to know approximately where the shop is located as heating needs vary depending upon the location. I need more heat in my shop in NW PA than folks in Texas need.Also how much insulation do you have, are the windows and doors air tight.
Lee Schierer
USNA '71
Go Navy!
My advice, comments and suggestions are free, but it costs money to run the site. If you found something of value here please give a little something back by becoming a contributor! Please Contribute
[OP]
Member
I live in Colorado, walls and ceiling have blown in insulation R-9 and windows and doors are medium? air tight
Member
Take a look at the HotDawg brand gas heaters. I've read great reviews on them and plan on putting one in my shop once it gets cold.
Contributor
For an insulated shop in the back of an attached 2-car garage (total sq.ft =750), I'm using a Farenheat 5000W electric heater, mounted to the ceiling and connected to a dedicated 220V/30A breaker. I picked this one up from Home Depot for roughly $250, but you can find similar models at the other big-box store.
Moderator
Richard, I have a Sterling 45K NG overhead unit that does a great job in my ~525 sq ft shop. The Sterling is very similar to the Modine Hot Dog. (cheaper)
There’s some good info in this recent thread: Heating a Garage Woodshop
Last edited by Bruce Page; 10-21-2014 at 5:05 PM.
"It's paradoxical that the idea of living a long life appeals to everyone, but the idea of getting old doesn't appeal to anyone."
Andy Rooney
Contributor
I used the Modine (Hot Dawg) HDS80 (80k BTU) in my 1200sf, pretty well insulated, ex-barn in Massachusetts. My plumber was happy to do a Manual J calculation on the building to size it properly (and in MA you really can't get gas turned on in a building without a plumber and permit). It heats the building up pretty quickly from the 40 degrees I leave it set at when I'm not there. You'd probably get by with half the btus. The S series has a sealed combustion chamber, so draws its make-up air from outside. Seemed like a much better idea than sucking sawdust into a flame, plus my building is now pretty tight with spray foam insulation. Rather not have any risk of backdrafting CO into the space.
Member
Just built a 30'x60' pole barn and put in 2 45,000 U Tube Space-Ray heaters. Natural Gas radiant heat. We also insulated the heck out of it. r-30 to r-38 in the ceiling, and r-19 in the walls. My Father-in-law had radiant tube heaters in his auto shop and they always did a nice job keeping everything warm. Radiant heat is the way to go IMHO for a wood shop. Lots of cast iron to help retain the heat.
Drew
Member
Any idea what this cost you to run? I am looking at putting something similar in but am afraid it is going to cost a fortune to run. Just don't have the time or money to run a gas line out to the garage this fall.Originally Posted by Mike Ontko
Contributor
Richard,
I have a 720 sq. ft. shop with R-19 in the walls and R-36 in the ceiling. I had the empty shell built and did the electrical, wall insulation and finish work myself. I had the insulation blown into the ceiling. My wife gifted me with Lennox 75,000 BTU hanging gas furnace, plumbed and installed. I live in north central Idaho. The natural gas line into our house was 'T-d" after the meter and a separate line run underground to my shop.
In the winter I keep my shop at 58ºF if I am not working in it or 64ºF if I am. If I am planning on doing some finishing I will turn it up to 70ºF 3 days or so ahead so the materials and finish have time to acclimate.
We barely noticed a raise in our natural gas usage. Insulation is the key!
Ken
So much to learn, so little time.....
Member
Radiant heaters are best if you do not have much in the way of insulation. I have a friend who built his shop from concrete panels. He put a radiant tube heater in it for heat, and it really works well. They heat objects, not air. Of course he just turns it on when he works in the shop, and it takes very little time to warm up.
I have a 45k btu NG unit (ceiling mount) Reznor heater in my 2.5 car "L" shaped semi-insulated garage. Works great. I can easily heat to 70 in the dead of winter, but it takes longer than my previous 75k btu Dayton unit heater, but it is a lot smaller too. In the winter my garage is home to 2 cars, only gets used for shop projects if I have a lot of finishing to do as my shop is in the basement. I keep it at 42 degrees unless I need to work out there and in the winter it is more likely on a car or snowmobile. Oh, I fire it up to 70 if if I am tired of all the salt on my cars and it is too cold to go to the car wash as I have a floor drain under each space for the wash water.
NOW you tell me...
Contributor
Because my shop is too far from the house for the low pressure connection we had to put it on its own meter. The highest bill I had last winter was $45, but that is keeping it around 40 during the week and up to 60-65 on the weekends. It was a pretty cold winter. Insulation is a Good Thing.
Contributor
Brad,
This year will be the first full season that I'll have it in operation. Electric is also cheap for me as I've got solar panels that offset the bulk of the house's average kW needs. I can monitor things over the next few weeks/months and let you know how it looks, but that probably won't help for your current needs.
A used wood or pellet stove might be another possible option, depending on your shop configuration and location.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
