Good Morning all. I am looking for a heating solution for my woodshop. First, the dimensions are 17'x30' floor print with 10' ceilings. So that ends up being 5100 cubic feet and 510 square feet. The walls and ceiling are insulated with R13 faced insulation. The ceiling is comprised of 2"x10" ceiling joists on 16" centers with a central support beam running down the center of the shop. I am planning on pulling up the second story floor and adding additional insulation to fill the 10" space the rest of the way for more insulation.

I am debating whether to go with an electric shop heater or a propane shop heater. We have propane at the house already, and the propane company said they would charge $3/ft to trench and install propane line to the barn. I would need to plumb the gas line to the shop. There is already an 80amp 220v sub panel to the barn which is what the shop runs off of.

The electric heaters I'm considering are these:

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/to...2118_200842118

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/to...2067_200842067

I haven't looked seriously at any of the propane heaters.

My heating requirements are as follows: The shop will not be heated full time, but when I'm out there I want it to be 50-60F. I need to be able to get it up to 70F for finishing and hold it there. I live in central Ohio, so the temperature ranges from -20-30sF most of the winter. Most of the time the temp doesn't seem to go below 20F when i'm home from work and ready to work in my shop. So I'm looking at most at a 55F degree temperature difference that the heater will have to overcome.

Is there a good way to determine roughly what it will cost to operate either a propane heater or the electric heater? We pay $1.599/gallon of propane currently, but I don't really know what my usage would look like. Most of the week I don't work in the shop, but I do get out there for an hour or two 2-3 nights of the week, and then more frequently on weekends. I'll be storing my glues and finishes in the basement of the house.

So TLDR: I am trying to figure out which of these heating options is going to be most economical in the long run to operate during typical Ohio winters for a hobbyist woodworker. Thanks!