Winter's here. Do you heat your shop? How?

Just got the propane tank filled, 2.49/gal in NC. 90 gallons - usually lasts 3 to 4 seasons to "de-chill" a 4 car garage part-time.

How do you 'take the chill off' or don't you bother?

 

I turn on the dryer and un hook the vent hose. Gets toasty!

 

Every 15 minutes I do a lap around the garage. It's easy now that I'm 26, but I'm afraid it might get more difficult as I get older...

 

Upper 60s here today.

I have a quartz heater that and a kwerosene will keep my garage warm enough to work in evern when the temps drop down to the single digits.

 

I am lucky enough to have central heat and air in my shop. I have been to some shops that take an air handler from a house and set it in a corner wire it up and rig a propane bottle to it for the gas. Or if it is electric they just wire it up.

 

Direct vent propane furnace in the barn. Costs more and uses more here in Mass. I keep it at 50* and crank it up some when I'm in there.

 

I use a paraffin (kerosene to you guys) Aladdin Blue Flame heater from the 60's. Kicks out a lot of heat (3kw), has a safety device in case it is knocked over and is suitably old timey.... A fully refurbed one from a specialist cost about $70.

I don't know if they are available over in the US but I can thoroughly recommended one for anything up to a 4 car garage. All the usual warnings about a naked flame heater apply.

 

I long baseboard heater.....set it on low and keep the doors shut.

 

Wood furnace. Electric forced air and a backup 100# propane bottle with a Mr Heat.

 

Had radiant heat put in the floor & A/C in the wall to keep things warm & cool. No worrying about fires or heaters taking up space. Plus a nice warm floor to lay on. I'm hoping it's going to be great if I ever get it the air out of it.

 

A 200,000 BTU forced air heater ( I use kerosene.) To warm it up, but I maintain with a homemade woodburner with the squirrel cage fan off a swamp cooler. This is my first year for the forced air unit. It is hot but to loud. The woodburner works great it just takes forever to heat my shop 40x60 12 ft ceiling

 

Natural gas, ceiling hung Mr Heater. Warms my two car garage up pretty quick although I have to admit I have not tried it when we get below -40 yet.

 

Ahhhh yes, it's that time of year again!

Time for the annual "How do you heat your shop" thread.

Just like last year, I heat with a Modine Hot Dawg garage furnace.

Mmmmm..... TOASTY!!!

 

Being a glass maker my main glass furnace runs at 2000 degrees & the gloeryhole furnace runs at 1800 degrees & 2 electric annealing at 900 degrees this is all in the back shop attached to the main garage is always hot even with the doors open & snowing in Illinois . But the Nicor gas Co ComEd love me $$$$$$ ! When I am making glass & my buddy's like working in the shop in the dead of winter in t-shirts .

 

Yes. Radiant heat in the floor. Sometimes I sleep out there, it's so nice.

 

You guys with attached garages DON'T BURN YOUR HOUSE DOWN WITH A POS KEROSINE HEATER!!! just sayin!

 

I used to sell the Aladdin Blue flame heaters when they were manufactures in England,,they were and still are great little heaters.

I always like the fact that they are porcelain glazed and you can cook on them too!

I still have two of them but rarely use them,,when they outsourced them to Iran they turned into crap!





Fortunately,when I built my new shop I installed a heat & air,,so as long as we have electricity I am comfortable,,the Aladdin is used for back up. HRP

 

I've got in-floor heat like Big-Jim. 24x26 garage runs off a 10 gallon electric hot water heater (using antifreeze) and a 3000watt element. 62°F even when its 20 below, and water dries on the warm floor. Best way to heat a shop I've seen.
Ralph

 

A small 220V wall mounted electric heater with a fan. Very well insulated too.
The floor still gets cold though.

 

I just put a sweater on. When it gets real cold i put on a jacket, pants and shoes. Its tough but i still get stuff done.

 

I use a pellet stove

 

Plus the Iranian ones would stop working 5 times a day and you can't cook pork on it!

 

It does sound tough, I'm curious, how cold is "real cold" in San Diego? I have a 500 gallon propane tank sitting by my shop, takes three fills for a normal Northern Minnesota winter.

 

65000 BTU ceiling mounted Modine Hot Dawg for the 3 car garage/shop set at 40 degrees all winter. It's alot more incentive to get out to work if stuff is not frozen and radiating cold. Just bump it a little for extended work periods or hooded sweatshirt for short periods. Have a add on wood furnace in its own enclosure that is connected to house forced air system, when in use I get some residual heat to the garage as well. Also adequately insulated, a must for Minnesota.

 

I have a 32'x48' garage that I recently put up. I also have radiant in the floor but it's not completed it yet. I will be using a 40 gal elect. water heater with glycol in it. I am looking forward to getting it completed and fired up. My buddy that talked me into going this route claims it will be an amazing system and I supposedly won't even have snow around the perimeter of the foundation.

 

Wood stove, one for the house and one for tha garage, I just measured my wood yesterday, 20 cords, I don't care how cold it gets this year.

 

oil fired, radiant heated floor, that hopefully will be tied into the outdoor wood boiler before 2013.

 

how much do you figure it costs to run that all winter?

 

South facing glass service station doors do the trick when the sun is out, and I have a "black-box" wood-stove too. No painting when it's cold.

Brian

 

Old wood stove keeps it nice and toasty.