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

I had a heat pump installed 10 years ago, keep the shop about 55° in the winter, and use a kerosene wick type heater overnight (well up off the floor) if the temp really drops. Best part is the AC in the summer.

 

I use a wood stove with an old furnace blower that blows the heat out from around it. I hate to admit this, but I also have a tube that allows some used motor oil in to the firebox.....works pretty well at heating the 32' X 40' area - with an 11' ceiling. I'm usually only there on weekends, so during the week it gets pretty cold in there......I often wondered about a propane salamander to bring the temp up quicker, but worry about fumes......any comments?

 

I brought in an old Smudge pot used to warm the orchards around here...(actually, it was brand new...still silver galvanized) Gent gave it to me at a garage sale.

I stood it in the corner, cut an 8" hole in the upper metal wall, and ran a piece of 8" stovepipe 45 degrees out the hole, then straight up 4 ft. above the roof line.
(all metal shop, 25' X 25', 11' ceiling)

Pot starts right up with a little diesel, wood, paper, what have you...then burns drain oil, ATF, brake fluid, old wheel cyl cups, you name it. When hot it burns so clean there's nary a puff of smoke.
Gets hotter than a two dollar pistol. Warms up in 15 minutes...adjust the flue and you're sweatin'! Right here in Californee.

 

wood stove!

 

Just before I retired I built a 36x64x10 shop/garage very well insulated w/ hot water floor heat, set at 65, I love it!

 

Just out of curiousity guys using wood stoves does this have any affect on your insurance? There was a thread over on the Garage Journal about it and many said that they were told that if you have any wood burning stove in a detached building especially if it housed a vehicle as well their insurance would be void.

 

Most of us don't get the shops insured to what they are worth,with or without contents. I bet most of us insure the house, and "outbuildings" are covered, but for such a small amount; some sort of percentage of the total house appraisal.

So, if it goes up, and they deny payment,it's not going to be a huge loss as far as what they would have paid anyways. Besides, most of our chemicals, tanks, etc, would void any residential policy too.

If you tried to get full agreed coverage beforehand, it probably will not be acceptable to have tanks, chemicals, etc...so you are still out of luck.


Edit; It does not matter if you had an approved heating sysyem; it's doubtful there could be available coverage on our types of garages, with those tanks, chemicals, etc.

 

My insurance company said the same thing doesn't matter if it is UL Labeled or properly installed, its about a detached building, wood fire, gasoline ect....

Anybody put up a "curtain" wall to reduce the space they heat? I sold curtains to body shops to control overspray and dust, but I was hoping for say... R7?