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Suburbia garage heaters

Smokinthehippies

Smokinthehippies

3/4 ton status
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Location
Millard, NE
for the guys that work out of 2/3 car garages what are you doing for heat?

My end goal is to install a forced air heater hopefully by next winter, but in the mean time I’d like to accomplish some stuff this winter.

Space heater?
Propane tank heat lamp?

What works good. What’s worth staying away from.
My garage and doors are insulated but I don’t like working in 45 degree shop with cold concrete and truck parts.
 
I use a torpedo type heater. I've got an old "garage" with old wood slats for walls. There's gaps everywhere. But the heater can warm it up nicely. It's noisy though, and kinda smelly because I'm usually burning diesel. There's less smell with kerosene.
 
few good heater threads in the tool shed section .

here is mine . works 100% / quiet for the size it is / good bang for the buck . https://ck5.com/forums/threads/shop-heater-it-s-alive.323287/

only thing i want for a upgrade is the thermostat . i want one you can program the on/off temp range . NOT the time of day .
 
oh ya post #7 in my thread has the place i ordered from . call them for the best deal all in 1 for unit / exhaust pipe and little stuff . i was going to order online but had a question so i called and they saved me almost 100 bucks off what i was going to get that would have worked but some me another exhaust kit that was even better and less money and faster install . and they can do the propane conversion before ship if you need that for fuel .
 
portable forced air propane burner like the construction ones on the shop side...then I have a kerosene heater on the small work room side..use one or both depending on what Im doing
 
I have a Hot water hanging unit in my garage. It runs on its own loop of my in floor radiant heating. I keep the garage at 45* with it during the winter. Kick it up a bit if I know I will be out there for a while. If you have a boiler system already in your home its a great way to go

IMG_20190112_144721.jpg
 
With the propane burners is there any issue with fumes? I don’t want to have to crack the garage door for fresh air as that would defeat the point.
 
Smokinthehippies said:
With the propane burners is there any issue with fumes? I don’t want to have to crack the garage door for fresh air as that would defeat the point.
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I use a propane torpedo heater when I am working. It's not my long term solution, but I didn't get my gas line this fall before it started to freeze. It heats up the shop fine and as long as your not working in there for days on end you should be fine.
They do emit carbon dioxide / moxide so it can kill you. They don't smell....But most garages are not sealed up that tight that it would be issue.
 
TreeFarm said:
I have a Hot water hanging unit in my garage. It runs on its own loop of my in floor radiant heating. I keep the garage at 45* with it during the winter. Kick it up a bit if I know I will be out there for a while. If you have a boiler system already in your home its a great way to go

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Who makes that? Name brand?
 
I use one of these .....
barrel stove.jpg

I also made a upright barrel stove from another 55 gallon drum to use in my "BTU room",a 4x10 office space I use as a storage area for my motors manuals and to relax in,watch TV,read up on service instructions..it takes up much less room than a horizontal stove,and I made it like a Tempwood stove,which has pipes inserted thru the top to let incoming air in,I put 3 pipes in triangle fashion and it works very well..

I have 2 torpedo heaters,a small 55,000 btu one and a big 110,000 btu,but I cant use them much due to the fumes,they set off my asthma and I start gagging..the smaller one works well,but last time I used the big one it kept crapping out after it had run a few minutes and blowing dense white smoke out (like my 6.2 after a cold start :blush:),I think the igniter is failing,I cleaned all the fuel system and tank out twice and no rust or other crap was in it anywhere.

I probably will just scrap it seeing I dont like using it and also feel its a waste of money ,since it may not cure the issue..It was given to me ,so I'm not out anything by getting rid of it..it guzzles fuel fast too,the smaller one is much more efficient and heats the garage well enough--I use that to get the garage warm while the wood stove is getting going..then just turn it off and use the stove..

I had a propane torpedo heater,that thing was useless too---it would only run about 10 minutes,then frost up and the flame would blow out--but propane kept right on escaping into the room!..it also created a lot of condensation on the metal arches of the quonset and would start dripping..
I was told a bigger tank like a 100 lb one would solve the frosting up problem,but I decided to sell it --propane isn't cheap and its a hassle getting a big tank refilled ..the tanks aren't cheap either..

Also had one of those propane heaters that looks like a trash can given to me--I tried using it with a gas grille 20 lb bottle,it wasn't enough to feed it--then I read the label on it,it said it "requires THREE 100 lb tanks connected in series to properly run it--that's going to be put out at the curb with a "free" sign on it..

I don't like wasting money on fuel when I have almost 2 acres of woods with a lot of downed or dead standing trees I can burn--can get as many free pallets I want locally too..the wood stoves can be a pain,they heat up the place slowly,and you must keep an eye on them and put in more wood before the fire dies down too much,but the heat is fantastic..
They could be a hazard if any fuel or oil spills happen though,but I haven't had any troubles so far,I'm pretty careful,and a torpedo heater is probably even more dangerous,really..
 
beags86 said:
I use a propane torpedo heater when I am working. It's not my long term solution, but I didn't get my gas line this fall before it started to freeze. It heats up the shop fine and as long as your not working in there for days on end you should be fine.
They do emit carbon dioxide / moxide so it can kill you. They don't smell....But most garages are not sealed up that tight that it would be issue.
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I use a propane torpedo heater as well. It heats my 2 car garage nicely enough but yes you do need to keep some fresh air coming in or I'll start to get headaches. Usually cracking a door will be enough air exchange to be safe.
Before my 2 car garage, I had a 1 car under my condo that I ran that heater in for a few hours with the door closed and it set off the CO alarm in the hallway outside the garage at midnight... Sorry neighbors... :doah:
 
My friend uses a 75,000 BTU torpedo heater (kero/diesel type) to heat his work bay in his shop...
His has a thermostat,unlike all the others he'd had in the past--which at first he liked,because it shuts off by itself after it reaches the temp you set it for..its "set it and forget it"..

Unfortunately that proved to be hazardous--more than once the heater shut itself off just before closing time,and he forgot to unplug it or manually shut the switch off...a short time after he'd gone home,the garage cooled off and the heater came back on,the temps outside dropped into the teens,so the heater couldn't get the room warm enough to shut itself back off--it ran all night,it was on when he came to work the next day!..the second time it ran out of fuel...

Same thing has happened with his compressor--he forgot to turn the breaker off so it couldn't start up--and he went home ,the compressor was up to full pressure ,so it was not running when he left..
During the night the air hose had a bad spot where slag from welding burnt it--it failed,and the compressor ran all night !..was lucky the motor or pump didn't fail,both were very hot when he came into work the next day,and it was still running..
His electric bill went up $20 that month!..

Yeah,he's now a lot more careful when he locks up for the night--but we are human,and its easy to overlook things like that when your busy and have 100 other things on your mind..

I wired my garage "temporarily" 25 years ago,I set it up so when I shut the lights off as I walk out the door,all power to everything gets cut off--only one outlet on the switch box stays "hot" so I can plug in my truck's block heater or a battery charger...
But I have to remember to turn the lights off when I leave..
I have failed too more than once..:doah:..
 
I rarely get the time to work in the garage lately so I don't think it would be worth it to invest in anything.
When I can take the heat or the cold I work, most times now I am working on the driveway or at the parking on my big rig.
Had to work under the rain, snow and even scorching heat in the middle of summer so being in an enclosed garage in the shade is a luxury already
 
I screwed up when I didn't build the garage until I was in my mid 30's--by then,years of wrenching outside in the cold,lying in slush to do a clutch job,etc,took a big toll on my back,which has been junk since birth due to scoliosis (curvature)...

I should have built a garage FIRST,then bought all the vehicles I ended up having (and wish I'd kept now !)...but life didn't work out that way..

Now I have the garage,a heat source,but don't even feel like going out there or doing much--I managed to fill it to the gills with tractors,engines,hardware,tools,and other assorted "junk"to the point I cant even park a vehicle in it..
I get highly discouraged when I do go out there and attempt to repair something now,and usually end up bashing my shins on something or do myself other harm..
I used to practically live out there,before my parents passed away,but since then now that I have the house to myself,I tend to stay in the house 90% of the time..It would not be this way if I felt better!..

Many of my friends are envious,saying "If I were you and had that garage , I'd be out there building a hot rod,tractor or "something"...
I would too,if it didn't feel like I took 5 years off my life just trying to do the repairs my truck needs to remain a daily driver..
It feels like only a few years ago I built the garage--but it was 1992!..27 years has flown by so fast,it is scary..:screwy:
 
Keep in mind that burning fuels directly into your workspace also creates moisture (a normal combustion byproduct). This makes tools sweat, but also works against trying to dry the snow and ice you haul in on the cars. An outdoor vented system is more work to set up, but is also safer and possibly out of your way. For a quick jobs or situations where you won't really heat the whole shop a portable heater placed near you can make a big difference, though.
 
I bartered for a pellet stove. I have to start it a little earlier than I thought, but will crank out the heat steady. If I run it all day, it'll heat the 3 car garage to almost 70°. All day costs about a full bag, $5.
 
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