Hi all. I've been exiled to the garage for all my "goofing around with tools and stuff" from here on out. I really hated losing my sanctuary. Sigh... Anyway, my question is - in addition to being smaller, having less receptacles, no seperation from the rest of the house and just being all around stupider (yes, i'm being childish about this), my garage is roasting in the summer and fuh-reezing cold all winter. I have pretty good insulated doors but i fear the rest of the walls likely don't have much in them. It's on the list. In the short term, anyone have a recommendation for a decent shop heater? As i mentioned earlier, my new shop has limited power (and is stupider in general) than my old. It's normal two car garage size. Thanks amigos
First step is insulation. You can never go wrong there. I use a 4800 W construction heater. It needs 240 V @ 30 A to plug into. I have R20 all around and insulated doors, but the large space is no match for a meager 4800 Watts. So I basically point the heater at me when I am working. Then anything that can or needs to be done in the house goes in there, say epoxy work or honing. Good boots, toque, mats to keep the feet off the cold floor, nip of Scotch ;-) etc. Above my assembly bench I use a 250 W infrared lamp. Similar to those seen at the buffet carving station. Farm supply places sell them as brooding bulbs. That helps keep my hands warm-ish when doing the fiddly-bits with bare hands. Have you thought about putting a wood burning stove in? My friend has one in his garage/shop and damn that feels good on a cold winter day. And it's pretty much powered by old pallets. That would be my second choice over a proper gas furnace. I wish I could be of more help. Working in winter without good heat is tough. Dan
I guess I need to rip down some walls. Or, if the cavity permits, I guess I could blow some in. I really would prefer (ha, wood prefer - hee hee) a wood burning stove but, I'm not sure it's legal in a garage here. The code is a bit vague. I was thinking that I could give up on it ever being an actual garage (at least for the time I live here) and go for it. There's also potential issues with neighbours and smoke/smell etc. Living in town sucks. Why did I do this again? Thanks Dan.
I also use a construction heater, but I'm in a 1 1/2 garage and I insulated the heck out of it. Even in -30 I can work in shirtsleeves after it runs for half an hour or so. If I know I'm spending a lot of time out there, I'll leave it plugged in at it's minimum setting. Then the place heats up in just a few minutes, and my hands don't stick to my files!
Cool. What size do you use? Theres a huge range in prices and specs on those things. Never sure how cheap to go. Heaters seem to be one of those things where price is a really good indicator of quality or effectiveness. And, to me, electrical jargon is like trying to read Shakespeare in Klingon. <I apologize for any comments that may have been interpreted as insensitive or hurtful to any Klingon members of CKM>
I can't remember what size the heater is offhand, but it's likely similar to what Dan mentioned. I got it a Princess Auto years ago for $30 or so.
Mine is like this: https://www.homedepot.ca/en/home/p.4800w240v-construction-heater-almond.1000116310.html They will go on sale periodically; although probably not in the winter time.
I ran hot water to my previous garage and ran it through a hydronic heater which is just a heat exchanger with a fan. Had a circulating pump running on the hot water heater in the house, it kept my insulated 22 x 24 garage at a constant 5 degrees C through the winter for minimal cost. Of course I had to dig a trench and insulated it from the house. I had a 240v heater to warm things up to around 15 to work in there but it was expensive to run. I still have the hydronic heater sitting on a shelf, took it with me when I moved. Current shop is insulated and has a gas heater so no use for it right now.
