shop heat

[72kool]

Im sorry, I know this has been brought up before and ive read through many post and threads. but I still need help to decide whats best. I want to heat my garage and trying to find the best solution. the garage is a 24x22x10 with (unknown rating) insulated and sheetrocked walls and ceiling. This is my shop, paint booth and man cave and it can get as low as -15* out but average 20* in the winter. i have decided that 45k btu will be enough but what style of heater to be safe? i want to run natural gas since i have a connection beside the garage, but will consider electric if it works good. what do you guys suggest?

[_Ogre]

picked this 80k btu gas heater off of craigslist, it is 90% efficient with outside air hookup (no exposed flame)
my only problem is the drain line freezes up below 25*, fixed with the addition of a T and a bucket inside
i keep a 20x30 portion of my shop heated all winter, 80,000 btu is a little much to maintain heat
but if your not going to heat your shop all the time and try to bring a -15* shop up to 60* the 45k btu heater may not be enough

[72kool]

how much room does that take up? i dont want to take up too much room but i like the ease of use and efficiency of your heater. i want to keep it at 50 degrees all time so i can keep the wifey's vehicle warm, and then 65+ when im working in there.

[Jrainman]

at this point with a finished garage I agree with Ogre, 90+ furnace would be a good choice ,but with a little more duct work then he has. as he stated all air going to fire box is from outside making this a good choice for a garage and yes efficient ,

As far as the condensate yes they produce a lot of water, As ogre stated the line will freeze easily if you gravity drain it , A small condensate pump must be used to keep the line from freezing , little giant condensate pumps are a good choice for furnace applications.

also most 90+ furnaces can be hung in the air in a horizontal position. if you are looking to save some space on your floor area.

A 60,000 BTU furnace would be the size I would be looking at , just because you have the unknown R factor in your walls if it 2x4 construction the best you have is r13 but most likely r11 , 2x6 wall construction would be about r19, but again remember you have garage door or doors also that most likely have a very low r value .

if you were just building a new garage radiant heat would be the best set up would be the best .

[_Ogre]

but with a little more duct work then he has

you like that? did you ???

yeah, a little lacking but it's worked for 10 yrs
always mean to extend it up and through the shop until i priced new duct work
worked hvac for many years and got use to semi free duct work

i do agree that 60k btu may be better, especially on those cold days where the 45 may never shut off

[Advanced Design]

How about a hanging heater? Years ago I had an attached 24 x 36 garage in the suburbs of Chicago that I kept heated with an appropriately sized Reznor. We kept it at 50 all the time and easily bumped the heat up when working. The garage had been built with gas line and exhaust plus hangers so it was an easy install.

Pic found on Google.

[Jrainman]

Originally Posted by Advanced Design

How about a hanging heater? Years ago I had an attached 24 x 36 garage in the suburbs of Chicago that I kept heated with an appropriately sized Reznor. We kept it at 50 all the time and easily bumped the heat up when working. The garage had been built with gas line and exhaust plus hangers so it was an easy install.

Pic found on Google.

Reznor unit heaters do work fantastic ,but the open flame is the drawback on his situation being he will be painting in the said garage . KABOOM

[Advanced Design]

Originally Posted by Jrainman

Reznor unit heaters do work fantastic ,but the open flame is the drawback on his situation being he will be painting in the said garage . KABOOM

I blew right past the painting part....not a good solution.

[72kool]

Originally Posted by Advanced Design

I blew right past the painting part....not a good solution.

haha i might be blowing past a few things too

i found a (goodman?) i think, 80,000 btu gas furnace at alpine heating for 540.00 and its the same size as one of the heaters you are talking about. thinking about one of these because i can take heat to the other side of the garage when i am able to and i want to build a bathroom out there also and need heat in there

[mrtoni]

I use a military surplus barracks heater. theyre cheap and w=burn waste oil or kerosene. matt

[Jrainman]

Originally Posted by 72kool

haha i might be blowing past a few things too

i found a (goodman?) i think, 80,000 btu gas furnace at alpine heating for 540.00 and its the same size as one of the heaters you are talking about. thinking about one of these because i can take heat to the other side of the garage when i am able to and i want to build a bathroom out there also and need heat in there

over the years Goodman HVAC products have gotten a lot better in quality , Not my first choice in HVAC equipment but they have come a long way over the years.
I think the goodman 80,000 btu furnace you are looking at is a 80% efficient furnace ,I am going by the price you are posting ,

80% furnaces is not what I would recommend the fire box is open flame in the furnace . and if you are planning on having flammables in your garage I would be concerned .

90 % or + furnaces have a closed combustion chamber that is fed by outside air . Goodman does make if I remember a 92% and a 96% in there line up of furnaces. they are higher in price because they have a much higher EER rating saving you on fuel cost. the 96% is the top of the line with variable speed blowers and 2 stage burners.

[pwdcougar]

Originally Posted by mrtoni

I use a military surplus barracks heater. theyre cheap and w=burn waste oil or kerosene. matt

Got a picture or a link for one of these?

Thanks

Paul

[mrtoni]

Heres a link to an eBay auction. I got mine for 200 bucks. It's vented to outside and will drive me out of my 20x30 shop 10 foot ceilings. I use co detector just in case

[pwdcougar]

Originally Posted by mrtoni

Heres a link to an eBay auction. I got mine for 200 bucks. It's vented to outside and will drive me out of my 20x30 shop 10 foot ceilings. I use co detector just in case

I don't think the link got attached!

Paul

[mrtoni]

http://m.ebay.com/itm/400858365341?_mwBanner=1

[pwdcougar]

Thanks! That would work great for me. I've been searching but have only seen the smaller drum style.

Paul