Ahhhh...heat in the shop....

[Steve Ash]

I've always had to use those smelly kerosene Reddy heaters to keep my shop warm in the winter......not so now. I went down to the local Tractor Supply store and bought a propane fired radiant heat source a few days ago. My shop is 32 x 48 but sectioned to a 32 x 32 pretty well insulated area. The heater puts out 28,000 btu's which seems fine for the size I'm heating.

It sure is nice to go out in a warm shop now that doesn't stink of kerosene fumes.:)

[Karl Laustrup]

So when should I expect mine and how did you ship it? ;) :D

Good score. A similar heater will have to be on my short list before next winter I guess.

Oh, I see you changed your avatar, though I can't see much difference. ;) :D :eek:

Karl

[Steve Clardy]

Love my wood heat!!


Glad you are comfy now Steve. Sure is nice to have a warm shop.

[Jim Becker]

Someday I'll have something like that in the shop...enjoy!

[tod evans]

steve, what insurance carrier are you using? mine said they`d drop me if i even mentioned wood heat. tod

[Ed Lang]

One of the byproducts of burning propane is water. Watch the humidity and rust on the machines.

I head with a vented propane heater and you bet the shop is warm. congrats on getting some heat!!

I also backup my propane with wood. I have a 55 gal barrel stove outside of the shop and a metal box around it. I have a 8" hole cut in the top of the box and 8" duct work going into the shop. I installed a 8" duct booster fan in the duct and it draws air from around the box and pulls it into the shop. When I am burning scraps my propane does not come one once! Great savings and the fire is outside! Yes I do have to go outside to feed it now and then.

Next revision will be to blow inside air into the box and then push heated air back into the shop but this is a test run for this year. So far, it works great!

[Steve Ash]

Oh, I see you changed your avatar, though I can't see much difference. ;) :D :eek:

Karl

Karl, Yeah winters are hard on me....:D

Tod, it isn't wood heat it is propane like the one in the attachment, only I have a 100 lb. tank (Thanks to SMC member Keith July).

Ed, Thanks for the advice, I'll keep an eye out for that dreaded four letter word (rust)

I just came in from planing a stack of Ash lumber for window casing......nice to work in a T shirt when the white stuff is coming down outside the window.:)

[Steve Clardy]

steve, what insurance carrier are you using? mine said they`d drop me if i even mentioned wood heat. tod

No insurance Tod. It's all paid for.
Yea I know. It's a risk, but paying out 4-500.00 a month on shop insurance, I can live without it.
My wood heat is inside.
Have you considered a outside wood heater? Most insurance companies will insure if wood heat is outside, away from the structure.
Steve

[Steve Ash]

No insurance Tod. It's all paid for.
Yea I know. It's a risk, but paying out 4-500.00 a month on shop insurance, I can live without it.
My wood heat is inside.
Have you considered a outside wood heater? Most insurance companies will insure if wood heat is outside, away from the structure.
Steve

Ooppss....sorry wrong Steve, thought the question was directed at me....

[john whittaker]

Steve, It was 29 degrees here in Charlotte NC this AM and the weather folks reported "It's bitter cold outside so stay home if you don't have to be out today" Is 29 degrees considered "bitter cold" in your Charlotte????:p

Question....assuming your shop is "bitter cold" in the AM, how long does it take to warm up to a comfortable level using your propane heater?

Glad to see from your Avatar that you cleared up that nasty facial hair problem...looks much better:D

[Anthony Anderson]

Steve, Congrats on the heat. I can remember as a kid, having numb fingers and toes carrying in coal and wood, working on the the car trying to make it run, and swore I would have a heated garage when I grew up. Well I haven't grown up, but I do have that heated garage and workshop, and man do I appreciate it! Again, Congratulations. Bill

[Steve Ash]

Is 29 degrees considered "bitter cold" in your Charlotte????:p

Question....assuming your shop is "bitter cold" in the AM, how long does it take to warm up to a comfortable level using your propane heater?

Glad to see from your Avatar that you cleared up that nasty facial hair problem...looks much better:D

Heck no, 29 degrees is far from bitter cold here....my shop hasn't been bitter cold, but the day I got the heater it was -5 in the shop....a couple of hours later on full heat the shop was at 50. Now I just keep it on low after initial morning "warm up" and it is a comfortable T shirt climate in the shop.

Not only was the facial hair getting to be a problem...but I also needed glasses!:D

[John Miliunas]

Good for you, Steve! Nothing like working in a toasty shop, me thinks!:) Yeah, definitely watch out for the humidity. I'd suggest taking a cheap box fan, setting it up somewhere behind the heat source and turning it on "low". Turn it on and do not turn it off. Even when you leave!!! Just keeping the air circulating in there will help tons with keeping the dampness settling on tools. :) Of course, keeping a nice coat of wax on everything is pretty much a gim'me!:) :cool:

[Keith July]

Hey, Steve when did you start wearing glasses?
I wasn't sure if that was you until you took the hat off.
This will works pretty well...You use the propane tank and have a warm shop to work in and I get your wood scraps to feed my wood burner. So get to work cuz it's getting a little chilly in my shop.
Keith

[Steve Ash]

I get your wood scraps to feed my wood burner. So get to work cuz it's getting a little chilly in my shop.
Keith

Don't you make enough mistakes to heat your own shop?

[Frank Pellow]

Karl, Yeah winters are hard on me....:D
...
It is propane like the one in the attachment, only I have a 100 lb. tank
...

Steve, I also have a propane heater of about 30,000 BTU and I think that you will find the 100 pound tank doesn't last long. My tank is 450 pounds and that is a lot better (I started with two 60 pound tanks).

My propane heater is only used to make sure the heat never goes below 10 degrees (Celcius). I warm the shop to temperatures above that using the wood stove.

[Don Baer]

My propane heater is only used to make sure the heat never goes below 10 degrees (Celcius). I warm the shop to temperatures above that using the wood stove.


Thinking out loud...
hmmmm ((10/5)x9)+32=50.... now I understand...;)

[Jim Dunn]

Steve, with the temp flux.-5 to 50, do you get any moisture on your tools??

[Frank Pellow]

Thinking out loud...
hmmmm ((10/5)x9)+32=50.... now I understand...;)
Thanks Don.

When you folks say 50, I need to do the reverse calculation before I know how warm or cold that is. ;)

[Steve Ash]

Steve, with the temp flux.-5 to 50, do you get any moisture on your tools??

Jim, that fluctuation was just the first time I used it to get the shop warmed up. No I haven't noticed any moisture on my tools (3 days)...but I did take John's advice and turned on a squirrel cage fan I have in the shop tonight.

I turned the heat off the last couple of nights and the shop is still pleasant in the morning when I restart the heater.

[Frank Hagan]

The propane will put out about 1.5 gallons of moisture into the air for every 100,000 btu you burn ... so that's 3 - 4 hours of usage. Your air is probably dry to begin with, so over that period of time it probably is dissipating well.

The burner has an oxygen depletion sensor on it, right? If you bought it new it would have (they are required).

[RichMagnone]

I've always heard that propane heaters of that type can cause hazardous CO. True?