Anybody use garage heaters?

[Makgecko2017]

Does anyone use garage heaters and what kind? I have a 3 car garage but the single bay is where the cobra will go. I have a ice shanty heater now, Mr Buddy - But was wondering what was out there.

Mike

[adubbelde]

Gas or Propane ceiling hung unit heaters are probably the most common. I've had them before and they are effective. In a cold climate the biggest concern is working on a cold floor. That's why my current garage has in floor hot water heat. The only problem I have is that I didn't plan for any kind of lift so installing one now would be almost impossible but not quite. Were I to allow the floor to get cold and then turn the heat on, I could scan with infrared to locate the tubing.

[first time builder]

I have a 48K BTU natural gas vented ceiling heater for my tall 2 car garage. Its a Mr. Heater brand. works good but due to high ceiling I have a ceiling fan to help push the hot air down. For a 3 car I would suggest the 75K BTU.
Enerco the maker of several heaters has great customer service. I had a failure early this year, I called them and then gave two options for repairs, I picked the flame sensor. It solved one problem but still no heat so replaced the Limit sensor still no heat so I called and they said because I had the older style circuit board they would send me a new one at no charge. The warranty expired two years ago. I only use the heater when I'm going to work in garage ,it has a thermostat but I don't leave it on 24/7 They also make it in Propane.
Great customer service. The heater price is reasonable the venting system gets expensve. You must use a double wall pipe system.
Kenny

[wareaglescott]

Gas or Propane ceiling hung unit heaters are probably the most common. I've had them before and they are effective. In a cold climate the biggest concern is working on a cold floor. That's why my current garage has in floor hot water heat. The only problem I have is that I didn't plan for any kind of lift so installing one now would be almost impossible but not quite. Were I to allow the floor to get cold and then turn the heat on, I could scan with infrared to locate the tubing.

Cant offer any heater advice and this is off topic but FYI I have a bend pac 4 post lift and it does not even need to be bolted into the floor. Just sits there. Very stable. In fact they even offer a caster kit so you can roll it around if you desire. (not with a car on it. Just to move it to a new position as needed)

[edwardb]

I had a Mr. Heater Big Maxx 45,000 BTU natural gas garage heater at my last house in a 400+ square foot garage. Two mostly uninsulated walls, insulated garage door, ceiling had house above, all drywalled. Would easily keep the garage at 70 degrees plus. Very comfortable even in cold Michigan weather. I'll be putting the same type heater in my new garage this summer. But a bigger size since the space is larger. Modine Natural Gas Hot Dawg heaters are similar. If you have natural gas available for hook-up, these kind of heaters are relatively economical. Both units require outdoor flue vents. I had a ventless natural gas heater in my garage a couple houses ago. Heated pretty OK, but strongly don't recommend that type. They throw off a bunch of moisture and rust everything in sight. I've gotten through this winter at our new place with a portable propane gas heater. Works OK, but getting the bottle filled repeatedly is a pain and pretty expensive.

[NAZ]

As I'm reading this it is snowing here in Northern Arizona and the forecast calls for a couple more days of snow this week. Yes it snows in Arizona and Flagstaff gets more annual snowfall than Anchorage Alaska. But I use portable propane heaters in my well insulated shop and find they work very well. The shop stays about 30-degrees warmer than the outside temp just with the insulation and when it's 10-degrees outside I may have to run the two heaters a couple hours to get the temp up to comfortable (then shut them off) and that usually lasts all day. My shop is 30'x50' and 14' high at the peak. It has spaces for four vehicles and then some so that gives you an idea of the area I'm heating. I could have easily put built-in heaters when building the shop but I like the portable heaters as they don't take up much space, can be moved around where needed, and can be stored in the shed when winter is over. On another note: adubbelde, if you get a four-post lift you don't have to anchor it to the floor. And you can get a caster kit for the lift and move it around or even outside to use it.

[Duke]

Have a Modine Natural Gas Hot Dawg for a 3 bay and love it. It helps that the garage is fully insulated and I have insulated garage doors too. Those propane powered flame thrower heaters work well in a pinch too. Good at breaking the chill.

[RR20AC]

I added in-floor heat, 240 volts. Poured the slab, added the insulating panels the company sells. The wires are imbedded in self leveling concrete over the top. About 75 cents a day to heat the room at 62 degrees constantly. No noise or cold spots. Rather expensive to purchase when adding the insulation board. Warmup in floor heating was the company.

[billjr212]

I'm sure there is a newer version of this, but like others, I also went with a Mr. Heater Big Maxx. I had a 75k BTU unit in my old 4 car garage and currently have a 50k BTU unit in my 3 car garage with ~10-11 ft. ceilings. It keeps the garage warm without a problem and heats it up quickly as well. I usually keep it around 50-55 in the winter, but can push the termostat up to 65-70 and work out there in short sleeves 10 minutes later.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LWW7V7K/

[first time builder]

Yep thats the same company GREAT SERVICE !!!! Replacement parts are also very economical. Again get the correct vent system !!!!
enny

[Ringo]

I put 3 8ft electric baseboard heaters in my three car garage. They are cheap to buy and cheap to operate because I only turn the on when I am in the shop. On a cold Ohio winter day they may only get up to 55 F but that comfortable for me in a long sleeve shirt. They also is no s danger of explosion if I am painting. If I need it warmer I bring in some portable heaters.

[PeteH]

I have a nat gas radiant heater mounted about 9 ft up on the back wall of a 2 car garage, (garage is 15 ft high) and keep it set at 55deg. When I go out to work, I plug in a kerosene turbine heater to get it up to 60. Plug it in every so often for a few minutes if putting in long hours. I also use a fan pointed up to circulate the warm air up there. The car on the lift stays warm!
The only time its hard to maintain temperature is if it is very windy, which comes right off Lake Erie in NW Oh.

[first time builder]

Electric here in NY is to expensive.

[Yama-Bro]

My house is all electric, so I installed one of these on my attached 2 1/2 car non-insulated garage...

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...FUWNfgodqGICvw

It does a pretty good job. I've considered leaving it on all them time, but currently just turn it on as needed. Sometimes I let it warm up for an hour or two before going out to the garage. Eventually I will insulate my garage, then I may try running it all the time. Our garage usually doesn't get below freezing since it's attached to our house, so mostly the heater is warming the air. The tools and floor are always cold. That part kinda sucks. there have been times that it was 20 degrees F outside and I've had the garage air up to 60 after a few hours of running the heater.

[steno]

In my last house I had a counter-flow forced air furnace that pulled air from the ceiling and blew the warm air across the floor. Was great in the winter cause the crap that fell off the car was all dried out the next time you got in the car. Kept it about 50 degrees and cranked it up when needed. Now a Mr Heater with two burners that mounts on a propane tank is all I need. A ceiling fan gets the heat to the floor. Also use a harbor freight foot mat to work on the floor for comfort for these old bones.

[GoDadGo]

No, but I'm seriously thinking about adding A/C.

......What's A Heater?

[Dave Howard]

Like a lot of you, I installed a 45,000btu natural gas unit heater. A Reznor V3 series UDAS. The heater went in before starting the project. Ran the gas line external around the house (who can't thread pipe together and follow code) and came in through the wall. The unit hangs overhead (code) and again, it's an easy do it yourself install. Cut another hole in the wall for the exhaust and bingo.....wrenching on the roadster at -40. Nat gas is cheaper than electrical. The infloor is a greater capital outlay than the overhead units but then can you put a price on warm feet in the winter?

Good luck. I wouldn't consider tackling a build in cold climate areas without a heated garage.

[cfriedman67]

I have a wood burning stove. Works well in NY.

[CraigS]

I have an add-on 16 x22 bay on the side of our standard 2 car garage. Has a 48 in wide doorway to the 2 car garage. I use a kerosene torpedo heater. Far from ideal but cheap to buy and run. I went to the fabric store and bought some of there thickest clear plastic to hang to block the doorway. Cut it into 4 vertical strips that overlap by about 1.5 inches. These have been great to keep heat and window AC in my bay. They are so easy to deal with that they stay in place permanently.

[Papa]

I have Modine "Hot Dawg" 75k BTU heaters (natural gas) in my garage and my shop. They are fantastic and very efficient. My shop has it's own gas meter, and in the coldest part of the winter it costs me about $30 a month to heat it. The building is 2x6 construction and fully insulated. The walls are R19 and ceiling is R38. My home is right at 6,100 ft. elevation, so I had the orifices configured for the altitude. I purchased from www.QCSupply.com, and was very happy with their service. Both heaters are horizontally vented (they can be vented through the roof as well), which makes DIY installation very simple. All you need is a 110v electric source, gas line, thermostat, and vent. The heaters can be close mounted as tight as 2" from the ceiling. I normally keep the thermostat at 50 degrees unless I'm working in the shop. I can heat my shop (1200 sq. ft.) from 50 to 65 degrees in about ten minutes.

[adubbelde]

Cant offer any heater advice and this is off topic but FYI I have a bend pac 4 post lift and it does not even need to be bolted into the floor. Just sits there. Very stable. In fact they even offer a caster kit so you can roll it around if you desire. (not with a car on it. Just to move it to a new position as needed)

Thanks, I thought that might be the case. I'll look into it when I get there. I'm just wiring the garage and will insulate and drywall next. Having gone through 2 winters with no insulation has been expensive though the thermostat only keeps it above freezing. Thankfully the winters aren't brutal here.

[Jim1855]

I got a used apartment sized lower efficiency heater that was pulled out when replaced with a high efficiency unit. I've had it in the garage for about 10 years. Works well in Michigan. I keep the garage at about 50F and turn it up an hour or two before working in the garage. I think my total investment was $300.
Jim

[erlihemi]

See #20 from Papa. I have the hds45 model. The S means separated combustion which is what I wanted for a tight garage that may see paint fumes, fuel, and fiberglass dust. It costs double the base hot dawg which is still way safer than a buddy heater which I also have. It's freakin cold here occasionally and I have serious wind.
I also have wood for back up. And a generator. I put pex in a deep 4000psi mix so I can hilti anchor 3-4" down without concern. The base has poly water barrier, 1" foam, and bubble rfoil then rerod with pex tied on 18" centers. I run the flow reverse to residential so the heat is in the middle and the edges are the cold return. I keep the radiant floor set for an ambient of 48 degrees so the floor is about 52 and return is about 58-60 degrees. This keeps supply glycol about 80 which is economical on propane. I have electric back up for freeze protection. Hot dawg sits at 40 during the week.
When I come in I bump the hot dawg to 60 and I heat a 30X30' with tall ceiling within an hour. The best part of the radiant floor is my tools and equipment doesn't stick to my hands...

[Driver_WT]

I have a heat pump in the back part of my garage which is 20' by 36' (so I have heat and AC). Not a cheap option for initial cost, but I also leave it on at 60 degrees in the winter to keep the cars warm

It can also heat the front of the garage (24' by 36') but not on the really cold days.

[gooch]

Yes go with heat pump.
2 ton simple split duct less would be the answer

[skidd]

^ That's what I did. 3 car with a 2-ton Mini-Split Heat-Pump and AC. Down here in S.Texas.. the heat never gets turned on though.

[Ray]

Don't need one now (San Diego) but when we lived in the Central Valley area I used a unit that attached to a 5-gallon propane tank. It got our 2-car garage warm enough to work in wearing a long sleeved shirt.

Just heated up enough that sweatshirts etc. were fine.

Ray