Heater in ther garage...

DaGonz · 11-02-03, 01:44

On the shout section of Autopia's home page, a few Autopians are asking about installing heaters in their garage.

If you are installing a heater that uses natural gas, fuel oil, propane or kerosene...it must be properly vented to the outdoors...justopening a window won't do! The big problem here is carbon monoxide.

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas that is deadly. It displaces oxygen in the bloodstream and has an affinity for hemoglobin. It will bind with it 210 times faster than oxygen.

Symptoms of CO poisoning are persistent headache, and nausea. High levels of CO can result in instantaneous unconciousness and death.

The maximum allowable CO level in a residential dwelling is 9 PPM, in a workplace it is 35 ppm for an 8 hour period.

Whatever kind of heater you use, you must maintain a distance of at least 3 feet away from any type od combustible materials.

Check with your local building department and fire department to make sure that the heater meets building and fire codes.

Aurora40 · 11-02-03, 03:08

I have one of those electric oil-filled radiators, which is what I was posting about in the "shout" box. No fumes, it is away from stuff, and it never gets so hot that you can't put your hand on it. Good tips, though.

Shiny Lil Detlr · 11-04-03, 05:27

I need to find out about installing a 220 line to my garage because I found a heater that runs on electric, it just needs 220 and 20 amps to work

Brad B. · 11-04-03, 05:41

Great post, Gonzo. Words to live by.

DaGonz · 11-05-03, 05:12

Thanks, Brad.

Ask someone if they would leave their car in the garage with the motor running, and they would look at you like you had two heads and say no; but they don't think that putting an unvented fossil fuel fired heating unit in their garage will cause any problems...go figure!

TOGWT · 11-05-03, 06:46

I use an Electrical Infrared Heater: 3,000 Btu’s, 110v (includes a halogen light), 22”w x 11”h x 3”d and rotates 360o (groitsgarage.com P/T 45503 $80.

Hope this helps.

Experience unshared; is knowledge wasted…/

justadumbarchitect

LightngSVT · 11-17-03, 08:05

TOGWT, How does that heater work? Do you think it would help in a 2.5 car garage in a Michigan winter? Ive wanted to get a decent heater, but have yet to find one.

kgb · 11-17-03, 08:25

I have a propane one but my garage is so insulated I only run it about 5 minutes before a job. I do leave the door cracked a bit but I guess that is not enough?

tom p. · 11-17-03, 09:53

I've got one of these kerosene heaters and have used them for a long time:

I bought this one last season and it's much cleaner than the previous unit. CO poisoning certainly is a serious issue and I keep a CO detector in the garage. I also keep a door(s) cracked open at all times and avoid using it unless necessary. This new unit is really much better than earlier units from a smoke/odor standpoint. You can run some of the syn kerosene fuels in it and there is no odor.

My garage (3 bay) has very high ceilings and there isn't really any other practical way to heat it.

kgb · 11-17-03, 10:01

Quote:

Originally posted by tom p.
I've got one of these kerosene heaters and have used them for a long time:

I bought this one last season and it's much cleaner than the previous unit. CO poisoning certainly is a serious issue and I keep a CO detector in the garage. I also keep a door(s) cracked open at all times and avoid using it unless necessary. This new unit is really much better than earlier units from a smoke/odor standpoint. You can run some of the syn kerosene fuels in it and there is no odor.

My garage (3 bay) has very high ceilings and there isn't really any other practical way to heat it.

I got the same thing but it runs on propane. Those things get nice and hot fast!

scottabir · 11-17-03, 10:07

I need one or three!!!

tom p. · 11-17-03, 10:18

Quote:

Originally posted by 2001civicex
I got the same thing but it runs on propane. Those things get nice and hot fast!

Yeah, I haven't found any other way to heat the garage space. I can get the temp up to 70F on very cold days....that' nice!

2001Civic, how long does the propane tank typically last you?

Keresone has gone up dramatically in price over the past few years. i buy the stuff in 2.5 gallon containers from the local hardware as it is much cleaner than going to the gas station...much less odor. The syn kerosene is/was ~$7 per gallon but very clean with no odor.

I probably go thru 10 gallons of kerosene during the typical winter season. It's real nice to get a rapid warmup after washing the cars....I hand-wash all year 'round.

BRRrrrrrrrrrr...