I'm building a new 30' x 40' pole barn I'm going to use as a shop to refurbish my old Oliver tractors. I was going to install radiant heat in the floor, until I found out the cost, and read all the horor stories of leaks, where they had to tear up the concrete floor to fix. So now I'm thinking about waste oil heat. We average around 350 gallons of used oil a year, here on the farm, and we're always looking for someone to take it. Anyone have any opinions on this type of heater? Pro's / Con's?
- Thread starter Row Crop
- Start date
I'd put in the tubing. Use LOTS of separate runs, so if one ever fails you don't have to try to repair it. You will appreciate the warm/dry floor.
Once the tubing is in place you can "feed" it from any heat source you chose.
If you intend on using waste oil heat, the trick is to keep the oil CLEAN and free of water or antifreeze. Keeping a waste oil furnace going when fed contaminated oil is NOT a pleasant experience!
Once the tubing is in place you can "feed" it from any heat source you chose.
If you intend on using waste oil heat, the trick is to keep the oil CLEAN and free of water or antifreeze. Keeping a waste oil furnace going when fed contaminated oil is NOT a pleasant experience!
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
Where you at? if your close I'll take the used oil.
I've had a reznor waste oil heater for 4 years,no mess,no fuss,no problems,just free heat.Your thinking of the old models that were a pain.I use those plastic shuttle tanks for storage.I shut mine off at night and only heat in the daytime when i'm working.I use 2 shuttles to heat my 42x70 building all winter.It's getting harder to find oil,but i can usually get 300-400 gallon from neighbors and advertising in local papers.Mine is 150000 btu.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
We have radiantheat in 70x100 shop and wouldn't have any other type.
Put in the tubing! After working in a shop with floor heat you will never go back!The two biggest expences of floor heat in the insulation under the floor[saves enengy] and the labor to install everything[tubing]. to get my system going i found a used boiler coming out of an older house[$200]and ran it a couple years than i bought a new waste oil boiler. works great low maintenanceand if set up with a little thought you don't hardly touch any oil
I Have an OMNI (Washington State) going on its 9 th year.... Great heater....Lousy company to deal with! I have an hr. meter on it and clean the ash out about every 100 hrs of burning. I use rubber gloves an a respirator when doing the cleaning as I don't think the ash is too healthy. Takes about 1/2 hr to clean. In trade for that I have a warm shop all winter long (30x50+ office)
Seen lots of floor heat and if I built another shop it would have it in it. The piping they use today, if properly installed, is going to be there as long as the concrete. Good product and proper installation are the key here!
Good luck,
Andy
Seen lots of floor heat and if I built another shop it would have it in it. The piping they use today, if properly installed, is going to be there as long as the concrete. Good product and proper installation are the key here!
Good luck,
Andy
showcrop
Well-known Member
I have no experience but I have read probably thirty threads here about it and I would say that they run probably thirty to one in favor of the in floor radiant. I have a 40x50x17 shop that I heat with a propane wall mount catalytic heater. Last winter it cost me $375.00. This low cost is made possible through the partitioning off of a smaller insulated interior room, where 95% of my time is spent. If I need heat in the outer part it is with a propane salamander. Other than that the outer part stays above 38 degrees even at 0 outside from only the heat released from the inner room.
While I don"t have a radiant shop floor (my shop is still a gravel base... no bldg yet), we have done a few radiant heat projects. They key, like everything else, is in the prep and installation.
I know of some who store their toys in a shop and to keep them in good shape, they installed the radiant tubing but run it off a hot water heater. This system is setup to keep the area above 40 deg. but not too much higher. Their operational cost is very low. May not be what you"re looking for but may also be an economical option as far as utility costs.
I"ve been thinking about heat for my shop when I get it built and have been considering using a radiant heat mat (electric) in just a designated area. We use them a lot in the high end residential bathrooms. Nothing like setting cabinets on a nice warm tile floor. In a shop I would have it where I would be working on something and the t-stats for them are completely programmable so I would only be using electricity when needed. May not do much for heating the shop, but will take the edge off when you"re working.
Good Luck.
I know of some who store their toys in a shop and to keep them in good shape, they installed the radiant tubing but run it off a hot water heater. This system is setup to keep the area above 40 deg. but not too much higher. Their operational cost is very low. May not be what you"re looking for but may also be an economical option as far as utility costs.
I"ve been thinking about heat for my shop when I get it built and have been considering using a radiant heat mat (electric) in just a designated area. We use them a lot in the high end residential bathrooms. Nothing like setting cabinets on a nice warm tile floor. In a shop I would have it where I would be working on something and the t-stats for them are completely programmable so I would only be using electricity when needed. May not do much for heating the shop, but will take the edge off when you"re working.
Good Luck.
Bryan inIowa
Member
Waste oil heater is all I use . But wish I had in floor heat . New tubing is pretty much leak proof . I have a "Black Gold " furnace , think they are called Ecotech now. . Had it for 12 years . No mess , burns clean , simple maintinance . Here in Iowa , I go through roughly 1500 gallons of oil each season . I leave it set at 65 degrees night and day . I'm always looking out for used oil as I don't generate enough . Most are set up now so you can us as boiler or water heater . Dream shop ,,,in floor heat /waste oil boiler . Before my boiler some monthly gas bills hit $700
welled deers
Member
Recommend radiant in floor heat. I have used it for 10+ years with no problems and love the warm and dry floor. The key is correct installation with separte runs. I have run heavy equipment including dozers on it with no problems. My concrete is 6" thick and the tubing is in sand under the concrete. Good luck
Walt in Jaxn Tn.
Well-known Member
My sister, brother in law and I visited a Menonite seed store north east of Versailles, MO. about 4 years ago. My sister wanted me to see how he heated his store. He had a corn furnace heating a hot water boiler piped to tubes in the floor. I believe he raised his own corn so, knowing how much it cost per year was hard to trace.
Clodbuster
Member
We have run Lanair ones for 20 years. The newer ones with better electronics are much better and need less baby sitting and fixing.. That said, it is always a couple hundred to a few hundred average parts costs per year. Very expensive stove, messy fuel source, pain in the arse to take apart and clean at least once per year. But the fuel is cheap if you can find it!!! I think when this one dies we will switch to something else.
dixon boy RL
Member
54x75x16 shop use radiant tube heaters.thats the only way i would go. in floor i am sure is nice but my shop originally held grain. cementwas already there. Most of the oilwaste heaters that were in shops in my area have been taken out. the equipment dealer that I also set up machinery for in my shop has also done away with a large unit. good luck
Got waste oil in my dads shop . cheap but a pain in th a$$ very finicky. works for a month straight and then is out every morning for a month.I have floor heat in My new shop .Costs $150 a month to heat via electric boiler (south Dakota)50x50x14.absolutly trouble free and clean Paul
Dad bought a Shenandoah brand about 12 years ago and other than routine maintenance he didn't have any major problems for nearly 8 of those years. By that time the burner was giving problems, the origional mfg wasn't in business anymore, so he went with a replacement burner unit from Clean Burn. Other than that I believe the only problems came from dirty oil which was taken care by installing a spin on filter past the pump instead of relying on the suction screen supplied with the furnace, and raising the suction tube up off the bottom of the tank about a foot to keep it from picking up water.
As far as the amount of oil you need, I think his was rated at 250,000 BTU and needed about .8 gallon per hour. We usually went through about 300-400 gallons a season keeping a 40x60, uninsulated shop, with a 12 foot ceiling, at a comfortable working temp of about 68 degrees.
Like others haves said these type furnaces have come along way in the past years and now are pretty reliable. Still, just like any other machine, the continued reliability will be tied directly to how commited you are to keeping it properly maintained. And with these furnaces if you don't maintain them they will not be reliable...
As far as the amount of oil you need, I think his was rated at 250,000 BTU and needed about .8 gallon per hour. We usually went through about 300-400 gallons a season keeping a 40x60, uninsulated shop, with a 12 foot ceiling, at a comfortable working temp of about 68 degrees.
Like others haves said these type furnaces have come along way in the past years and now are pretty reliable. Still, just like any other machine, the continued reliability will be tied directly to how commited you are to keeping it properly maintained. And with these furnaces if you don't maintain them they will not be reliable...
I have floor heat in two different buildings and my sons have it in four more. The oldest is twenty years old. We never have had any problems. One key is to have a good solid fill. If you just leveled off a spot and start to build then you will have problems. We usually sheep footed the building site and let it set one year and then built.
As for waste old furnaces. They can be a real pain if you get contaminated oil. They are not that efficient and you will not have enough oil unless you change a lot of oil. I worked at three different dealer that had them. We always had to mess with them to keep them working.
A few tips to fewer problems.
1) If you get used oil from others don;t pump/dump it until it is real cold. These furnaces don't like water. Let it freeze in the bottom of the barrels and them dump/pump them.
2) Mix some diesel/K1 into the used oil when it gets real cold. The extra BTUs help plus the good fuel cleans the burn up and makes things work better.
As for waste old furnaces. They can be a real pain if you get contaminated oil. They are not that efficient and you will not have enough oil unless you change a lot of oil. I worked at three different dealer that had them. We always had to mess with them to keep them working.
A few tips to fewer problems.
1) If you get used oil from others don;t pump/dump it until it is real cold. These furnaces don't like water. Let it freeze in the bottom of the barrels and them dump/pump them.
2) Mix some diesel/K1 into the used oil when it gets real cold. The extra BTUs help plus the good fuel cleans the burn up and makes things work better.
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