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Heating your shop

J

JBR2017

New User
Good evening fellows I'm new to the boards. But been on the site for years. I was wondering what yall use to heat your shops. I been using the diesel heaters but that's getting costly. My neighbor wants to give me an old wood burning stove. I was thing between that or a lp heater thanks.
 
Many moons ago my folks updated their older forced air heater in the house. My dad had the heater guy, a friend,and himself take it out of the basement and install it in the shop. You walk out to the shop, flip it on, and go back out around an hour or so latter. Shop is now a reasonable 60 degrees. Floor is still blasted cold but some cardboard will fix that to lay on. The heat pipe is aimed so she blows across the floor one side to the other. If you do a lot of work out there you need to remember it is only a 275 gallon tank. That heater is runnning 1 1/2 gallons per hour! Darn big nozzel in the gun.
 
I reused the old electric furnace from the house when I upgraded the system.

I cut the case down, got rid of the AC coil, hung it up close to the ceiling. It has the thermostat on the wall, all the safetys still in place, heats the shop quick!
 
Just to go a little further. Do you have access to natural gas or LP? My neighbor has a very nice system in his garage. He also has a very nice and tight garage. Anyhow, he has a Bulldawg gas heater. Just look them up on Google. Works great and this time of year he keeps it at 55. Car and pickup are both happy. If he wants to work he just flips the T stat up to 65?
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Free wood stove is hard to beat. How available of a wood supply do you have? If you have wood available, I would go that route, otherwise propane is pretty inexpensive right now if you want convience.
 
My new shop won't be for a couple more years, but I will be going with hydronic in-floor heat. Gets too cold without also having the floor heated. ....At least, that's the plan, so long as the money holds out. :wink:
 
I have a used oil heater in my shop. Works great. The heater wasn't cheap but the fuel is free. Plus it solves the used oil dilemma. And I have several neighbors who are glad to donate to my fuel supply.
 
I gave up and bought a high efficiency gas furnace that hangs from the ceiling. A monan hot dawg I think it's called. I am surprised how little gas it uses. I had an old oil furnace from the house and it really burned the fuel. The new one costs about a third to operate.
 
I use a direct vent wall heater that runs on propane. It draws and exhausts needed air from the outside. The pilot light is not exposed to the interior of the shop. And important safety factor for me in case something flammable is spilled. It is a Williams Direct vent wall furnace.
 
Waste oil furnace for the last 10 years. As was said, not cheap but UL approved (Insurance) and plenty of supply of fuel. there was a learning curve to the whole thing from filtering out the people who liked to mix antifreeze with the waste oil to learning the intricacies of the waste oil burner but i would have another in a minute when this one goes bad!
 
Thanks for all the replies. I thinking of going with the stove. A cord of wood should last a good while and it will keep my breakfast and lunches warm.
 
I live in Wisconsin where it was minus 17 this morning. I have a 25 x 30 insulated workshop that has a propane furnace used for quick warm up and then a wood stove to take over after the shop gets to 60 degrees and the wood stove is putting out heat. I have a good supply of fire wood so it's "free". I wouldn't pay for wood, but would rather buy propane. The wood stove is capable of heating the work area up to 85 degrees, but keeping it around 65 degrees seems to be the most comfortable. The wood furnace is located outside of the heated shop area, but pulls circulation air from heated shop. This keeps the " mess" of burning wood ( smoke, bark, dust) outside of the "clean" work area.
 
I heat with waste oil. I have a Lannair unit that was modified by a local Amish company to what they call a cruise control pump and burner and it has worked flawlessly for two years now. It does take some time, space and effort to properly handle the oil and I have to clean the heat exchanger twice a season, takes about an hour. Shop is at 50 at night and whatever I set it to during the day. Finding oil has not been a problem. I put an ad on CL and have more than I can use. Burned about 400 gallons last year in a mild winter. Dollar wise I should beak even on it this year.
Heating 35x 45 is partially insulated.
 
Just came up from the shop. My insurance guy likes my heater. Wishes he could be here more often to stand by it.
Richard
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I neglected to add to my other post that you should check with your insurance company. I have a very good insurer and have a wood stove in the house, no problem but asked about the shop, nope. My agent said it was due to many more claims with them in shops than in houses, as a person might have guessed.
 
I put 2 inches of foam board under a 5 in concrete floor. I heat with a 50 K hanging propane heater as I did not want to give up the floor space. My shop is well insulated and is 750 sq ft. I don't like the in floor heat as I turn my heat down to 45 deg over night and when I am gone. It only takes 10-15 minutes to get to 65 + deg. That way I save fuel.
 
We use a wood stove in the greenhouse. Love it. Hunting a cheap one for the shop. Kerosene ain't doing it for me. 5 bucks a gallon. Uggggggggggghgh. Lucky we don't get much cold weather and I don't work in shop every day
 
I built an outside wood furnace. Made out of 1/4" wall pipe. The firebox is 20", the outside is 32". It draws a little funky when cold, but it heats good. Ducted into the shop with 8" galvenized duct work. The heat exchange is the airspace between the firebox and outside pipe. A squirrel cage fan draws from the barn, and will force air in at a temp of upwards of 140°. Picture a hydronic stove, less the water.
 

JBR, kind of strange most are saying something other than wood then you say you are going with wood. I heat my 40x50x17 shop for $500.00 a year with propane. I keep it at 50 degrees then bump it up to 60 when I go in. If that sounds convenient and cheap just ask I will give you details.
 
I can second that, but it depends on the insurance company. I used to inspect real estate properties for insurance companies before they wrote a policy, and it's probably the exception rather than the rule when a wood stove in a shop won't automatically disqualify the building for insurance.

Their thinking is there are far more possible contacts with flammables in a shop.
 
Have two heaters, main one is a Shenandoah waste oil set at 65 degrees, when it shuts down the L.B. White LP gas comes on at 60 degrees to keep the 40 X 80 building warm. Have extra oil filters on the waste oil system that help keep the burn nozzle clean, it still needs attention but not like it used to before the extra filters were installed.
 
(quoted from post at 18:26:25 12/27/17) Just to go a little further. Do you have access to natural gas or LP? My neighbor has a very nice system in his garage. He also has a very nice and tight garage. Anyhow, he has a Bulldawg gas heater. Just look them up on Google. Works great and this time of year he keeps it at 55. Car and pickup are both happy. If he wants to work he just flips the T stat up to 65?
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Click to expand...

This is what I recommend too if you don’t have fire wood available by your back door. If you are surrounded by woods that you can harvest and have the time and energy to cut wood, go for the Woodburner.
I burned wood in the tractor shop for 25 years and it worked OK but I also had a hanging gas heater to keep the shop from freezing when I was away. I am surrounded by fairly open prairie and wood was becoming harder to get hold of close by so I finally gave up the wood burner and use only LP. Traveling any distance for firewood takes the price advantage out of it real quick. In fact, I question the true cost savings of burning wood when all things are considered.

My woodworking shop and the truck shop both have hot dawg LP heaters. The big trick to cheap heat is a super tight building and plenty of insulation. When I built my shops I took extra care to make them tight and I spent extra money on insulation. The LP bill for the three shops combined is only slightly more than the LP bill for our house. Granted, most of the time the thermostats in the shops are set at 20-25 degrees cooler than the house but it’s a good example of how a little more time and money spent can save bunches in the long run. Oh yes, I live in northwest Iowa.
 
blksmok makes a good point about keeping the mess outside. However, one other thing that "might" work into your plans is the safety factor. If you have or plan on doing ANYTHING inside your shop that involves gasoline, spray paint, thinner, or anything else flammable, PLEASE be careful! Remember, it's not the liquid that burns, but the gases that come from the liquids.

Basically, follow ALL of the warnings that are used for gas water heaters or any wood stoves.
 
I have a 45,000 BTU Nat. gas furnace that is mounted 1 inch from the ceiling, as recommended. It is vented out the wall, so it uses no floorspace, which is good because shops are never big enough. I am very happy with it and if I ever build another shop I would do it the same way.
 
My insurance agent let me purchase a rider for the wood furnace in my shop. The rider costs around $25 per year. The insurance is worthless without the rider. The firewood is free. Well - it's free if you don't count the two chainsaws, the splitter, the tractor, the dump trailer, etc etc.
 
Clean burn waste oil burner. Its the new tec style, so much more reliable and not much up keep comepared to my old Lenair. The older style waste oil burners were a real pain to keep running right and very fussy on the oil you used. At times I felt they were more of a fire hazard Then they were worth. New ones are expensive, but well worth it.
 
I have a wood stove (got it free for the taking) and an electric forced air furnace out of a mobile home. Furnace vents out the bottom, so built a little stand out of 2 X 12's so it blows out toward the wood stove. Turn on the furnace when I go to the shop, then build a fire in the stove. Furnace blows at the stove and circulates the heat. Once it warms up, furnace goes off and on as needed. I usually keep it at 60 or so when I'm out there, and turn everything off when I'm not. Temperate climate, seldom below 20 degrees outside, generally in the 40's in winter. Cheap electricity from hydro power in the Pacific northwest (about 6 cents a kilowatt) and firewood free for the cutting on my place, so this may not be economically feasible in the Midwest.
 
I use an overhead radiant heater. It runs the length of the shop. 96% efficient. Excellent heat. I keep the shop at 66 degrees and use less than 500 gallons of LP per year. 42x32 shop. It heats everything not just the air. Floor is warm along with everything in the shop. For some reason radiant heat seems warmer that forced air. I keep the temp set 6 degrees cooler in the shop than I do in the house and it seems much warmer in the shop. If I had to do it over, I would do it the same way.
 
I use a hanging vented LP heater made by Mr Heater called the Big Maxx. I have the smallest size as they only had one size back when they first made them and it heats a well insulated pole building 36 x 48 fine.
 
I agree with Al , I have a CLEAN BURN used oil heater. Have enough used oil to just let it run on low or keeps the place about 50 all time then I turn it up when I need it. Sure beats cutting wood. I like him have also experienced other brands of waste oil heaters , clean burn is the only one to have.
 
I have a hanging gas heater and keep 30 x 40 shop at 55 degrees. I guesstimate half my gas bill is for heating the shop, which would be around $100 month for our 3 coldest months. I have a couple friends who do tree work and I could have all the wood I wanted dropped at my door, but I can't justify the work of cutting and burning wood for $100 a month.

If you like cutting wood, that's great. There are other things I'd rather do and its nice to walk out to a warm shop if you have an hour or two to kill.
 
My good friend George , keeper of very good records, calculated over a period of years TOTAL cost of wood home heating. This included one tire ruin in woods, more frequent interior painting, saws, fuel, the whole thing. His records wood cost more than purchased fuel not even considering any physical labor. This was home not shop. Say what you will about George but in 30 years of knowing George he never so to speak shoots from the hip. Your mileage may vary.
 
I just use 2 Knipco heaters from 1980 and only when I am out there and need heat and they have never had anything except kerosine in them. But I am not out there in this kind of weather or every day.
 
I agree. The new generation waste oil furnaces are light years ahead of ones built 10 years ago. Mine is Lannair in housing only. The burner and oil supply is all newly made by Central Ohio Heaters. I have never adjusted mine from factory settings and burn anything includeing gear oil. Buddy with an older Clean Burn has to mess with his constantly, that's not a knock on Clean Burn but the age of his unit's technology. Still have to deal with ash ,couple three tines a year.
 
Shop is 56 by 120. Heat is a Cleanburn waste oil heater, with a Modine natural gas backup. Have the waste oil heater set so it is 60 during the day, 48 at night. Natural gas set at 45 to kick in if the oil burner quits.
 
I have a hanging NG heater and keep it set at 50 overnight and 65 days on a programmable stat. When I am out there I fire up the corn burner filled with a mix of 50/50 wood pellets and corn. This takes over and heats it to 70 or so easily. I also built a rack inside the burn chamber where I can burn cardboard, cobs, gaskets or oil filters. Works excellent for me in MN and cost is less than $100 a month for all heat sources even in the coldest months.
 
Got a used oil burner with a 500 gallon tank feeding it. I've got the feed tank about half full right now, and a double walled poly tank with about 1500 gallons just waiting to be used.

It's a 250,000 BTU unit and it keeps my 30x40 foot, uninsulated, shop plenty warm no matter how cold it is outside.
 
Waste oil heater here. Just puked it?s controller, new one is $100, won?t see it until next Friday at the earliest. We are going to hook up a regular oil furnace temporarily tomorrow.

I used to have a wood furnace, but my insurance co. threatened to cancel me unless I took it out. They had no problem with the wood furnace in the house.
 
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