Mark-
I have a 2++car garage that has been successfully heated for years
with one of those nasty kerosene 'torpedo' style heaters. I live in N.
New Jersey ( it was 10 F this AM!) so we do get a fair amount of chilly
weather.... A few thoughts on how to improve the temp in the shop-
Reduce the inflow of cold air, especially bothersome on windy days...
hay bales are fairly good insulation and will keep the gusts out, and
they're cheap. Pile them around the outside perimeter, the higher the
better.
Buy one of those fan-driven kerosene heaters, typically about 50,000
BTU's should be OK for a regular two-car shop.
These things must be handled carefully, as they really throw heat and must
not be directed at anything you value.
You'll need to provide for a source of fresh air when using these heaters.
They stink pretty bad on turn-on, although it is less annoying after they
have reached operating temp. They'll consume the oxygen in a closed
room, and provide carbon monoxide for unplanned long, deep sleeps.....
when it is operating, open a small window several inches. I usually run
mine for about a half hour prior starting shopwork, shutting it off when
I arrive and closing the window a few minutes later.
You might consider stringing up a temporary tarpaulin ceiling- you're
probably losing much of your heat with the tall roofline. string up a
network of light support ropes and spread out a tarp on top..... staple
the perimeter to the walls at an appropriate height. Alternatively, maybe
a cheapo- Home Despot ceiling fan would carry the warm air down to the
inhabitants.
When you're dealing with a shortage of funds, this rather inelegant
approach may solve the problem. I'd love to have a real-deal shop
furnace, but I have no natural gas service locally and another zone on
the oil burner would not be cheap either. Kero- heaters are pretty
reliable, about $ 125-150, and will keep things warm enough to avoid
teeth-chatter and
numb extremities.
Good Luck
Bob Westerdale
59 3A TS36967 (sleeping soundly)
Well it's cold out here in Montreal. Today it's supposed to get to a high
of
-14 degrees C (+7 degrees F). That's too cold to work comfortably.
My TR6 is hiding shivering in my unheated garage. So the question that's
in
my mind is can I arrange some warmth for short sessions of mechanical
work?
Here is the physical situation:
I have a 2-car boathouse-type garage. That is a wooden structure about 25
feet square with a peak roof and no false ceiling. The rafters are about
10
1/2 feet above the gravel floor. I have been planning for a concrete floor
for 3 years now, but money being what it is (i.e. scarce) it hasn't
happened
yet. The main posts of the structure are on concrete pillars. I can always
stuff wood and snow to block the gaps between the bottom of the walls and
doors and the ground to stop draughts.
So can I put in a kerosene heater or somesuch thing? I have seen things
like
a big propane heater with a blower attached. I can buy one of those 220V
industrial cubes for $100. Last year I ran a strong 220VAC line
underground
to a full fuse panel and wired the garage and put in nice fluourescent
lighting. However below freezing the lights don't like to start up easily.
I
mean I don't want to heat the building as it is completely uninsulated and
the cost would be insane. Not to mention that without insulation the roof
would just become a total ice bed. But for short sessions perhaps just
heating the air in the garage would be doable.
So any experience from the list would be invaluable as well as serving to
warm the cockles of my heart. :^)
Mark Hooper
1972 TR6
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