# Propane Heater?



## gi_984 (May 31, 2015)

Looking for a good furnace for the workshop.  It is a oversized three car garage (1,100 Sq ft ).  All of the last bay is dedicated plus part of the second.  Still fits my truck and SUV without interfering with the work space.  Garage is insulated and sheet rocked with insulated garage doors.  During the winter months I use a torpedo style heater to quickly get the shop up to temperature and have two radiant kerosene heaters to keep it stable.  It works but fueling the heaters is tedious and the fumes do accumulate.  
     Not looking for wood or small propane bottle style burners.  I'm looking for a dedicated furnace plumbed into the natural gas for the house or a nice propane furnace from a bulk tank outside.  For all the folks who have a furnace what brand/model do you have?


----------



## aeroHAWK (May 31, 2015)

Look here, It's what I have...

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/category_mr.-heater


----------



## Franko (May 31, 2015)

I put one of these in. Mine is a 20,000 btu. It heats my 12 x 20 shop very well. They also make a 10,000 and 30,000, and it is dual fuel. It will free stand with accessory feet or hang on the wall with a supplied bracket.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/NTESearch?storeId=6970&ipp=24&Ntt=wall+heater


----------



## gi_984 (May 31, 2015)

Thanks for the info.  They both look interesting.  Are you using LP or natural gas?


----------



## aeroHAWK (May 31, 2015)

I'm using Propane.


----------



## andy.alford.75 (May 31, 2015)

Converted to LP


----------



## Franko (May 31, 2015)

I'm using natural gas. It is a blue-flame heater not a radiant. I think a blue flame heater heats the room up faster as it creates an air current. You can get an optional fan, but I don't think it is necessary. It will heat my shop up to 70º in about 10 minutes. My shop is well insulated and on the coldest days (in the teens here) after the room is warmed, I keep it on it's lowest setting.

I leave it on low all winter to keep the shop around 50º to keep my tools from condensation when they go from cold to hot.

I have a ceiling heater similar to AeroHAWK in my woodshop. It is a good heater but it's about 3x more costy. It is vented. My wall heater is un-vented, but it has a thermostat and an oxygen depletion sensor.


----------



## kwoodhands (May 31, 2015)

Franko said:


> I put one of these in. Mine is a 20,000 btu. It heats my 12 x 20 shop very well. They also make a 10,000 and 30,000, and it is dual fuel. It will free stand with accessory feet or hang on the wall with a supplied bracket.
> 
> http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/NTESearch?storeId=6970&ipp=24&Ntt=wall+heater
> 
> View attachment 104916




I have the 30,000 btu Blue Flame heater in my shop. Heats 600 sf easily on the coldest days. The shop is insulated .
I run the heater on natural gas,same heater could be run on propane with a modification.I usually keep the shop around 70° during the day and about 65° at night.I set the heater at about 15000 btu's most of the winter.Last year was the first time in 15 years I turned it up to 30000 btu's when the temperature was -10° in the morning.I still got the shop up to 70° but it took 15 minutes instead of 5 minutes.
mike


----------



## Franko (May 31, 2015)

It might be worth mentioning that you want one next winter, don't wait until fall to order it. Mine was backordered 3 months. It seems that everyone wants a heater in winter.


----------



## randyjaco (May 31, 2015)

If  you are going to the expense of plumbing natural gas, you really ought to consider a vented forced air type heater. It will heat the shop up fast and with a thermostat, it will keep things at a comfortable temperature. I have been using an unvented natural  gas heater for quite a while. When you consider the nasty heavy metals, petroleum products, etc. that you create in your shop atmosphere; when those go through an open flame they create even nastier compounds  that you are going to breathe. I learned this when a local club member destroyed his lungs and will be lucky to live another year, in such an environment.  I just picked up a Rexnor warehouse heater off of CL, which I am in the process of installing.  This time of year they do show up  for about half price or less.

Randy


----------



## gi_984 (Jun 1, 2015)

I hear you about shopping during the summer.  Same reason we are pricing upgrades to our fireplace now.  The biggest decision point right now is to decide between natural gas and propane.  I'm going to have to get a quote for running another gas line.  There are lots of threads on the garage journal website under the heating/AC sub-forum.


----------



## Franko (Jun 1, 2015)

My heater is dual-fuel. You turn a knob to change from natural gas to propane.


----------

