Replies

1. 
   cadiddlehopper | Dec 24, 2006 03:14am | #1

   I have a 2-burner patio heater. All the warnings are frightening. I never use it for long periods and my shop is very leaky. I never use it when applying any finish or using a solvent. I never use it on very cold days since it doesn't give much heat. Then there is the warning to store the tank outdoors. It is of so little use that I believe I wasted my money.

   Cadiddlehopper

2. 
   qtsam2 | Dec 24, 2006 07:10am | #2

   one con of using a propane heat source is that it adds moisture to the air.

3. 
   arkriver | Dec 24, 2006 05:57pm | #3

   If you get past the safety considerations, you still have the cost. Those little bottles are expensive to fill if used a lot. On the bar-b-q its not bad but you could easliy use one a week in the shop. Mine cost about $10 last fillup. Add the cost and time to go fill it, and I don't think it is a long term solution for a regularly used shop.

1. 
   tinkerer2 | Dec 26, 2006 07:23am | #9

   Man how things change with time.  We used to use propane from 500 gallon tanks for both the house and tractors.  Could get it for eight cents a gallon.  I would fill a neighbors 100 lb bottle for a dollar.  That would be twenty cents for the twenty pound tank in question.  Of course that was forty years ago, but that is still inflation.

   Edited 12/25/2006 11:27 pm ET by tinkerer2

1. 
   ptu | Jan 13, 2007 05:50am | #20

   Times sure have changed. I pay 92.00 for a hundred pounds of propane

4. 
   JeffHeath | Dec 24, 2006 06:26pm | #4

   How will you vent it.  Those things throw off a lot of fumes.

   Don't kill yourself trying to stay warm.  Get a proper heater.

   Jeff

1. 
   epearso | Dec 24, 2006 06:42pm | #5

   Thanks Everybody,

   After 7 years I finally got my dedicated spot in the garage for a workshop, an 18x9 bay in the back of our garage.  At this point I am looking at 2 main options, workshop organization / set up and workshop heat.  Because I've never really had a REAL shop before I don't know what all the heat options are.

   Thanks for all your responses!

1. 
   or_duffer | Dec 26, 2006 03:17am | #8

   Check with your local propane dealer.  My shop heater is a Bulldog with outside venting.  All moisture and exhaust vapors are vented through the wall.  After 3 years of use, dust is not a problem either with buildup or getting too hot.  My dust collector takes care of that worry.

2. 
   fussy | Dec 26, 2006 10:30am | #11

   Merry Christmas, epearso,

   Instead of propane, consider electric oil-filled heaters.  They're clean, fumeless, fairly efficient, and inexpensive.  They can be had for about $30 $40 at Ace, Wal Mart, Lowe's, Home Depot, etc.  There's no danger of them setting off finishing fumes, or dust because there's no open flame or exposed heating elements.  Once warmed up, they can "coast" for quite awhile until the oil within cools down.  They work, and they wont kill you.

   Steve

1. 
   K1500 | Jan 11, 2007 07:15pm | #18

   What's your weather like, is your bay insulated, and how warm do you want it (i.e. what temperature differential you would like to keep)?  I use an oil filled radiator in a 2 car garage and it takes the chill off just fine.  I have insulated walls and an insulated garage door, but no insulation in the celing (yet).  Even with no heat, my attached garage stays pretty warm.  Of course, it doesn't get too cold where I live (typically no colder than the high 20's and warmer than that most of the time).  I don't require the workspace to be above 50 or so.

   Woops, I meant to direct this to epearso, sorry.

   Edited 1/11/2007 11:16 am ET by K1500

1. 
   epearso | Jan 13, 2007 01:01am | #19

   My bay floor is concrete, my entire garage is finished and insulated, but my garage  door is not insulated.  We are in Denver, and as I write this it is a whopping 2 degrees.  Even with finished walls and insulation, it gets pretty dang cold in the shop.  I dug out an old oil-filled portable heater, it it struggles to keep up.  Plus, it seems to be draining hard on the electricity; my flourscent lights dim drastically whenever I fire up the heater.

   Good thing I have lots of cold-weather clothes!

   Thanks--Erik

3. 
   Yogi | Dec 26, 2006 08:27pm | #13

   My "shop" is about like yours, mine being about 12X20-  I use propane (5 gal bottle)and one of those propane heaters made for RV's, no exhaust system to it-  It's about 99% efficient, I've never detected any fumes, and I guess my shop (located at one end of the garage) is leaky enough to allow enough oxygen to pass through-  I think I've  disappointed a lot of guys through the years, enjoying myself in my warm shop at relatively little cost-

1. 
   smslaw | Dec 26, 2006 08:44pm | #14

   I've never detected any fumes

   Carbon Monoxide has no smell.  I would not rely on a leaky building to keep me alive, but at least make sure your life insurance is up to date.

    

1. 
   Yogi | Dec 26, 2006 09:01pm | #15

   The sounds of disappointment-

5. 
   bones | Dec 24, 2006 06:47pm | #6

   I would not use an outside heater inside. Extremely dangerous. The outside heaters don't need to worry about CO. Inside a shop you have a problem. If you burn fuel inside the shop, please go buy a Carbon Monoxide detector! Your life could depend on it. Here in St Louis the first week of Dec we have a massive power outage due to an Ice storm. Several people lost their lives to CO poisioning. It's a silent Killer, dont Risk it! If you heat inside got to vent!!

1. 
   tinkerer2 | Dec 26, 2006 07:35am | #10

   Those CO detectors can be very useful for even vented heaters.  I was in a laundromat once discussing business opportunities with an acquaintance.  I got to feeling rather ill so walked outside.  I kept walking for probably an hour breathing fresh air and wondering whether I was going to stay conscious.  A CO detector would have avoided that.  Incidentally, I just got my outside wood boiler hooked up.  I have hot water radiant head in the floor.  It has been on for over three days now but has only raised the temperature five degree from fifty three degree to fifty eight degrees.  They said it takes a while to warm up but I didn't expect it to take that long.  I think there is a problem with the pumps not pushing the water through fast enough.  Will call in the morning.

   Edited 12/25/2006 11:42 pm ET by tinkerer2

   Edited 12/25/2006 11:45 pm ET by tinkerer2

6. 
   Pippins | Dec 25, 2006 05:29am | #7

   Erik, do not do it.

   I tried heating a small shop once and it was enough to convince me that this is a quick way to paradise. It took about a minute to use up the available oxygen for combustion and the fumes were overpowering. I had to open the doors just to breathe which let out the heat that was just produced.

   Best regards, Steve Pippins

   P.S. Merry Christmas to you and your family!     

7. 
   Steinmetz | Dec 26, 2006 06:00pm | #12

   A floor layer working in a neighbor's basement returned the following
   morning to complete the job. He ignited the torch and blew up the house. Propane leaking from the fitting will accumulate at the lowest level and eventually fill the entire room.

   A friend heats his shop with a hot water heater connected to a circulating pump feeding baseboard heating units (The water used,
   is 50/50 antifreeze)

8. 
   colebearanimals | Jan 11, 2007 03:50am | #16

   If you have the room and the budget get a small wood stove. It acts as a dehumidifier also.

               Have fun woorking wood, Paul

9. 
   user-258796 | Jan 11, 2007 06:58am | #17

   I use a small vertical quartz rod radiant electric heater--heats up fast, very small and comfortable. Since it's radiant heat, you get warm even if the air and the shop aren't all heated up. I only run it when I'm in the shop. Cost me $15 at a junk store.

10. 
    rosemarie786 | Jan 01, 2013 01:26am | #21

    I have an outdoor LP patio heater that I would like to power with natural gas. I would rather not drill out an orifice.