Heated Garage or not?

LOL!

As long as it's a bit drafty and the heaters can get enough fresh air they won't kick off much CO. They require a fresh air feed to burn clean. As mentioned, the Coleman propane ones require 40 square inches each. That is how much they burn.

This is a public forum so I always err on the side of caution when talking about dangerous products. I see too many folks taking what they read as right when it could end up nasty if precautions someone used to the product takes for granted aren't known about.

If folks are aware of the danger, the danger is a lot less.

I use those heaters all the time. Just carefully. Even the big ones that look like jet engines. Especially in a newer insulated garage sealed with a vapor barrier.

Mike

JimG wrote:

You make an excellent point... Thanks!

JimG

My 2 stall is insulated and I have a 30 btu torpedo heater that runs on propane . I use that to get the garage to

Later Mike

The reccomnded gas heater for my 3 car garage is 75,000 BTU. Lets see, divide by 3.54 and that says 21,000 watts or 88 amps at 240 volts. Only cost $1.70 per hour to run.

I suppose I could > Sounds like they were wired incorrectly.

A relatively inexpensive solution that works for me is to use a portable radiator type oil filled A/C heater, available at Ace Hdw or Home Depot, etc. They will heat a gagarge to comfy level in short order and make a good backup should you have a furnace problem. I like it becuse it has no exposed heating elements to ignite chemical fumes, etc., plus it throws heat like a coal fire.

When I had the misfortune of being stationed in Wisconsin I had to change the crossshaft and spiders in a front end with temps in the unspeakably cold range - well below zero at midday. I tried everything to get that garage warm enough to work in and finally wound up using one of those radiant electric heaters that use a reflector to focus the infrared from the element. It never warmed the air but it would warm anything in it's beam so it would keep my hands warm enough to work and (finally) got the pumpkin up to where I could get all the parts out.

I don't think I've ever experienced anything as painful as sticking my hands into gear oil so cold it wouldn't even run out when I was fishing for the busted parts! Needless to say, I don't live THERE anymore!

LMAO! I hear ya! My first jobs in the automotive field were working for an import dealership in NW Indiana owned by some friends of my folks. Being a high school kid schlep, I got all the crap winter jobs that gerally included standing out in sub-zero cold with the wind whipping off the Lake jump starting dead cars, starter fluid backfiring in your face, changing tires on cars stuck in snow drifts around the lot, if it was s*it work outdoors in winter, I had to do it. My Dad just laughed his ass off, figuring it'd keep me from screwing around with cars for a living...WRONG!

As another said, the rust is a function of temperature as it is a chemical reaction. The rate doubles every 18 Deg F approximately.

So keep the garage cold, letting the heat from the house through the wall keep it from getting bitter cold, but keeping the ice on the car frozen. When you want to work on the vehicles in the garage, just use one of these space heater ("salamander" heaters). For a two car garage, about 24' square, I suggest between 70 and 90 thousand BTU. I have a 70 and it works fine!.

Yes, keep a crack open, about a foot, on the garage door for fresh air and place the heater near the crack to burn fresh air. Use white kerosene for fuel and the smell won't bother you. However, be advised that if you are going to be using open gasoline in your work, heat the garage first, shut down the heater, work with the open gas, clear out the shop, and then relight the heater. The heater is still an open flame.

Walt Johnson

Cover the area (whole Jeep) with a tarp will stop the wind for biting you as much. ;-) And if you can put in a little space heater.........that is even better. later, dave AKA vwdoc1

Just as a follow-up to the two types of fuel heat I use (propane and kerosene), I did some trending in my garage with a continuous reading CO (carbon Monoxide) sensor. I used an MSHA approved sensor that we manufacture at work for use in underground coal mines. I found that my vent-less propane heater emits practically no CO over several hours. The kerosene heater raises levels to 8-10 ppm over a several hour period. I have no windows or doors open, insulated 30'x36' garage. Just FYI.

See here for limits:

Thanks for the follow up! It is good to know.

So for your particular set of leaks in the garage, it would take a while to harm you right?

I also believe that as the O2 goes down in your 'sealed' garage, the CO levels will raise exponentially because CO is a byproduct of incomplete combustion.

That is why the kerosene heaters call for so many square inches/BTU of fresh air 'intake'. They don't call it venting, here is a quote: 'never use in a closed area without providing fresh air'.

Mike

JimG wrote: