Shop portable heaters ?

[johnnye23]

I am still in the middle of doing the electrical repairs needed after having a short in the wiring loom. I am down to the fan motor needing to be wired from the battery but it's 26 degrees out and I just can't get motivated. My shop is 3 bays with no heat . I have seen portable kerosene heaters and propane heaters but I really have knowledge how well or what the best route for some warmth.Anyone have any knowledge or ideas they would like to pass on ? Thanks

[Mikmark]

I used to try to heat my two car garage with a couple of kerosene heaters. They stink pretty bad before they get fully warmed up, but they would take the edge off of the cold. I live in Dallas, so I didn't need them all that often. They get gummed up if you let them sit around with fuel in them. The heaters can be kind of pricey to operate. Kerosene at Home Depot is over $7.00 a gallon now, so that is another consideration. After using them for a while, I decided I didn't want open flames in the shop and didn't like the fact that they were unvented. I eventually installed a window AC unit that has a heating function which is what I use now. Also, a quartz heater positioned near where you are working is good too. I found the localized radiant heat to keep me comfortable even if the rest of the garage is cold.

If it is 20 degrees here, I'm in the house!

[Yukon 400]

I have a 175,000 btu kerosene torpedo heater in the garage, a few weeks ago when it it was 25-28 outside it kept my three car garage a toasty 80 degrees without a problem. They do have open flame and do omit a slight odor depending on what fuel you use in them. If you use diesel which is the cheapest fuel the odor is noticeable, with kerosene it's really not that bad but prices can be high hardware stores here sell it at $9+ a gallon, if you can get it in bulk or a fueling station it should be about half. I've found that if you can get a hold of Jet A at a small airport it's under $5 and hardly any odors.

They do have the propane version of the torpedo forced air heaters, my neighbor has one and they work jut as well, without emitting any odor. But I do believe he spends a lot more on fuel.

If you do get one having a thermostat or even better a digital one saves on fuel costs while maintaining your desired temperature.

I've had a dual head infrared heater that connects on top of a propane tank, it was only good for local heat, they work if you are only in one location. After having a forced air one I would not go back to something that just radiates heat.

The lowest it gets here is the mid 20's so I don't have any experience in colder temperatures.