On Mon, 22 Nov 1999 09:16:17 -0500, you wrote:
>
>
>I have used one of those "infra-red" propane heaters for more than 5 years
>now
>and they are great. It is basically a unit that fits on top of a standard
>propane
>tank, which heats up a metal gauze (4"x4") and than the heat is radiated
>out.
>My unit is made by Coleman and outputs a max of 28K btu.
>
>It does not heat the garage as such, but does a good job of taking the chill
>
>out of the air and making the garage more comfortable.
In addition it does an excellent job of converting all of those foul
smelling sulfur compounds that are present in propane to sulfuric
acid.
>
>Strictly speaking, it in not intended for indoor use, as it uses inside air
>for
>combustion, but I only leave it on for 10 minutes at a time and never leave
>it
>on while I am out of the garage.
There is no way in hell I would put one of these non-vented combustion
heaters in any confined occupied space. The sulfuric acid produced is
not something I want in my work area.
>
>What I like about this unit is that it is completely portable so I can move
>it around
>the garage to where ever I am working. Also by placing a standard fan behind
>it, it blows hot air where you direct it.
>
>I would not recommend this for a 1 car garage, as you should not have
>anything
>more than 6 feet in front of it. But my garage is large enough that I have
>it well
>away from anything.
>
>Obviously when I am working with volatile materials, the heater stay off.
In fact you probably would be better leaving this monstrosity on as
some of those volatile materials that you are concerned about would be
harmlessly consumed by the heater long before they reached a
combustible concentration and before you breathed them.
There is nothing like a well ventilated shop to take care of the
volatile combustibles. Sulfuric acid although not combustible is not
my idea of a desirable chemical to have looking for a place to sit
down in my shop.
As you might guess I am not in favor of using these non-vented gas
heaters either in a shop or residence.
|