[Shop-talk] Running a building costs, 6k ft^2 block garage

[Karl Vacek]

Regular basic vented natural gas or propane heaters wall require no 
electricity.  I have one in the garage, and though it's old, it brings in 
combustion air from outside so paint and gas fumes aren't quite as much of a 
worry.  As Randall points out, it's straight convection, but if you had a 
couple of them at opposite ends, it should be enough to keep the frost out.

As far as an unvented heater, remember that water is still a huge component 
of the combustion products, and even if it's relatively clean-burning, it'll 
still put lots of moisture into the building.  Even if the building isn't 
all that tight, humidity is still going to build up and that's not a good 
thing for your vehicles and tools, not to mention the structure.

Karl


>> Around here, you never
>> know when there's going to be an ice storm or something that
>> leaves power out for days.
>
> Dunno if they are still around, but there at least used to be several
> options for vented heaters that did not require AC power for operation.
>
> The fuel oil version used gravity feed from the storage tank to a 'pot
> burner', and relied on convection to move the air around.  Not the most
> efficient thing, but effective.
>
> -- Randall