From: Scott Hall <sch8489@garnet.acns.fsu.edu>
>I'm looking at the harbor freight catalog, they advertise 'glo-warm'
>heaters. this is advertisd as a 'unvented heater'. I assume that means
>no vent to outside. that's good, because even though I was thinking it
>needed to be vented, the opinion seems to be it isn't necessary, and I'd
>have to have through either a) a brick wall,
No problem. The heater would be fine though a brick wall. Got an
air-chisel? The hole is about 7-3/4". The vent structure on the outside
will cover the broken brick edges nicely. Use the vinyl-siding adaptor
(yes, on a brick wall. Trust me.) and a lot of sealant.
>or b) the roof.
I am not crazy about putting anything through a roof. Just one more thing
to cause ice-damming to back up under my shingles.
>I don't want
>to do either if I can get away with it.
>
>so, can anybody advise about these? the h.f. drone knows nothing
>(surprise) and before I call the gas company, I thought I'd consult you,
>the experts. the garage is ~26*26, no insulation in door or walls, but
>drywalled/finished walls. would anyone know if these can be mounted to a
>wall, or do they get too hot? any idea about b.t.u.s, or just get the big
>one? the combustion process produces CO, right?
The better it runs, the less CO you get. A perfect heater would give only
CO2 and water. But don't expect perfection.
The problem with an unvented fossil-fuel heat for part-time use in a garage
is condensation. Since water is a major component of the combustion, your
cold car, tools and whatever else will be get wet when the heater ghets
going. I know whereof I speak. I have used a kerosene (diesel when I could
not get kerosene) torpedo heater in uninsulated garages for 30 years. I'm
sick of rusty brake disks. I'm sick of waving a sub-zero wrench in front of
the heater until I can stand to use it with an ungloved hand. 50 degrees,
all winter. Insulation, 35,000-BTU through-the-wall direct-vent natural-gas
heater with thermostat. Insulated 36" walk-through door and insulated
10-foot-wide overhead door to separate shop from cold garage. Don't want to
lose all those expensive calories every time my wife opens the 16-foot
overhead door to park her car. And whe WILL do that. She told me when we
moved: "I don't care what kind of shop you build or how you heat it. I
just know that I am getting a garage space. I don't scrape windshields."
So she gets her cold 2-car garage and I get my warm 2-car shop under one
roof.
Meanwhile, I have passed the torch on to my son-in-law. He has the
venerable 70,000-BTU "jet engine" now. Third generation. Still makes a lot
of noise. Still gets hot enough you burn you. Still can create an island
of warmth in a sub-zero vented garage.
>any information about
>how much on these and how long I can hang around before I need to worry
>about turning any unborn children into mutants?
>
CO detectors are said to work..
>or, is there a One True Heating System I've missed so far, besides just
>plumbing the central heat to the garage?
What kind of central heat? You said "plumbing", so I assume you mean you
have hot-water heat. Heck, yes! If I had hot-water heat, I'd consider that
for my shop. It is only 12.5 feet from the house to the shop. Bury the
water supply and return pipes in lots of insulation, or even run them
overhead in insulated jackets if you can get away with it. Much better than
bringing combustion into the shop!
>
>thanks
No problem. Stop by if you are ever in Minnesota.
Phil Ethier Saint Paul Minnesota USA
Lotus Europa, VW Quantum Syncro (FOR SALE), Saturn SL2, Chev Suburban
LOON, TCVWC, MAC
pethier@isd.net http://www.visi.com/mac/
|