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Post by ©Big6™ on Oct 15, 2013 7:39:16 GMT -4
My Fugitsu in my house has a Min Heat setting that keeps it at 10 deg C.
The cheap start up option is to do what Jan has with the electric unit. You should have something other than a mini split anyway for backup/colder days.
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Dewie
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Post by Dewie on Oct 15, 2013 7:58:53 GMT -4
An air source mini-split yes, if it is ground source it won't matter (Unless we get frost that deep)
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Old Yeller
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Post by Old Yeller on Oct 15, 2013 12:13:58 GMT -4
Thank you for the ideas guys. Winter is right around the corner, and I need some sort of solution, at least temporarily to keep things warm out there.
Yea Jan, the minimum setting was a deal breaker for me as well, which is why I pretty much discounted the heat pump option. No need to keep temps above 5 degC when I am working a 5day stretch. But you can just get another thermostat to allow them to function at a lower minimum?
I need to talk to some people, and get some price ranges before I make any firm decision. Keep the ideas coming.
Rob D
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justajeep
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Post by justajeep on Oct 15, 2013 12:20:35 GMT -4
Don't heat pumps work best keeping a constant temp? It probably wouldn't cost any more to keep it at 10 or 15 than to heat it up from a lower temp every time you went out. Once you get it insulated to code, it won't take much to heat it anyway.
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Hawkes
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Post by Hawkes on Oct 15, 2013 17:25:39 GMT -4
Don't heat pumps work best keeping a constant temp? It probably wouldn't cost any more to keep it at 10 or 15 than to heat it up from a lower temp every time you went out. Once you get it insulated to code, it won't take much to heat it anyway. There is value in that, you'd have to crunch the numbers.
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Creepy
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Post by Creepy on Oct 16, 2013 1:03:23 GMT -4
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Post by 53m38 on Oct 19, 2013 3:27:29 GMT -4
insert code here I thought the reason they couldn't go bellow 15c was due to the defrost cycle? If a thermostat was programmed lower, wouldn't that mess up its operation? I had a wood stove in mine. I pulled it and am putting in a hanging electric like Jan's when I get around to it
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Post by chevtech on Oct 19, 2013 21:37:07 GMT -4
I have being using electric on demand boiler to warm my floor for a few years now. Works good, boiler was decent price, insurance man likes it, turn the thermostat on and away it goes. My shop is 32x40 with 12 ft ceiling. With in-floor not a option for you, you could use old school cast iron rads with hot water system. I am thinking of adding 2 of these to my system to help in low demand times.( used on separate zones) Drawback: a little pricey to run. I set it at 59 F and runs from Nov to Apr. This shop is my repair business, so heating is ' paid for' thru it. The building must be super tight and well insulated. One bonus, floors stay fairly dry, fixin cars in the winter slop is not much fun.
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Old Yeller
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Post by Old Yeller on Oct 20, 2013 15:34:34 GMT -4
I have a line on a ceiling suspended oil fired unit, only 2 years old. It cranks 145,000btu's so that should be plenty for my space, and heat the garage rapidly. I was also talking to an installer about the setup and he was fairly partial to these units, and refuses to install the floor mounted units. My main reason I am leaning towards this option, is that I have access to Jet A1 fuel drains at work. (don't worry, its all legit, I'm not stealing fuel. Tanker trucks, and aircraft have regular drains performed to test for fuel quality, and water.) Jet fuel is a great substitute for home heating oil.
I think I am pretty much settled on either this idea, or possibly 2 large electric units (Like Jan's). Without being able to figure out any real numbers on usage cost, the offset of fuel I will be able to bring home once in awhile has me leaning toward the furnace.
Rob D
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Creepy
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Post by Creepy on Oct 20, 2013 17:47:52 GMT -4
free kerosene eh? Depends on how much you get if its worth it. its nice not to have the an oil tank around. check insurance cost differences oil vs electric. mine were cheaper. but if you can get enough of it to save some cash, yeah, go for it.
The hot air furnace would def. heat things up quicker from a low temp.
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Old Yeller
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Post by Old Yeller on Oct 20, 2013 18:10:56 GMT -4
10Gals or so a week would be the norm.
Yea, I need to talk to insurance first, and also price a tank and decide if its worth it. It appears you cannot use a second hand tank, at all, no matter how new it is, so the price of a new tank is something to consider.
What a pain in the ass, I just want a warm garage to work on my jeep.
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justajeep
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Post by justajeep on Oct 20, 2013 20:23:18 GMT -4
Tanks are expensive now, and are no longer sold to the general public, you need to be licensed to get one. You'll probably be looking at about $1000 installed. If you can get 10 gal a week though, it would be worth it in the long run, as once you get some ahead, you probably won't need to buy any.
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Creepy
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Post by Creepy on Oct 20, 2013 22:03:54 GMT -4
10G a week sounds like a lot!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 21, 2013 6:44:31 GMT -4
Hey Rob, if the furnace is 145,000 BTU, I hope your garage isn't insulated. The system we put in our house 2 years ago has an 80,000 BTU propane furnace (98% efficiency)as backup to the heat pump. The oil furnace that came out was around 135,000 BTU but way back when, I guess people didn't size them, they just figured bigger was better (and oil was cheap). Maybe you can have a small nozzle put on it. When I moved into my current office (400+ sf), I was using a huge old ceiling mounted oil furnace and it would cost me about triple for heat compared to my rent. Then I switched to baseboards, but that was costly as well, now I have a 9000 BTU mini-split.
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Old Yeller
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Post by Old Yeller on Oct 21, 2013 7:27:46 GMT -4
Well, I am under the assumption (possibly wrongly) that a large oil furnace would turn on, heat the place up fast, and then be off for most of the time. short cycling. Also this is the only hanging unit I've come across yet.
Rob D
EDIT: I am also trying to find a good rule of thumb for heating a garage. If I figure out the internal volume of my garage, I come up with 9750 cubic feet. Im not doing great at googling BTU's required and whatnot. Can anyone help me out?
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