For those who use their garage for woodworking, it is essential to get a heater that doesn't have an open flame or hot filament, as sawdust can easily catch fire.

Experts give tips on best ways
to heat garages, workshops

By Christa Buchanan
C & G Staff Writer

Projects such as woodworking or auto renovations and repairs are sometimes put on ice during the coldest stretches of winter, when home garages and workshops are simply too frigid.

The good news is, there are many options for making these spaces warm enough to work in. The styles, sizes and prices of garage and workspace heaters — portable, mounted or fixed; electric, kerosene, propane, natural gas or infrared — are vast.

Ed Popso of Lakeview Heating, Plumbing and Electrical in Warren said choosing the right heating system depends on a variety of factors: the initial price point and cost of running the system, how energy and heat efficient it is, how well the area is insulated, how large the area is, how warm the individual would like the space to be, and the type of work to be done in the space — paint and other chemical substances used in woodworking, auto bodywork or mechanical repairs can easily combust when exposed to certain types of heaters.

“Some furnaces have an open flame, and those are not recommended for garages unless they are suspended from the ceiling and away from things that could cause an explosion or hazardous flames,” said Popso, adding that due to fire codes, natural gas garage heaters that aren’t hung from the ceiling must have a separate combustion chamber.

The most affordable options initially are electric portable heaters, but they typically aren’t the safest, most efficient or even most cost-effective way to heat a workspace. They tend to heat only the air directly around them, and much of that heat is lost in larger spaces.

“Electric space heaters are very expensive to run. They use a lot of electricity, and it would probably take several of them to warm up a garage to a comfortable level,” said Mike Pavelka of Family Heating and Cooling in Madison Heights. He noted that the same holds true for oil-filled electric heaters. “The oil-filled heaters don’t get very warm. It’d take a lot of them to heat a garage.”

While kerosene and propane portable heaters are slightly more expensive, they are typically more affordable in the long run. They come with their own set of problems, however, including the need for good ventilation due to carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide emissions, as well as the potential for combustion when they encounter certain substances.

“Kerosene can put quite an odor in there, so they need a lot of ventilation. With propane, obviously, you’ll need a tank, and you’re probably not going to want the tank in the garage, so you’ll probably need a place for the tank outside,” said Pavelka. Not only will the kerosene or propane tank need to be continuously filled or replaced, he said, but these types of heaters also need more cleaning and maintenance.

As for infrared heaters, both electric and propane, Pavelka said they’re not a good application for most garages or workshops because the intense heat they produce could burn the paint on a car if it’s too close.

Other things to consider about all portable heaters are that they cannot be left unattended or be used near flammable substances, and they need plenty of clearance space to eliminate the risk of fire.

The safest, most energy efficient choice is a specially designed electric or natural gas shop heater that can be either wall- or rafter-mounted.

“The (gas) unit heaters that suspend from the ceiling are pretty economical and will heat a garage to a pretty comfortable temperature. Basically, it’s a furnace with a fan behind the heat exchanger and a chimney vent flue that lets the gases out either through a wall or the roof,” said Popso, adding that electric shop heaters are typically “safer and can be put pretty much anywhere, but since heat rises, they’re usually put lower to the ground.”

Installation costs of shop heaters vary depending on whether the garage or workspace is attached or detached, whether there is an available gas line or one must be installed, whether a high voltage electrical line needs to be run, and where and how the system is installed.

Those criteria also go for standard, forced-air natural gas heaters, which Popso noted can also include “air conditioning, a humidifier … and an air filter to clean the air if there’s a lot of dust.”

As natural gas heaters typically have separate combustion chambers and are always vented outside, Pavelka said they are an extremely safe heating option in any environment, even in areas where flammable substances are present.

Even the best heater can’t heat a room efficiently without insulation. Popso suggests installing insulation, sealing air leaks and even adding energy-efficient windows.

“If they plan on heating the room continuously, like in a hobby room, they might want to install a dial-down thermostat — one with a lower temperature reading — so if they’re not using the room, they can set the heat at 40 degrees or so. That way it won’t take as much time and energy to heat the room up,” Popso said.

For more information or a garage heating consultation, contact Family Heating at (248) 548-9565 or visit www.familyheating.com, or Lakeview Heating at (586) 757-2700 or visit www.lakeviewmechanical.com.

You can reach Staff Writer Christa Buchanan at cbuchanan@candgnews.com or at (586) 498-1061.