yes, back on this again, not going to do any log burning or oil burning business, or plumbing, JUST electric, ok?

every year, i spend months thinking about what type of heater to get in the garage, and by the time i do all that thinking its warm again. well, i want to get some use out the garage this winter!

i'd usually always thought about IR heaters as they don't heat the air, but say it heats up me, thats good, will it heat up things like metals (chassis, tools etc) and let them start to give off some heat? or will it just heat me?

how about something like this? eBay Item is the spec of this reasonable for heating a garage, or will the heat disappear quicker than this puts it in? i can put it up in the beams of the roof you see, it would fit nicely, but worry thats its a bit under powered, and any higher power may cost too much to run

had thought about insulating the roof a bit, as in putting some thin ply or simial over the beams, and some insulation, but i'd rather spend the money on the car. and the car's right up to the main door, so can't really try insulating the door

Horse for courses, I would go for a cheap IR heater, it will in principle heat most things in the garage, but takes time (metals are quite reflective in the IR so may not warm well). The advantage is you will be warmed as soon as it's switched on so quite efficient. Also will work even if a little drafty (just put the heater close to where your working. I used to use a 500w halogen lamp, I was warm/chill off and loads of light, same you can't get them anymore. I have use a fan heater before o.k but kicks up dust and takes longer to heat, find IR heater better in the garage.

After having air and ir heaters I'd ALWAYS use ir from now on.

I end up turning mine down after 30 minutes to an hour.

Tools etc don't get warm, or not that I notice. I have mine up at head height and works spot on.

[Edited on 28/11/10 by Dangle_kt]

IR heater and gloves every time. Oh , and a woolly hat.

so something like this then? eBay Item

my main thing i've not got brilliant circulation in my fingers, so its not so much me being cold, its my fingers (and toes) so thats why i was hoping for the IR heaters to heat up metals (ie tools) and stuff

I had one of those halogeon spotlight type things in my garage last year... did not do much...

You need a proper IR heater, not just a lamp that gives off red light... I was not impressed with it...

Yeah I've got one of those - I think I paid a little bit more but it came with a spare bulb, its worth checking what you can buy a spare bulb for as they aren't cheap from what I remember (£15?). They probably last for ages though!

I mounted mine on a bit of wood so I can stick it on the floor a bit like a site light, it also comes out for BBQ's when it get cooler in the evening.

I'm still going to cook up an oil burner soon but that's a different thread (once I make some progress)

A cubic metre of air per second blasting downwards on your head might be a bit uncomfortable for any length of time!

I would spend at least half the money on cheap insulation, and the rest on IR.

Halogen heater, half price now at Argos.

ooh, this has confused me even more now. in the past, no one recommended IR heaters lol, now everyone is!

is a cubic metre of air a lot then? as a 3kw heater, it should take the chill out the air very quick shouldn't it? as well as warm up tools and stuff? i'd have it mounted up in the middle of the garage, so it would blow down on the car, not necessarily on me. i understand IR would be better for paint drying/curing though.

I want some recommendations too. I rent my garage and don't intend being here once my car is built, and therefore don't really want to insulate it. I have found carpet on the floor makes a big difference, but i need a source of heat as my electric fan heater is useless. I have an old injury which makes my fingers useless in cold and i have yet to find a pair of gloves i can work in comfortably. Any recommendations?

Any view on those electric oil filled radiators to heat the space? The other bonus i have is the electricity is free so not overly concerned about running costs. I would build a log burner but landlord lives on site and would have a fit.

Has anyone got a link to anything they have bought which really works? Having sat under an IR lamp in a pub the other week i can confirm they are good, so if this is the way forward has anyone got a link to one they have had good experiences with?

quote:

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Originally posted by designer
Halogen heater, half price now at Argos.

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If the specs given for the air curtain heater are correct the cross section of the outlet is 1/20 of a sq metre so the air is doing 20 metres per sec, or approx 45mph.

Stick your head out of the window at 45mph and see!

quote:

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Originally posted by blakep82

quote:

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Originally posted by designer
Halogen heater, half price now at Argos.

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noo, i tried one like that last year, it was cack! lol thanks anyways

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ah, i see! yeah, thats quite a lot... but for putting on to blast some hot air in to take the chill off for a few minutes, then turn it down for working?
i do tend to work with the doors open too, so i don't know.
i've got a tiny 3kw heater out there, which is hopeless, you can't feel it blowing unless you're right in front of it

quote:

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Originally posted by Bluemoon

quote:

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Originally posted by blakep82

quote:

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Originally posted by designer
Halogen heater, half price now at Argos.

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noo, i tried one like that last year, it was cack! lol thanks anyways

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Humm if you have tried this kinda thing

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/4150200.htm

And don't like it IR heaters are not for you (even the patio ones work on the same principles)..

They are best at close range as the heat falls of as 1/(distance^2) i.e. i'ts 4 times as hot at 0.5m than 1m...

Dan

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my workshop is insulated with a gas heater. i usually fire the heater up on all three bars for 20-30mins then drop it to one bar on the lowest setting which keeps it at around 16-17 deg with the window cracked open. a 20kg gas bottle usually lasts me a whole year so its pretty cheep to run. in the other workshop i have got a small petrol space heater but it costs a fortune to run all day and stinks the place out if you overfill it.

the only one that works is a ir heater ,it heats objects not air it needs to be a rel ir heater not a halegen with a red bulb
this sort of thing will work very well

RED RAD INFRA RED ELECTRIC HEATER ECONOMIC on eBay (end time 29-Nov-10 10:22:03 GMT)