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Garage furnace
- Thread starter Janger
- Start date
I hung a home furnace from the ceiling. Most of them can be safely installed on their side and it's usually pretty easy to pick up a lightly used one on Craigslist or the like.
I paid $250 for a 2yr old high efficiency gas furnace a couple years ago. Less expensive to run and quieter than standard "garage" heaters.
I paid $250 for a 2yr old high efficiency gas furnace a couple years ago. Less expensive to run and quieter than standard "garage" heaters.
This is VERY interesting. I've never heard of doing that. I like it!
But does that meet code? How does your insurance feel about it?
As long as it's installed correctly it will meet code and if it meets code, the insurance company can't complain.
My electrical, gas, venting all meet code. The unit I have is designed to be installed vertically or horizontally, so installing it horizontally meets code.
If I am nit-picky, the only thing I can think about that may not meet code is the length of ductwork. And I say that only because I don't know if there is a minimum length required. I can see that there could be a minimum, for safety reasons. I have 3' of ductwork on mine.
My electrical, gas, venting all meet code. The unit I have is designed to be installed vertically or horizontally, so installing it horizontally meets code.
If I am nit-picky, the only thing I can think about that may not meet code is the length of ductwork. And I say that only because I don't know if there is a minimum length required. I can see that there could be a minimum, for safety reasons. I have 3' of ductwork on mine.
Tom Kitta
Ultra Member
I also thought of going with "regular" used home heater but went against it and got garage heater instead.
Main issues with home heater in garage:
1. its big
2. needs ducting
3. not optimized for garage heating (usually way too big)
4. used, no warranty, you don't know exactly what you are getting
5. expensive repairs are far more likely vs. garage style heater.
Actual $ savings are not that much as biggest cost is installation, unless you are licensed to do it yourself. This is also why I went with premium heater - not worth going cheap, it would decrease the price by like 10% at most.
Main issues with home heater in garage:
1. its big
2. needs ducting
3. not optimized for garage heating (usually way too big)
4. used, no warranty, you don't know exactly what you are getting
5. expensive repairs are far more likely vs. garage style heater.
Actual $ savings are not that much as biggest cost is installation, unless you are licensed to do it yourself. This is also why I went with premium heater - not worth going cheap, it would decrease the price by like 10% at most.
All good points Tom. No doubt a garage specific heater can be the better option for most. A home furnace isn't the solution for everyone.
However, for me, the used furnace was the way to go.
1. It is bigger, but I don't find it overly big. Plus it's on the ceiling, so makes no difference to me. (I have 13' ceilings)
2. That's the only area I am not sure about. I don't know if there is a specific amount of ducting required. I have no ducting on the inlet side and 3' of ducting on the outlet, simply to direct the airflow downwards.
3. They will typically always be rated too big, but the rating is at max heat. There are usually at least 2 heat stages. I found a smaller one, rated for around a 1500~2000sqft home. I set mine to only run on low speed, low heat, so it works great for my 600sqft garage. I find it does not over-cycle set like this.
4. I wasn't concerned about warranty. I figured furnaces typically last for at least a couple decades, so I was fine with taking a chance on a 2yr old furnace.
5. If I can't repair it myself, it wouldn't be worth it to me, to pay $100/hr + for someone to repair either one. It could be argued that repairs are cheaper because parts are far more readily available.
That was my thought pattern and why it works for me. Also, I planned to keep my garage heated at all times, so going with a high efficiency furnace was the only way to go for me. And installation wasn't a concern, as I have an electrical ticket and my friend has a gas ticket.
Last edited:
historicalarms
Ultra Member
Buddy of mine has a reused downdraft furnace from a mobile home in his garage, works fine & no ducting needed...just sit it up on an open ended wood stand and it blows down to the floor , heats the bottom of the area first.
I left an old-school radiant heater at my old shop, came out of a town Saskatchewan that was all propane heat until the late 90s, then they converted everyone to nat-gas. These heaters were the size of a small dresser, mounted 16" off the floor, and direct vented out the wall. Used to heat a 22x22 garage to the sweating point 'silently'. Loved that heater. Going to see if the new owner is open to selling it back to me.....
For the first 15 years at this place I used an old furnace I bought for 75$ for my garage heat. wasn't particularly efficient, but it did the job well, at not to great a cost, and heated the garage *quickly* (that's what 120,000 BTU will do). I left the garage very cool (at about 0, and only heated it when I was working.
Sadly it died, so I went with a Princess auto 50K BTU instead. It just keeps up. More insulation went in this winter, so I cannot wait to see how it fares next winter.
Sadly it died, so I went with a Princess auto 50K BTU instead. It just keeps up. More insulation went in this winter, so I cannot wait to see how it fares next winter.
That looks like the same unit I got.
You make a very good point that others might miss @Dabbler.
Higher capacities don't necessarily heat (or cool) a space any better. But they do get it up or down to the target temperature a whole lot faster!
A short story for anyone who is bored - Once upon a time, 40 years ago or so, we bought one of the first R2000 homes. It was sealed up to the nines and had 18" thick walls. (And prolly had a radon problem too.) BUT, it also had electric baseboard heating and no air conditioning.
No way we were living with that! So I paid a tin knocker buddy of mine to install ducting and a forced air furnace that was twice as big as recommended for our home. Why? Because there was no point cooling the place when we were at work all day and I didn't want to turn the temp down and then wait till tomorrow morning before work for the house to be cool enough.
But the dummy argued that it was a waste of money. "The calculations say you only need....."
In the end, he screwed me by secretly putting a big evaporator in but a small condensor compressor. (obviously he knew more than I did) The combined system was a disaster. I bought some freon, borrowed some gauges, and rebalanced the system to account for the smaller condensor. It worked acceptably but was never able to do what I really wanted. So a few years later, I upsized the condensor and compressor and life was good after that!
Insulation is key. My shop furnace is only 75k BTU and even at -40 it keeps up no problem. Shop is 1800 sq ft with 14' ceiling height. The little wood boiler heating the slab is just supplemental to keep the propane bill down. Slab is insulated below and around the perimeter, R22 walls, R50ish ceiling, will be increasing to R70.