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The old way I used to heat my garage with a propane torpedo heater (and why I switched to a mini-split)
I used to drag out my old 60,000 BTU torpedo heater every winter when I was working on small wiring jobs in the shop (you know, when I just needed to keep my fingers from freezing). That thing would blast through a 20-pound propane tank in about 8 hours, which cost me around $50 a tank here in Ohio. Plus the fumes were awful, I'd have to crack the big door a few inches and still end up with a headache after a few hours. About 3 years ago I bit the bullet and put in a 12,000 BTU mini-split heat pump for about $900 installed (did the electrical myself, which saved a chunk). Now my electric bill only goes up maybe $30 a month in the dead of January, and the air is way cleaner. Has anyone else made a similar swap from portable gas heaters to something more efficient in their home shop?
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theac6323d ago
@brianl53 had a good point about insulation making a huge difference. That $30 bump sounds about right if the space is tight and well sealed. I've seen guys at the supply house who put mini splits in their garages and their bills barely move because they foamed the walls and put insulated doors on. The old torpedo heaters might be cheap upfront but they eat you alive on fuel and air quality. If your basement isn't holding heat like his garage does, adding some weatherstripping and maybe a cheap foam board over the windows could trim that $50 down a bit.
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brianl531mo ago
Diana, I get it, your skepticism makes total sense. I was surprised myself when I tracked it the first winter because I figured I had to be wrong on the numbers. The mini-split in my garage is only running maybe 6 to 8 hours a day on the really cold days since the space is small and I only heat it when I'm out there working. My garage is a two car detached with pretty good insulation in the walls and ceiling though, so it holds heat way better than I expected. I honestly think the $30 bump is real for my setup, but I bet your basement is bigger or has more air leakage, which would explain the difference.
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diana_black1mo ago
Your $30 a month figure seems pretty low for a 12,000 BTU heat pump running in an Ohio January. I have a similar size unit in my walkout basement and my electric bill jumps at least $50 in the cold months, and that space is well insulated with conditioned air from the house already seeping in. Did you track the actual runtime or just eyeball the bill difference? I am curious if you got the special low rate from your utility company or something.
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