what do i really need to know and do to get the right wod/pellet heating solution for my garage

On impulse I bought a pellet stove new last fall and it doesn't heat my garage up more than a few degrees, complete waste of time and money.
I have a buddy here in Ohio who offered me a woodstove or one of two pellet stoves he has from his previous shop and garage. Likely going to trade him a couple of nice rollaway toolboxes for whichever one I get, but am worried it wont be any better than the pellet stove.

My garage is several rooms, the main room where tow of us work daily for 3-5 hours packaging shipments is about 16' x 60' (I will actually measure today), there is an open 6' wide doorway into a standard sized 2 1/2 car garage on the long side of this garage. All the other garages/rooms are separated by doors from the main space.

Ceiling is about 12' and insulation is nearly nonexistent, and pretty drafty as well.

I used a kerosene torpedo for heat last year and this past winter once I ran through 10 bags of pellets and we were still working in our carhardts out there. Torpedo is expensive (@40 bucks a day) , loud like a jet engine and stinks a little bit, It does heat up the area quickly and keep it a comfy temp to work in shirtsleeves.

We do have 220AC in the garage.
I am wondering how much difference insulation will make and if a woodburner is the way to go or if I should install a gas line or electric heating system of some kind.
All thoughts appreciated.
I like to learn from my mistakes.
thanks in advance
Dave

 

Insulate well first. Have to stop loss before gain begins.

 

What pellet stove did you buy and what pellets did you try?

 

X2 with what smoke show said. You really do need to seal up the drafts and get some insulation going on if you intend to have success heating with anything. I'm a contractor and very familiar with torpedo heaters. Not a good way to go and really they serve more as a warm up point. They will heat areas fairly well but they are what they are.

There is also a lot of heat going out of the 6 foot doorway and into the 2 1/2 car garage area which adds to your problem of getting things up to temp or warm in your shop. At least plastic that off or something too. Insulation is a must have if you want to retain heat. The higher ceilings are not helping either.

Most pellet and wood stoves are rated for X amount of square feet and that is normally with 8 ft. high ceilings. So 16' x 60' equals 960 SQ FT. But what you also need to do is figure in another half of that for your extra 4 feet of ceiling height. So in essence you are trying to heat 960 + 480 = 1,440 SQ FT. Now add the fact there is no insulation and the shop is leaky and drafty this is fighting an up hill battle no matter what you heat with.

You would need some very serious BTU's constantly pumping out just to combat some of the chill. You need to push out way more heat and faster than you lose it before you even gain anything. I think most pellet stoves would heat the equivalent of 1,440 SQ FT if it is insulated.

Which pellet stove did you buy new last fall? And what is the BTU rating or square footage it is supposed to do? Bottom line I do not think you will see any major heat gains until you get things insulated and sealed up. Kind of like trying to heat your house with the windows open.

You can also add in the square feet in your 2 1/2 car garage in all reality because it is not really separated so that at least doubles the SQ FT you are truly trying to heat.

 

oh....I'll say it......cuz no one else did. Pellet stove in a garage? Against most codes, against NFPA211, against any UL tested stove Ive seen......

 

I could of been the first reply with answer, but I figured why beat the horse anymore

 

Duravent 55-shp 10l
documentation said good for 1500' sq ft house
installed per local codes, there were requirements regarding the exhaust and intake and the windows had to be sealed on that outside wall as well
I am a chainsaw geek, but have never heated with wood.
Pellets seemed economical, easy and clean, which it was but not enough heat for my circumstance.
If the regulatory stuff wasn't such a headache I would just have it torn down and a new garage/shop built that better suits our needs.
I am also considering a gas furnace. Natural gas is cheap here, I have an undeveloped corridor on the utility side of the house that runs back to the garage and I have a trencher and a BIL who is a commercial/industrial plumber.
I might like the idea of heating with wood more than the actuality

 

I am not sure you will be happy with a pellet stove heating up that space regardless of insulation. Especially if the space is only heated part of the day, like while you are working.
My suggestion would be insulate, get a 60-70k btu stove. Hook it up to a thermostat and not let the temp dip more than maybe 5 degrees less than what you want to work in when you are gone.

 

shop is 10x20 with 11' 6" ceiling, completely open on one side to warehouse at 16' x35' with 8' 6" ceiling, attached and open to garage 23x23 with 8' ceiling and parts room 8' x8' with 7' ceiling so about 1350 sq ft but all un-insulated and lot of high ceiling in the shop

 

I just saw the post.....thought I would beat anyone else to it!

 

because too many folks would see someone putting it in a garage, and thinking..."I saw it on the internet, it MUST be true..."

 

What other heat source is currently used to warm up the space? (Aside from the Kero Torpedo Heater?)

 

You are asking alot of that little stove especially with zero insulation.
If you were fully insulated and programmed the board to run on mode C like most others do then it may be possible to keep warm on mild days. You need to remember that pellet stoves are in fact just space heaters.. intended to heat the room they are in. Im not even sure the pdv would do much better without closing off the other rooms. As mentioned already, insulation is a must otherwise no matter what you try to heat with is just wasting money.

My wood working shop is 30'x60' with 16' ceilings. An overhead garage door. My forklift is parked inside. Occasionally so is my car... "So its a garage" i guess. Gas can near the door, motor oil and machine oil on the shelves. Chainsaw in a cabinet.
Not the best for insulation but it is insulated.
I heat it with a Wood stove. A homemade wood stove at that. Been doing so for the past 13 or so years. The insurance adjuster who does a walk thru 3-4 times a year has never said anything except how impressed he was with the stove.

 

Thanks for the feedback guys, anybody need a pellet stove
Short of walling off the shop from the rest of the space (and of course insulating which needs to happen in any case) I chose the wrong heating appliance.
I am going to get a crew to do insulation and drywall this summer and likely go with a natural gas furnace.
Dave

 

Once it is insulated and drywall is up the pellet stove chugging along might just keep it comfortable. Run on low or med constantly, pellets are cheap now, stock up.

 

Good choice , it sounds like you really need a ductwork system .

 

X3