Barn or outbuilding heater suggestions.

[EastenerWesterner]

After a week of being cold in the barn, I started thinking about a heater. The layout doesn’t support the floor space for a wood stove.
I have been thinking of a salamander type heater so I can heat each 12x12 section as I need too. I have a lot of winter projects
To give an idea, shop area , stall, stall, tack area down one side. Office, stall, double stall (with inclement weather dog runs)
I am thinking something movable so that I can use a stall as a work area or painting area.

Any suggestions as to the situation, fuel types appreciated.

 

[M0del_31]

After a week of being cold in the barn, I started thinking about a heater. The layout doesn’t support the floor space for a wood stove.
I have been thinking of a salamander type heater so I can heat each 12x12 section as I need too. I have a lot of winter projects
To give an idea, shop area , stall, stall, tack area down one side. Office, stall, double stall (with inclement weather dog runs)
I am thinking something movable so that I can use a stall as a work area or painting area.

Any suggestions as to the situation, fuel types appreciated.

Main Fuel - Wood: with used motor oil supplement just to p!ss off greta

 

[Amish Heart]

We've had to start heating our milkhouse a bit. It has two rooms and luckily has electricity. I moved 26 month old french guineas into tarped cages into a large tarped dog run into one room of it. Hung two heat lamp in the dog run and they've been all right. We'll be at a low of 10 degrees tonight. Also have an electric heater at one end. If I didn't have electricity in there, I really like the propane heaters most amish use in their homes around here. They do a good job. We also have two portable Mr Buddys that run off propane.

 

[Schattentarn]

What about a barrel wood heater? You can do it yourself with an old metal barrel just so long as it is clean.

https://www.wayfair.com/United-Stat...2&cnxclid=16398894101014397206810090301008005

 

[DrHenley]

I have two Portable Buddies and one Big Buddy propane heaters. They have a low O2 shutoff in case you burn up all the oxygen accidentally. I've used them to heat the whole house a couple of times when either the furnace went out or the power went out. I've taken the Portable Buddies to the deer stand, and heated the deer camp with them when the furnace died (permanently). They've been a life saver too many times to count.
I have hoses to hook them up to larger propane tanks if I need to use them for extended periods. I also have a Carbon Monoxide and Flammable Gas alarm made by Kidde and several other CO alarms, and a hand held flammable gas leak detector. The Buddies have never set off an alarm.

 

[EastenerWesterner]

What about a barrel wood heater? You can do it yourself with an old metal barrel just so long as it is clean.

https://www.wayfair.com/United-Stat...2&cnxclid=16398894101014397206810090301008005

I would loose floor space in the 12x12 shop area or loose it on the other side of the barn in the tack area
I kinda liked the flexibility of heating the 12x12 space i needed instead 36x48 thats why I was leaning toward a space heater.

 

[DrHenley]

The "Big Buddy". It can take two cannisters of propane, but I usually use it with a hose and a 20 pound propane tank. Using the hose, it takes a while to purge all the air from the hose, so I put a cannister in the other side to prime it. Once it's burning good I take off the cannister.

 

[EastenerWesterner]

The "Big Buddy". It can take two cannisters of propane, but I usually use it with a hose and a 20 pound propane tank. Using the hose, it takes a while to purge all the air from the hose, so I put a cannister in the other side to prime it. Once it's burning good I take off the cannister.

That looks to be more versatile than a salamander type. Hooking to a 20lb is not a bad thing.

 

[M0del_31]

12x12 is electric space heater territory. I use an old single phase air handler with two 5kw heat strips in a 24x24 pole barn with 1R bubble wrap. I’m in the Deep South and at 18F outside I can get it up to about 65F inside. I could not afford to run it all the time, (about $1 an hour here) but on the rare occasions when the planets align and it’s freezing and I can actually get outside away from everyone that needs me to do everything, it’s heat at the flip of a switch. With wood I’d have to build the fire and hang around until it burned out. When done, I can turn the electric heater off, then the lights and lock the door.

 

[Illini Warrior]

Mr Heater makes a portable unit with a Big Buddy and 20lb tank combo >>>> 18,000 BTU Cabinet Heater

 

[EastenerWesterner]

12x12 is electric space heater territory. I use an old single phase air handler with two 5kw heat strips in a 24x24 pole barn with 1R bubble wrap. I’m in the Deep South and at 18F outside I can get it up to about 65F inside. I could not afford to run it all the time, (about $1 an hour here) but on the rare occasions when the planets align and it’s freezing and I can actually get outside away from everyone that needs me to do everything, it’s heat at the flip of a switch. With wood I’d have to build the fire and hang around until it burned out. When done, I can turn the electric heater off, then the lights and lock the door.

I am on the left coast and rarely see below 30. The electric in the barn may or not be legal. I know the current line to the barn isn’t code now, but may have been when it was put in. I have been through all the wiring in the barn and know it meets current code. Doing permit things may bring me issues
It’s a pretty big building with lofts 8 ft tall on sides and 32ft at peak. Only interested heating it while I work or enough to paint some doors. Most of what I want to heat is under the lofts, so 11-12 high.
I think the propane is the way to go, but Iike using 20lb tanks.
Even if temp gets as low as you, I could keep the dog run stall warm.

 

[GeorgiaPeachie]

I would loose floor space in the 12x12 shop area or loose it on the other side of the barn in the tack area
I kinda liked the flexibility of heating the 12x12 space i needed instead 36x48 thats why I was leaning toward a space heater.

I use an oil filled radiant heater in my greenhouse. It works well there. We have backup propane heaters too. Depends how much heat you need.

 

[EastenerWesterner]

Thanks everyone. There has been good direction as to how to proceed. i think some of the suggestions are more multipurpose than my initial thought.

 

[Helen Back]

I use these for temp heat to work in my shop, let some air in for safety.. Keeps the work area nice and warm.

Hiland AZ Outdoor Patio Heater, Hammered Bronze, HLDS01-CG at Tractor Supply Co.

 

[Amish Heart]

I use one of those for my outdoor kitchen

 

[jimLE]

The buddy heater might be your best bet.the first link shows a fan you can get to go with it.second link shows the right way to hook up a 20LB tank to one.i now have a buddy heater that has a low and high setting only.and a single fan instead of the two fan .I tried it out after I got both.the heater and fan setup does work.

 

[MNwr786]

Being it rarely gets below 30°. what about piping hot water from a typical household water heater (propane or electric) through some old low pressure steam radiators? It could be a closed loop with glycol and corrosion inhibitors. You could then easily incorporate temp control and automation and leave it alone. We did that on the farm as a backup when we were not home to put wood in the outdoor boiler. It was tied into the same system with the same low power circulation pumps (except, it was floor heat there).

 

[DrHenley]

The buddy heater might be your best bet.the first link shows a fan you can get to go with it.

The Big Buddy has a built in fan. It is basically a double Portable Buddy. It has two burners, each one exactly like the single burner in the Portable Buddy. You can run one or both of the burners and you can run a single burner on low. With both burners going it puts out a LOT of heat!

 

[jimLE]

The buddy heater I have is is a single 1LB tank setup.so I'm assuming that it has a single burner.and definitely no built in fan.

 

[EastenerWesterner]

@MNwr786 my goal isn’t to heat it all the time, just enough to work. My hands kept getting cold rearranging the tool box. I looked at my next couple projects and realized I may want some more comfort this winter.

I am going to go with a radiant propane and have a couple Milwaukee fans to spread If I get one with out. Right now it’s where I can get bestsecondary use.
@Helen Back’s idea was very good too. We had been toying with a patio heater.