What are my options?

I am planning to enclose a portion of my concrete-block garage as a studio, and I need to be able to keep the temperature inside the room around 45-50 degrees during the winter (central Illinois). Assuming I insulate it really well, does anyone have any idea of the best way to heat this space (the room is 10 x 17, so 170 sf)? It has to be electric. I am trying to make plans now and need to know what my options are so I can get started. Would baseboard heaters work? A wall unit? I've tried to research it, but just get more confused with all the info...lol
Thanks!

 

They make electric unit heaters that hang from ceiling or wall mount. They have a fan to blow the heat down, and they will heat a lot faster then baseboard electric. Paul

 

I need something that I can keep on all the time to maintain a constant temperature; would the ceiling/wall-mount units work best for that?

 

If you are going to be turning the heat up and down a lot then the unit will
heat up faster. But ether the baseboard or unit heater will do the job.
if you want your floor a little warmer then you might want a small ceiling fan to hold the heat down, and keep the floor warmer.
A lot less to go wrong with baseboard. Paul

 

Thanks for the help Paul. I'm mostly concerned with keeping the room above freezing during the cold winter months. Mostly 45-50 degrees, with maybe once or twice a week turning the heat up to 65 when I was spending time in it. I know absolutely nothing about baseboard heaters. Are they safe? What are some safety concerns/clearance issues, etc?

 

As far as i know they are safe, they use them in a lot of homes.
I am into gas heating and boilers, so i don't sell or install electric
heat very much. paul

 

baseboards are cheep and relieble. run them on 12/3 wire on 240 20amp breaker and you can run about sixteen feet of baseboard run the wire to a large box for a double pole thermistat and stick the wire out of the drywall where you want the baseboard, goodluck

 

I would go with Forced air electric, they heat the room faster, take less wall space. I have them in a few rooms of my house and I thnk there great.

 

Daryl, any particular brand/make/model you would recommend?
I looked at a few on-line, and they said to mount them 8-9 feet high???
My ceilings in that room are only 7 feet, but I think I would prefer a wall unit as opposed to baseboard heating. How much clearance would I need around it?
Thanks for all your help!

 

Are you sure that wasn't 8-9 Inches, the ones I have and see everywhere are Dimplex and are intalled at a 8" min off the floor. I will see if I can find the specs and I will get back to you but you don't need a lot of clearence. I just checked and its 8 inch clearence top bottom and sides

 

Have you considered electric radiant floor heating? It is an easy install under floor tile, and had a thermostat to keep it a constant temperature.

 

Check with your local B.D. as other to other requirements. An air supply, smoke detector, weather-stripped door from the garage space, vapor barrier plastic on the slab, proper egress - all may be needed to meet minimum safety Code.

Gary

 

Well this is my take on these 3 idea's
Baseboard is the least expensive but you lose wall space where it or they are installed, they take a while to heat the rooAm up and are expensive to run
In floor heating is the most expensive to buy out of the 3 and the proper thermostat is very expensive, it is real nice on the toes though
Forced air units are small, inexpensive but more than baseboard, heats the room up fast and the lose of space in minimal. A 2000 watt will more than do the job for 170 sqft

 

Thank you all for your input. I think I will probably go with a wall unit, the main goal is just to keep the contents of the room from freezing when it gets really cold. I have to have some electrical work done out there, so I will see if the electrician has any recommendations also.
I'll have a lot more questions later when I really get involved in this project, probably around the beginning of February (right now I'm mainly planning and budgeting).
Thanks again!
Debra

 

Well good luck on everything and someones always here to help out Happy New year Debraanne :banana:

 

Thanks Daryl, happy New Year to you , also!

 

Okay, after months of research, I think we're going with the Q-Mark LFK 304 wall heater, 3000 watt. Does anyone have any feedback regarding this brand?

 

Should do you just fine. One thing though I would have a proper wall thermostate put in, I hate the built in ones,

 

Thanks, Daryl. I'll check with my electrician about installing a wall thermostat.
I appreciate your feedback!

 

Would there be any advantage to going with the 4000 watt unit? Our electrician mentioned something about a larger unit working "less hard" to heat the space therefore possibly less electricity used? I know 3000 will keep the room warm enough, I'm concerned with energy ($$$$) usage????