Workshop heating suggestions

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A Kilowatcher meter will tell your avg. energy usage, just like your Gas Co. meter. Radiant heat works differently on our bodies, tho.

An outfit with a battery & lined with heat tape would work, but who sells these things?


"Abstract

Heated clothing includes:
(a) multiple clothing sections adapted to cover different portions of the human body,
(b) electrical wires carried by such sections and including bus wires and heater wires, and
(c) circuitry for controlling battery powered electrical current flow to such wires, and including switch structure connected in series with one or more of the heater wires for interrupting current flow thereto without requiring disconnection of bus wires."

Ask & ye shall receive! :D
 
I wouldn't purchase an appliance meter just for a curiosity measurement. It might be interesting to calculate it by measuring the voltage drop across an extension cord.
 
I always wanted to scrounge up a current operated relay like in the voltage regulators in old cars. It limited the gen output current to maybe 30A.

Put a weaker spring on it, put it in series with the appliance cord & you have it turn on a clock when the appliance pulls current & with the app. nameplate data you know the energy usage over 12 hours.
 
I gave up as my VOM doesn't have a mV scale. I was just going to approximate resistance based upon cord length and measure the voltage drop. Then I thought of using a foot of hookup wire soldered into my thermostat test jig as a shunt but realized my VOM limitations. The four terminal method would be better but I guess I'm not really that interested.

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Even with no heat, I think the barn will get some help from the sun.
The roof and some walls will heat up, which will have to add something beyond the outside temp.
 
I'd think air infiltration would be the main problem in barns.

My VOM is B+K Precision's 391, now discontinued. 4-1/2 digits, 20,000 count.
 
My barn is newer so it's pretty tight. R20 walls and R30 ceiling. Windows are not super high end. It holds heat pretty well
 
I'm planning on putting in a couple of Modine Hot Dawg heaters to run off Natural gas that will be piped in the same time as electric.

Those are serious units! How large a space do you have?

Trying to get rid of the storage unit and am 79.87% ( :rolleyes:) done on finishing off our 20' x 22' 2-car garage.

Considering using one of these to "warm-up" the space. Don't do a lot of work out there, just need to keep the chill off so paint/mud/caulk doesn't get too cold...

Thoughts?

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First is 7,500w with internal t-stat and remote. Second is 5,000w and I'd wire it using a manual (4-wire) t-stat
 
I knew a guy that built a 60’x100’ building. It was a bit better than pole barn construction to store equipment in. Taxes were pretty low. He bought a 70’ mobile home and when no one was looking he pulled it into his building and set it a couple feet from the back wall and moved in.

Was amazing how easy it was to heat and cool and any heat that leaked out helped keep the big building warm. He parked inside and had some tractors and big equipment in there and still had enough space for a good size indoor front yard. He would turn on the barn lights and it was always daytime at his place.
 
My barn is newer so it's pretty tight. R20 walls and R30 ceiling. Windows are not super high end. It holds heat pretty well
What dimensions & input BTU for your barn? Real world data + formulas can take us pretty far.
From a particular barn to all barns is inductive reasoning - hoo-boy, we cookin' now! :D
And then knowing your Heating Degree Days pretty much nails it down.

New windows helped our infiltration, not sure about heat loss thru the double panes.

At 12 BTU per sf per HDD our house is leakier than average. We'll be out of here in ~12 yrs so blowing insulation into the walls is proly not worth it.
 
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