What is the most cost efficient way to heat my garage?

Question

Our old home has a basement for our dog kennels. We have just bought a new townhouse to move closer to our jobs and we must now move the kennels into the 2 car garage. The garage ceiling is insulated and sits below our kitchen. Both walls that we share with our neighbors in the townhouse are insulated. It was 18F today and the garage was just too cold for me to feel comfortable leaving the animals for a few hours a day.

I want to add a heater for their comfort but don't want to pay insane electric bills or kill em with fumes.

What is the best way to keep these guys comfortable through the winter without breaking the bank?

Answer 1

You can install a wall heater. My cousin put one in their garage, set up some chairs and a T.V., its thier smoking room. The dog hangs out there, it's really comfortable. We live in Chicago. I wouldn't use space heaters, they are not safe.
Also, you can get heated crate pads, check your local pet store.

Answer 2

The most cost efficient way is by using fans. Otherwise, I would suggest perhaps installing a small air conditioning unit, one that is used for apartment buildings. A small one of these would surely be enough to cool down the garage if you keep the garage door closed.

Answer 3

what kind of dogs are they? was wondering what are the dimensions of your garage are. I heat my garage with one of those space heaters that look like a satelite dish. it radiates the heat from red-hot elements and it oscillates slowly to distribute the heat better. i paid 60 dollars for it. if its made a difference in my over-all electric bill, then it hasnt been large enough to be obvious. I keep the garage at 5 degrees celsius (40 F). you have the added benefit of also being able to heat your kitchen floor as the heated garage air rises, thus helping with your indoor heating costs as well.

Answer 4

First thing to do is not try to heat the whole garage. It'll take huge amount of energy to keep it warm. Make comfortable sized doggie apartments (dog houses connected to each other). Install one or two 100 watt incandescent light bulbs in each apartment. Incandescent bulbs are terribly light efficient. Most of the electric energy used by it produces heat.

lightpulse

Answer 5

Look at tube heaters, they are fairly cheap and work well in shops and garages. We use them at work and they seem to put out good heat and supposedly are much cheaper to run than your typical furnace. They are also quiet.

Answer 6

Don't ever add any appliance to the gorrage.