yeah, yeah, yeah, i know its almost summer. But i’m thinking of heating the workshop for next winter (currently no heat). Considering propane, either vent or ventless. How much H20 does propane put into the atmosphere (in relative terms, a little or a lot), and will vented send most of that moisture outside? NG is available, but I hate to think of that monthly bill year-round, the minimums would be more than the propane I’d use, but is NG drier than propane?
Thanks
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i dont know where you are, but here in southern ontario canada, ng is much cheaper than propane abd you never run out. my 1000ft2 shop plus basement in a comercial plaza cost me about 60-100 per month over a 6 month heating season, it keeps my shop ata comfortable constant 65 f. in the summer my bill is a minimal user fee
well worth the price
a vented propane unit should not give off anymore moisture than ng
A wentless unit will dump moisture into the living/working space. How much? For one pound of propane (pure), you'd get 19,944 BTU (net) and 1.63 pounds of water. So 8.2 pounds of water per 100,000 BTUs consumed.
For methane (most of natural gas), a pound gives you 21,520 BTU's, net, and 2.25 pounds of water. So 10.5 pounds water per 100,000 BTU's.
Get a vented unit. Absolutely in any building you sleep in. But even in a work space, why expose yourself to carbon monoxide? None of the ventless units are designed for continuous use as a primary heat source (that I know of). Rather as an easy-to-install way to get something that looks like a fireplace or add a hour or two of heat to room. Sleezy salespeople then oversell them for more serious uses. The upside being that the people who die as a result weren't the brightest in the first place :-)
I understand what you mean about minimal usage of propane may make it cheaper than meter reading fee for natural gas. But consider that once there's a thermostat on the wall and it's so easy to make/keep it warm, you'll do so more than you expect you will.
Don't have one and am looking for feedback, but one of these (in the dual fuel version) sounds like it would fill the bill, once you get over the initial cost. http://www.centralboiler.com/home.html
don't get a non-vented unit. my buddy heated his shop with one of those, and while no one died of CO poisoning, it got so moist in the shop that we had to keep the door or window open, which kind of defeated the purpose of heating the shop!
Also, the excess moisture caused condensation on the nails poking thru the roof sheathing, which then dripped on to everything.