Wall mounted wifi controlled fan heater

[mrpercysnodgrass]

Does anybody use a wall mounted fan curtain heater in their workshop? I am thinking of getting one installed before the cold sets in. I don't have any floor space left and not much wall space but could put one over an internal door. A heater that works off an app would be ideal so I can turn it on while having my morning coffee and have a nice warm workshop to start the day with. Are there better ways to heat the workshop? I have a really good wood burner, but that takes an hour to heat the space and often I have too much furniture to light it without scorching somebody's precious heirloom! Any suggestion welcome.

 

[Cabinetman]

Like you I’m in my workshop nearly every day working and I feel it’s better to keep a low base temperature all the time so included a lot of insulation when I built it. I use an oil filled radiator which could be mounted high up as you have suggested. I think you would need to control it from a thermostat mounted further down towards the floor though.
A fan heater which is basically what you are looking at is probably not the most cost effective solution. Ian

 

[Droogs]

Best heat is the wood burner but you could get an infrared heater that is portable and very good at heating you and not everything else. they are really good where I need to warm up either a ground before veneering or gluing up boards as a pre heater of the edges. Herschel make some of the best out there. Or you could get one of the below for ~£20 from B&M and use that to keep you warm until the burner does it's job.

 

[Doug71]

My rented workshop (9mx9m with a high ceiling) has a large fan heater on the wall, it's 3 phase and I think 9kw. It does take the cold edge off quite quickly although I do count the minutes it's running for! I think it has a built in thermostat but I don't know what it's set at and I never leave it running long enough to find out.

Last year my landlord fitted a stove that runs on oil/diesel which still isn't that cheap to run but the good thing is the fan heater is kind of above it so I sometimes put the fan heater on fan only and it blows the warm air from the stove around the room rather than it just going straight up to the ceiling.

 

[Rorschach]

Anything up to 13amps can be run off a WiFi socket so you could use any kind of heater really to pre-heat.

 

[Fitzroy]

I've been thinking about something like this (a door air curtain heater) on a WIFI enabled socket. Not necessarily over my door but closer to my bench.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/144179720315?epid=135399631&hash=item2191c7f07b:g:P1QAAOSwcyRgvhup

 

[clogs]

think I'd prefer 2 oil heaters
1 with a freeze setting like a tube heater and another on a timer or wifi....

 

[Rorschach]

think I'd prefer 2 oil heaters
1 with a freeze setting like a tube heater and another on a timer or wifi....

That's great if your workshop is well insulated and you use it everyday. If you only use it occasionally or it's poorly insulated then you might as well get a wood burner and burn fivers to keep warm.

 

[clogs]

yep, fivers are cheaper than fire wood right now....
I assumed stupidly that as I use my shop everyday most others would as do
well....
dohhhh.........

 

[Rorschach]

yep, fivers are cheaper than fire wood right now....
I assumed stupidly that as I use my shop everyday most others would as do
well....
dohhhh.........

Understandable. I use my workshop 5 days a week most weeks, but I don't have set times in there, 6 or 7 hours some days, 2 or 3 on others. Keeping it heated all the time would be very wasteful.

 

[clogs]

Rorscach,
my shop was quite large and full of very expensive machines...
Both for wood and metal work....I dread to think of the value of all that stuff....
I have had troubles in the past with damp/ie rust and never again....
so to my thinking a small amount extra on the elec bill to keep out Mr Damp was money well spent....
No such a problem now as winter is roughly 6 weeks long here....
the rest of the time temps are well over 20deg.....day and night...
heard of 1 frost last winter....almost made the papers.....hahaha......

 

[Robbo3]

Perhaps a diesel caravan heater?
Although I have a wood burning stove in my concrete sectional garage workshop there are times when I need some instant heat for a short time, or to preheat the workshop, so I invested in one similar to this
- 12V 5KW-8KW Diesel Air Heater Remote Control For Truck Boat Home Caravan SUV Car | eBay
Remote controlled & very economical.
Needs to exhaust to outside & a decent 20 amp + power supply eg
- DC 5V/12V/24V Universal Regulated Switching Power Supply for LED Strip CCTV - UK | eBay

 

[mrpercysnodgrass]

Thank you for all the suggestions. Robbo, I had looked into the diesel heater idea, I really like it but in the end dismissed it because there would be times I would run out of fuel and being in deep country it would mean a 45 minute return journey to get some so I need 'on tap' fuel!
Wickerman, I did not know wifi sockets existed, I was looking for heaters with integrated wifi which of course was proving quite limiting!! I happened to be going to Screwfix yesterday so picked up a wifi socket. I have opted for a curtain heater wired into a fused spur and plugged into a wifi socket, we have economy 7 electric so running a 3Kw fan heater for a couple of hours in the early morning will not cost very much and will not only keep me warm but also help keep some of my tools and machines rust free.

 

[XTX]

A plinth heater (as used in kitchens) is another option if you want a fan heater.
A wall/ceiling mounted infrared patio heater is also an option if you want to heat yourself and not the whole room.

Whichever heater you go for make sure you keep it clean/dust free. Dust and heating elements = fire.

 

[hairy]

The 24v diesel water heater I had was ridiculously frugal, this air heating one says at full 7KW output it drinks a litre an hour so a couple of jerrycans will last a while? They are not cheap to buy though.

https://www.butlertechnik.com/downloads/Eberspacher_Heater_D7L_Workshop_Manual.pdf
I have had an electric wall fan heater with a weekly timer on it.
A warehouse shop near here has a far infra red strip heater high above the till area and keeps anything within 5-6m nice and toasty. I'd love one of them in my garage.

 

[Rorschach]

Thank you for all the suggestions. Robbo, I had looked into the diesel heater idea, I really like it but in the end dismissed it because there would be times I would run out of fuel and being in deep country it would mean a 45 minute return journey to get some so I need 'on tap' fuel!
Wickerman, I did not know wifi sockets existed, I was looking for heaters with integrated wifi which of course was proving quite limiting!! I happened to be going to Screwfix yesterday so picked up a wifi socket. I have opted for a curtain heater wired into a fused spur and plugged into a wifi socket, we have economy 7 electric so running a 3Kw fan heater for a couple of hours in the early morning will not cost very much and will not only keep me warm but also help keep some of my tools and machines rust free.

Sounds like a good plan. You might not need to run that heater as long as you think, fan heaters are pretty good at bring up the air temp quickly which makes you feel nice and warm even if the actual building itself is still quite cold.
I have a 4kW paraffin heater, it brings the air temp up to a comfortable level in about 30 minutes.

 

[Inspector]

Is a mini split something you would consider? No flames or ignition source, Heats, cools and dehumidifies too I believe. They start at about 575 pounds.
An example. Senville SENA-09HF/ID Concealed Duct Mini Split Air Conditioner Heat Pump 9000 BTU Off-White : Amazon.ca: Home I don't know if it can be Wifi controlled but it can be programmed. This one can work down to -30C. You would have to size it to the shop.

Pete

 

[mrpercysnodgrass]

"Is a mini split something you would consider? Pete"
That sort of devise was not even on my radar, thanks for the suggestion but I have already ordered a curtain fan heater in combination with a fused spur and a wifi socket I think overall it will be the best solution for me.

 

[Rorschach]

Is a mini split something you would consider? No flames or ignition source, Heats, cools and dehumidifies too I believe. They start at about 575 pounds.
An example. Senville SENA-09HF/ID Concealed Duct Mini Split Air Conditioner Heat Pump 9000 BTU Off-White : Amazon.ca: Home I don't know if it can be Wifi controlled but it can be programmed. This one can work down to -30C. You would have to size it to the shop.

Pete

Again a great option for a well insulated and regularly used shop, not so great for other circumstances.