Gas and Oil Home Heating Furnaces - Forced air kerosene heater question

I was looking to get a 55,000 BTU forced air kerosene heater to heat my 2 car detached garage in the winter. From the manufacturer's websites, they say these type of heaters are a good choice for outdoor work. LP forced air heaters are indicated as a good choice for indoor work. They never say that you can't use the kerosene heater indoors and I would prefer to use kerosene over the LP due to cost of fuel. I would only be using the heater occasionally on weekends when I'm doing work out there.

My question is, can I use a 55,000 BTU forced air kerosene heater in my garage? Is this dangerous due to carbon monoxide buildup? Does LP create or build up less carbon monoxide than kerosene? Is LP much safer? There are drafts in the garage, so there is some ventilation. I've used the wick type kerosene heater in the garage in the past and never had a problem. It just doesn't get warm enough.
Thanks.

tbano:
My personal feeling is that these types of heaters are an accident waiting to happen, no matter what the manufacturers say.
I've been in a friend's garage with one running and after a couple of hours had a pounding headache. In spite of him paying good money for it, I talked him into getting rid of the thing and installing a suspended gas heater.
Any amount of carbon monoxide is a bad thing even if you don't pass out, because it can build up in your system.

Another thing to consider is that most jurisdictions require that open flames, even catylytic ones must be installed at least five feet above the floor in a car garage due, to the possibility of igniting gasoline fumes that are heavier than air and will build from the floor up.
This could void your insurance.
Another thing is that these units give off a lot of moisture which in very cold temperatures will condense on your favorite tool causing them to rust.
There's more..... but enough preaching.
Bottom line is that in my opinion direct combustion for space heating is a bad idea.

Ask around at some of the hvac shops They could have a good, old lp furnace they took out.This works very well for what you want,. you will have to vent it outside with a flue. It will have a big blower on it that can move the air all over and give you a good pick up after its been off for a while. Id check code there where you are we only have to have open flame 2' off the floor here;) ED

tbano:
When I discourage you from the kerosene heater I know that they are not very expensive and give you a fair bit of heat for the money.
Ed has a good idea to look for a used furnace, and something I have used is a downdraft furnace from a mobile home.
I once put an oil fired one in for myself in a rented garage and helped a friend put an LP one in his garage. What makes them good is that when installed on an 18 inch high metal stand with a deflector underneath, the air blowing out the bottom nicely heats up the floor. Plus in our area they are usually in the range of 75,000 to 100,000 BTUH, which heats up a cold shop in a matter of minutes.

Thanks for the input. I don't know what I'm going to do. Your suggestions are good but I was looking to spend as little as possible and I don't know how long we're going to stay in this house. The kero heater would be portable and inexpensive. If this was my shop for life, I would definitely spend more money and go with something permanent and vented. Right now I don't get out to the garage in the winter too often, partly because of the cold and partly due to lack of time due to 2 young children in the house. I have the wick type of kerosene heater that makes it bearable out there but not warm enough to do any painting or finish work and that is what I was hoping to get done.

I wasn't aware that using one of these in a cold garage would increase the moisture in there, but that is another consideration. I was mainly looking for feedback on the carbon monoxide issue and I guess we don't really know how safe it would be in a garage with a draft. Is LP safer in this type of situation? Thanks for the input.

tbano:
tbano wrote:
"I was mainly looking for feedback on the carbon monoxide issue and I guess we don't really know how safe it would be in a garage with a draft. Is LP safer in this type of situation?"

If you read our responses carefully you should hear quite clearly that we are saying; yes there is a good potential for carbon monoxide poisoning with either type of direct combustion heater.
Propane or kerosene, it doesn't matter, they are still direct combustion. That is, the products of combustion are released to the occupied space.

My friend says that when he gets a headache, it's time to go in the house. He's a good friend, so if I can't convince him...............