Back-up emergency heat

[Bradfo69]

As I sit and watch the news about ice, snow and massive outages in the midwest, my thoughts turn to the reality that although we rarely lose power and even then it's no more than a couple hours, since I now have a small greenhouse that I heat with electric, THIS will be the year that the east coast near Philadelphia will get it's disaster. (oh, the power I yield, right?)

That being said, a backup heat source is on the agenda. I'm curious, has anyone ever used a kerosene heater in an emergency? I also have read about parrafin heaters but rarely see one in catalogs or stores in the US. I've had my issues with propane but what about one of those reflective units that mounts on top of a 20 lb. propane cylender? In an emergency, bud blast and some yellowing is still far better than a room full of 400 dead orchids.

Thoughts?

[littlefrog]

It will depend on how much space you are trying to heat. I have used kerosene 'kettle' heaters and they work fine. Never noticed any bud blast. One of my favorite heaters is a catalytic propane heater. They don't have an open flame, and are very efficient.

[Ray]

I bought a generator a few years back, and one of the circuits it's tied to is the GH. As a shorter-term fix, I also have a small propane heater that runs off of a gas grill cylinder - like this one:
Master Convection Heaters

[Bradfo69]

It's an 8 x 15 Sunglow - freestanding and about 7 feet at the center peak. What's a "catalytic propane heater"?

Thanks Ray - I forgot about that style and I've seen them at Home Depot on occasion. I've also been meaning to touch base with you about speaking to Delaware Orchid Society next fall. (I know you did a few years back but it might be time again soon.)

[Shirley]

For my 10 X 5 sunroom I have a small kerosene heater. Luckily I haven't had to use it very often but it certainly does prove it's worth in winter power outages. Haven't noticed any bud blast from it. There are some fumes when it first lights but I do that away from the room and then carry it in when it's settled down.

Shirley

[al_sfbay]

i have an 8x 16 GH with natural gas but it requires electricity for the ignition so I keep a Big Buddy propane heater ready. It runs of BBQ canisters and takes 2.

[BikerDoc5968]

Hey, Brad, I have the same GH and while it is probably a day late and a dollar short, I installed a 1/2" NG line to the GH and use a 20,000Btu vent-free NG heater and have the same 15,000Btu electric as my back-up. At this point I guess you could run the line along side the GH and tunnel under the floor, but that would be major work. I posted pics of my set-up in a thread in this similar topic (Heater for Small GH) about back-up heating. So do you like your SunGlo?

[Bradfo69]

Before I saw this post, I looked at your previous one, (and the photos) and got excited because you've got the same GH as I do. LOVE yours! The foundation is really cool, as is the rock walls surrounding it. I'm jelous. :-) Yours also looks about as jammed up as mine.

So far I've been really pleased with the Sunglo. If the opportunity ever presents itself, I'd like a larger one - more square in shape. The two things I don't like are the lack of height and constantly bumping in to stuff as I move around since many of my plants are hanging from the rafters and extend out past the benches. Other than that, it's been a great greenhouse.

One comment on your setup is that I was told the heat source should be at the opposite end of the vent. Of course that puts it right in front of the door, which is inconvenient. Do you have any problems with the heat kicking on your vents too often? In a greenhouse that small, I don't know that it matters that much.

I did go electric but could always switch to NG. I just didn't get the trench dug before the weather got cold. I've got to do it though because I want my water running underground. I can only water (or run misters)with hose when it's above freezing. Otherwise I water with a 1 gallon pump sprayer which makes for a long process when you use an average of 4 gallons each time.

[BikerDoc5968]

I do like my GH but I have a major problem with condensation in the recesses of the inner wall. I resolved this problem for now by installing a sheet of plastic on ther inside. I have talked with Mike (at SunGlo, he's one of the owners) about installing acrylic on the inside. They make the inner panels themselves from sheet acrylic and this would work for me. I got around the height problem by building it up on a foundation wall. What you don't see is that the surrounding wall extends down as a "footing" with 6x6 at the corners and mid-points and clad with treated 2x8 inside and outside with a filler of 3.5" of styrofoam board and the floor is also insulated with 3" of the same stuff. I ran the gas/electric prior to constructing the walls. I am not as fortunate to be able to run water into the GH becasue of the distance from the house and the inability to insulate it from freezing. I, too, must use a pump sprayer to water. I got a 3 gal at a big box store and this has worked for me. I have the exhaust vent covered with bubble wrap and the fan thermostat set at 90 deg so it won't go on yet. Hopefully, spring will return soon and I can uncover the vent and reset things. Yes, I would have to run a long 12 gauge wire 15' for the 240v power source to have the heater at the other end and it would compromise the doorway. I handled this situation by adding an additional fan to circulate the heat from the heater(see pics). I also modified their board mounded system to use treated 1x6 attached to a 2x6 support. Then I added double circuits to the load center and used waterproof boxes for additional outlets and a "real" plug for the 240v heater. If you modify the heater plug, make sure you purchase a 240v because they make a 125v that looks the same. I also ran greenfield to the door end of the GH for the intake fan and overhead lighting because I don't use the grow light sent with the unit. Thanks for your comments about the GH. I'm sure yours work for you and is every bit as nice as mine.

[chulaorchids]

Hi, Ever heard of the Southern Burner Heater? The A-1 model is 25,000 btu's, venter, runs off a thermostat on either natural gas or propane. Neither requires electricity, at least not from the electric company. They operate on a Honeywell 750milivolt (low voltage) gas valve. It is opened by a thermocouple in the pilot burner. If the electricity goes off in the neighborhood you can go sit in your greenhouse to stay warm, lol, I have sold these heaters for over 40 years, they are excellent. Go for the vented ones, I was never able to keep my catts from streaking with the unvented ones, but I had three vented ones in my large greenhouse, 32 x 42 in so calif.

Harry