Our garage - organized chaos and no room for a vehicle

Our garage – organized chaos and no room for a vehicle

When we looked for a house back in 1988, one thing I insisted on was a two-car garage.  Having been apartment dwellers prior, I was tired of working outside in the cold.  We did purchase a house with a garage and for many years it was big enough for our two cars, my tools, and lawn equipment.  But after 23-years in our home the garage houses everything but the cars.  Our two boys have moved out but they didn’t take their stuff with them.  Add to that my wife’s bins and boxes of Christmas decorations, old clothes, and other junk she just won’t part with and you can imagine what my garage looks like. The photo doesn’t do it justice.  The wife says it’s organized chaos.

I’m ready to claim my garage space back because I’m tired of working on the cars out in the rain.  I have the wife working on organizing, tossing, donating, and generally  moving out the stuff that’s overtaken it and we’ve told the boys to get it or we’re tossing it.  But, even after I get my space back, there’s the problem that the space is unheated and worse, it’s uninsulated.  Sure, I could finish it and put up insulation and dry wall, but I can’t take on another big project until we finish this one as well as the master bedroom redo, so I did the next best thing.  I  put in a garage heater.

NewAir G70 Electric Garage Heater - front

NewAir G70 Electric Garage Heater – front

In the past when I did work out there in the garage I’d “borrow” my wife’s space heater.  It was never close to being powerful enough to make a difference so I literally had to stand right on top of it or place it on my work bench.  We’ve tried just about every kind of space heater and I think we own three different types right now, but none of them could take on the challenge of the garage.  Well, those days are over thanks to my new NewAir G70 electric garage heater with forced air fan.

The NewAir G70 electric garage heater is a 4,000 watt heater that’s meant to heat up to 400 square feet (granted, insulated areas are easier to heat up and keep warm so my coverage isn’t as good on really cold days).  Unlike household space heaters, this one is in a metal casing so it’s durable, and since it can be mounted up out of the reach of little hands, it’s safe for use in the garage (when installed the proper distance from walls and ceilings).  It also comes with a mounting bracket that swivels so I can send the heated air in the direction that works best for what I’m doing.  We’ve had mildly cool days in the 30’s and 40’s, but so far I’ve not had the chance to test it at anything lower.  The unit works as intended, the thermostat is a bonus, and while the casing heats up, the brackets keep it safely away from the wall.  It is powerful so it’s on the noisy side when running, but that also means it’s pumping out the heat.

NewAir G70 Electric Garage Heater - front panel

NewAir G70 Electric Garage Heater – front panel

I was worried about the cost of running the unit but I talked to my brother who’s a contractor and he said it’s actually an economical way to heat.  And because I work for the fire service, I checked over the safety aspects of it.  The first thing I looked for were the UL- and CUL-listed certifications and I was glad to see that if it overheats, it will automatically shut down. No venting is required and because it’s electric, there aren’t and noxious or dangerous fumes or gasses being emitted.  The double pole thermostat means that it will heat until the temperature I set and then shut off which is exactly what I was looking for.

NewAir G70 Electric Garage Heater - back panel

NewAir G70 Electric Garage Heater – back panel

The only thing that kept me from getting the  NewAir G70 electric garage heater in and working sooner was that it required a 240V Plug. A lot of houses have them prewired in the garage but our 1970’s house did not, so I tried to wire it myself which I found out I did incorrectly and could have burned the house down.  I got expert help and it’s wired correctly now and I suggest you do the same.

Now I have an affordable and safe way to heat my space.  Buy the right space heater for your needs.  We use a Dyson Hot™ Fan Heater now in the house which is the perfect application for it, but it wouldn’t last too long in the garage.  The G70  is ruggedized and meant for the garage or shop so it can take the bumps.  Now I just have to reclaim that space in the garage to take advantage of it.  My wife wanted me to mention this would be a great gift for your handyman and I agree.

 


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