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General Category => General Scroll Saw Talk => Topic started by: smitty0312 on July 24, 2013, 10:57:03 am
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I had somebody really concerned about my gas furnace, is there any concern with having a gas furnace in a shop that has saw dust every where and in the air, or is electric heat the way to go, if you have electric heat, what do you use? My shop is 10 x 24. Any help is well appreciated.
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yes
If you have any open or exposed flames then sawdust can explode, not often but it can happen
I use electric heaters by way of oil filled radiators, they seem to be the cheapest form
Dave
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Have you thought about a ductless heat pump? The mechanism sits outside with just power and copper pipe through the wall. Heats and cools, and takes little inside space.
https://www.goductless.com/Mitsubishi/MUZ-GE12NA-MSZ-GE12NA-12000-BTU-20-5-SEER-Ductless-Heat-Pump-System/19596.ac (https://www.goductless.com/Mitsubishi/MUZ-GE12NA-MSZ-GE12NA-12000-BTU-20-5-SEER-Ductless-Heat-Pump-System/19596.ac)
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Smitty: We use a heat pump in the house for a quick warm up or on the milder days, and the good thing about them is you can use them in the summer for cooling, best of both.
***Merlin***
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Don't sweat the small stuff. I had a gas furnace in my shop for years and no problems. In order for saw dust in the air to explode it would have to be so heavy that you couldn't see or breath.
I live in Kansas and we do have grain elevators explode from dust in the air but, you would have to see what the air and surrounding surfaces look like to understand how it happens. The humidity must be right, almost a 50/50 mix of fuel/air ratio in an enclosed space and a good source of heat, spark or flame is what it takes to ignite.
Next time you go camping or are around an open fire, throw a hand full of flour into the fire. Yes, it will burn and maybe even make a small fire ball but, I'll bet you will use a few hand fulls of flour before you get it to burn.
I have since changed to a small electric heater for efficiency and convenience but, not because of being afraid of a fire or explosion from gas.
I once had my shop in the basement where the gas house furnace is and I ask the furnace repairman about the saw dust (I was more concerned about the filter and getting dust up stairs) he told me not to worry about it.
Rog
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I'm with Rog. I had my shop in the basement for years with the house gas furnace without a problem and I am not very good about cleaning out the sawdust.
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Roger is right. I am a retired firefighter and was Captain of the Hazardous Materials team. So unless the dust get's so heavy that you couldn't see or breath you are ok. I have used an open flame propane heater in my shop for over 10 years with no problems. :)