We have a small greenhouse attached to the south side of our home. It's 14' X 12' with a shed roof tapering from 10' on the house side to
6'. Roughly 1,400 cubic feet. It's a 2x4 frame with double-walled polycarbonate sheeting, 10mm for the roof and 6mm for the sides. We're in Maryland, near Baltimore, so it rarely gets below the mid-teens in the winter.We heat it with a 220V electric heater, 5,600 watts and 19,110 BTUh rating. This generally keeps it at the 50 degrees the plants require but occasionally my wife puts on a 110V supplimental heater on cold nights.
The power hasn't failed in the winter since we got the greenhouse but it's probably only a matter of time. I was thinking of getting a kerosene heater as back-up to the electrical heaters. Home Depot has a
23,000 BTU heater for $129 which seems to fit our needs. Could I use home heating oil for this or would it be better to stick with pure kerosene?I was wondering about a propane heater; would that be more efficient than kerosene? We have a propane ball/tank for some other applications which aren't used in the winter.
Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Paul