Infrared heaters allow bus mechanics to drop off jackets, pick up comfort
The comfort level of the 800-sq-ft bus maintenance facility rose dramatically after Woodward's HVAC specialist, Doug Morrison, replaced conventional forced air unit heaters with infrared heaters. Previously, heat produced by the three 85,000-Btu forced air heaters was lost through convection in the upper reaches of the 16-ft-high ceiling. Plus heat recovery after opening the large overhead doors was slow. "Heating from the ceiling down to the floor didn't work so well and the forced air heaters seem to run continuously," said Morrison.
"For 20 years, that facility was never warm," said Morrison. "Now the mechanics wear regular work clothes and no longer use winter gloves. Also, the facility is probably getting better energy efficiency, because the unit heaters ran continuously whereas the infrared heaters cycle on and off because they've reached the 60° setpoint."