DIY Heating for Sump system

The reason that i think the space heater will be a major contributor is that
the enclosure will be very small (10' x 7' x 6'H)... Temperatures in my
garage regularly drop below zero in the winter (or should I say,
occasionally rise above 0!).. I'm hoping that a space heater w/ a fan,
designed to raise a normal rooms temperature a few degrees, will raise the
temp. a bit more dramatically in this tiny sealed off compartment. I plan on
having vents in the walls I'm putting up to provide fresh air. That being
said, these things aren't designed to run 24/7, so I do need to have
sufficient heating in my tank system to keep it stable. 2 heaters per tank
is too much for me to afford at this juncture, hence I want to find
something that will allow me to centrally heat the whole system.. I know I
can probably use 4 or 5 submersible aquarium heaters in the sump w/ enough
wattage that even if 1 fails, the others should be able to prevent too wide
a swing. I'm going to put thermometers in each tank to monitor
discrepancies.

Wait a minute... I just re read what you wrote... Are you saying that it
would be more efficient for me to just heat the water? If the area was
insulated tight, would the resulting water temperature heat my room to a
bearable temperature also?

Just in case your wondering, this project is the first of its kind that I've
attempted. I'm having to think about every law of physics I learned in
highschool 10 years ago! I'm having enormous fun w/ the whole thing. The
latest chapter as you see is The Laws of Thermodynamics. I already went
through a crash course in structural integrity building my rack (carpentry
too!), Hydraulics when designing the sump system and plumbing, and I'm
currently also trying to design the air distribution out of sprinkler system
adjustable flow manifolds (I think thats pnumatics!) Any advice is
appreciated, as I've learned everything so far off of newsgroups and
websites

"Bob K." wrote in message
...
Does anyone know how i could set up a system using one of those coil
heaters
usually used to heat water (handheld)... I want to be able to link one of
those to some sort of temperature probe and thermostat that can cut off
the
power when the desired temperature is reached...

Those heaters aren't made to last as much as you need.
And the metal in them will disolve into the water.

The most efficient heating is going to be heating the water,
but you'll always have to watch for when a thermostat gets
old and sticks. Space heater is inefficient but will make it
comfortable to work in there.

A recommendation for large tanks would work well for you,
use two heaters in each tank - each half the wattage you need.
if one breaks, either stuck on or off - the other will keep the
tank from going way off.

Bob