Hi,

You didn't say what size cylinder (1 LB or 20 LB) you were using but I'm guessing
it was a 1 LB. It probably just ran out of gas. One of the web sites (see URL 1
below) said heating time is 3 to 6 hours with a 1 LB cylinder and 48 to 110 hours
with a 20 LB cylinder.

So, IMHO, it's probably a reliable heater BUT you'd have to make sure it doesn't
run out of propane. A natural gas fueled heater would seem to be a better choice.

The propane is in liquid form in the cylinder and absorbs heat from the air to turn
it into gas that the heater can burn. When the cylinder is getting low, it will
get cold and moisture will condense on it. When it's almost empty the moisture
will freeze giving it a layer of frost near the bottom. One summer I drove an ice
cream truck which had a propane fueled generator in it. I could tell by how high
the moisture or frost line was how much was left in the cylinder. I carried two
cylinders, a 80 lb for normal use and a 20 lb spare for when the big one was empty.

The site at http://www.mrheater.com/new/buddy.htm has lots of info about these
heaters.

I used Google to search for "Buddy Heater" and "Mr. Heater"

URL 1:
http://www.forestry-suppliers.com/pr...ge.asp?ID=4018

This is an interesting problem that needs more info, like

This is a radiant heater which heats the object, not the air itself, according to
the manufacturers site. Will that work?

What's the normal source of heat in the green house? What kind of fuel does it
use? What's the risk of it's failing? Has it failed and how long was it out?
What do you do now if it fails? How do you know it's failed?

How big is the green house? If the primary heat fails do you want to just keep the
plants from freezing or do you want to keep them at the *normal* temperature.

How valuable are the plants? How much money are you willing to spend for this
emergency system?

Are you going to leave the emergency system on pilot so it kicks in automatically?

What's your backup for the emergency system running out of fuel.

Is the green house attached to your house? One of the sites below said this heater
was approved for use in a home but only with a 1 LB cylinder. Can't use it with
the 20 LB cylinder in a house.

My apologies for all the questions. I'm a computer engineer and it's a hard habit
to break. It drives my wife nuts when I turn a simple question into a big project.

Hal

TRAINMAN9 wrote:

Is anyone using this portable propane heater for emergency heat. I was using it
for the first time to heat our garage and after a couple of hours the propane
cylinder froze up and the heater turned off.

I was considering using it for emergency heat in my greenhouse but not if it is
not realiable.