Which heat pump for a garage?
Updated October 24, 2026
A garage is often poorly insulated, with a large door that leaks air. The figures below assume a garage heated to 22 °C with pre-1970 insulation: the worst case.
Heating at -23 °C9,300BTU/h
Cooling at 30 °C3,600BTU/h
Recommended system
ZERO 12,000 wall unitfrom $2,349 · DIY
Covers 100% of the heating load at -23 °C
See on kanartic.caLoad by floor area and city
| Area | Toronto (-18 °C) | Montreal (-23 °C) | Edmonton (-32 °C) | Cooling Montreal | System (Montreal) | DIY price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 250 sq ft | 6,100 | 6,900 | 8,300 | 3,100 | ZERO 9,000 wall unit | $2,199 |
| 400 sq ft | 8,300 | 9,300 | 11,200 | 3,600 | ZERO 12,000 wall unit | $2,349 |
| 500 sq ft | 9,600 | 10,800 | 13,000 | 3,900 | ZERO 12,000 wall unit | $2,349 |
| 600 sq ft | 10,900 | 12,300 | 14,700 | 4,200 | ZERO 12,000 wall unit | $2,349 |
| 800 sq ft | 13,400 | 15,100 | 18,100 | 4,700 | ZERO 18,000 wall unit | $2,895 |
Good to know
- Insulate the garage door and its weatherstripping first: it is the biggest source of loss.
- If you keep the garage at 10–15 °C instead of 22 °C, the load drops by about a third.
- Pick a cold-climate model: it keeps 85% of its capacity at −30 °C.
- Keep the indoor unit away from workshop dust, or clean its filters often.