On Mon, 29 Dec 2008 08:37:55 -0600, RoyJ
wrote:

It's a 4'x8' starting bed. Putting in a boiler system with fuel oil is a
**BIT** of overkill.

Which is why i said to improvise. If he's in a fairly mild climate
(non Snow) running the electric heaters won't break the bank.

But if it gets Sub Zero in his area, you start needing lots of
electricity to keep the starting bed toasty warm, and that starts
getting seriously expensive - more money than you would save buying
fruits and vegetables at the store. That's when you improvise.

You don't go buy a new oil-fired boiler to rig this up, you call
your local friend with the Heating and Air company, and your local
Plumber, and see what useful things they have in their scrap piles.

If they know you are looking for a used unit, the next time they
take one out they can do it a bit more carefully so it still works.

This is R.C.M - Adapt, Improvise, Overcome. The first step is to see
what you have to work with.

If he's living /way/ out in the boonies and Oil and Propane are
expensive to deliver, then you start thinking about building a wood
fired boiler. Temperature regulation can be a challenge, but there
are ways to do it.

Or you tap a line off the boiler for the house heat - build the
greenhouse as a "Lean-To Shed" off the south side of the house to
minimize the pipe runs.

-- Bruce --