What Is a Heated Garage?

A heated garage has a permanent, dedicated heat source, most often a gas-fired unit heater hung from the ceiling, plus the insulation and air sealing that make heating it affordable. In Alberta this is not a luxury line on a feature sheet; it is one of the most searched-for garage upgrades in the market, and one of the easiest to misrepresent. A bare garage with an extension cord and a construction heater is not a heated garage.

What Makes a Garage "Heated"

Work through the cross-section from outside in. Insulated walls and ceiling hold the heat; a vapour barrier keeps moisture from migrating into the framing; an insulated overhead door closes the biggest thermal hole in the room; and the heater itself, gas-fired unit heater, electric unit heater, or in-floor heat in high-end builds, replaces what leaks out. A floor drain earns its place the first time a snow-covered vehicle melts off overnight.

Skip the envelope and the heater runs constantly for nothing. Skip the heater and you have an insulated garage, which is genuinely useful (it will sit well above outdoor temperature on house-adjacent warmth and thermal mass) but it is not what "heated garage" promises on a listing.

Why Albertans Pay for It

The case is the climate. A vehicle stored at 5 to 10°C instead of -25°C starts instantly, clears itself of ice, and skips the block heater ritual entirely. The workshop case is bigger than the parking case for many owners: a heated garage is usable space twelve months a year, which is why so many Edmonton garage conversions start with a furnace quote.

There is one honest downside: melt. A warm garage melts the snow, slush, and road salt off your vehicle every night, and that wet, salty film is harder on paint and undercarriage than staying frozen would be. The floor drain and a rinse habit are the mitigation, not a reason to skip the heat.

The Rules: Gas, Permits, and Paper

In Alberta, installing or altering a gas line, including the run to a garage unit heater, is regulated under the Safety Codes Act: it requires a gas permit and must be done by a licensed contractor to the CSA B149 installation code. Homeowners cannot legally run their own new gas line. In Edmonton the gas work is typically folded into the building permit for a garage project, or permitted on its own for a heater retrofit. Electric heaters skip the gas permit but need an electrical permit for the new circuit.

That paper trail is a buying tool. A heated garage with permits on file is an asset; a heater someone "hooked up" is a liability with a flue.

What the Market Says

In July 2026, 594 of Edmonton's 6,934 active house listings mention a heated garage, roughly one listing in twelve. That is a large, self-selected group of upgraded homes, so their prices run above market, but the practical signal for sellers is simpler: a genuinely heated garage is a feature buyers filter for by keyword in this city, twelve months a year. For buyers, the retrofit math matters more: insulating and heating an existing double detached garage is a mid-four-figures-and-up project depending on structure and gas run, which means a home that already has it done, with permits, is worth real money relative to one that does not.

Frequently Asked Questions

What temperature should a heated garage be kept at? Most owners hold 5 to 10°C: warm enough to keep vehicles ice-free and the space workable, cool enough to keep gas bills modest. Workshop users turn it up while working rather than holding room temperature around the clock.

Does a heated garage need insulation? Practically, yes. An uninsulated heated garage leaks heat as fast as the heater makes it. Walls, ceiling, a vapour barrier, and an insulated overhead door are the standard package alongside the heater.

Do you need a permit for a garage heater in Alberta? For gas, yes: a gas permit under the Safety Codes Act, installed by a licensed contractor to CSA B149. In Edmonton it is often bundled into a garage building permit. Electric unit heaters need an electrical permit for the circuit.

Is a heated garage bad for my car? It cuts cold-start wear dramatically but melts salty snow onto the vehicle nightly, which accelerates corrosion if ignored. A floor drain and regular winter rinses manage it.

Is an attached garage already heated? No, but it is warmer. An attached garage borrows house heat through the shared wall and usually stays above freezing. "Heated" on a listing should mean a dedicated, permanent heat source.

Hunting for a home with the garage already done? Search Edmonton listings or check what upgraded homes sell for.

MLS figures are live Edmonton data as of July 2026. Gas permit and installation rules are from City of Edmonton and Alberta Safety Codes Act guidance.