Sunglo A244 Hanging Patio Heater, 50,000 BTU

Sunglo A244 Hanging Patio Heater, 50,000 BTU

The A244 is the head on its own, hung overhead, with no post and no base anywhere on the floor. That is the whole point of it: under a covered patio or a pergola the heat comes from above and the ground below stays clear for tables and traffic. Sunglo rates it at 50,000 BTU per hour on natural gas, under a 34 1/2 inch aluminum reflector, and it weighs 49 pounds.

Manual pilot, or a switch on the wall

This is the choice that matters, and it matters more on a hanging heater than anywhere else, because a pilot 7 feet over your head is not a convenient thing to light by hand. The manual version uses a pilot and thermocouple with 100 percent safety shutoff and needs no electrical connection. The 24 volt version uses electronic ignition and monitors the flame by flame rectification, turning the pilot and main burner on and off from a switch.

What the 24 volt version needs from you

Sunglo is specific and this is easy to miss when ordering. The 24 volt heater requires 24 VAC to operate, the installer must provide an NEC Class 2 transformer, and each heater draws 20 VA. The transformer is not supplied. Run 18 gauge wire up to 50 feet from the heater to the transformer or switch, and 16 gauge beyond that.

The bracket is not in the box

Worth knowing before the heater lands. Sunglo's own specification sheet lists the L bracket as supplied by the installer, so the mounting hardware is not included with either version. The published mounting height is 84 inches, which is also the clearance Sunglo requires below the head.

Coverage and spacing

Sunglo publishes a heat coverage of 10 feet by 10 feet and notes that coverage varies with how exposed the space is. Their spacing guidance is 15 feet apart in well protected areas, 12 feet in semi exposed areas and 8 feet in completely exposed areas. A covered patio is the protected end of that range, which is the environment this heater is built for.

Specifications

• Input: 50,000 BTU per hour
• Fuel: natural gas
• Mounting: suspended, 84 inch published mounting height
• Head dimensions: 37.5 inches by 41.25 inches
• Reflector: 34 1/2 inch aluminum
• Weight: 49 pounds
• Ignition, manual version: pilot with thermocouple safety shutoff, no electrical connection
• Ignition, 24 volt version: electronic, with flame rectification
• Electrical, 24 volt version: 24 VAC, 20 VA per heater, NEC Class 2 transformer supplied by the installer
• Mounting bracket: supplied by the installer, not included
• Minimum inlet pressure: 6 inches W.C. natural gas
• Clearance to combustibles: 18 inches top, 24 inches side, 84 inches below
• Heat coverage: 10 feet by 10 feet
• Certification: CSA

Where it can go

Under a cover, but not inside. Sunglo's definition of outdoors allows an overhead cover with no more than two side walls, or a cover and three walls as long as 30 percent of the perimeter stays permanently open. It is unvented, so it needs 4 cfm of supply and exhaust air for every 1,000 BTU of input. Keep 18 inches above it, 24 inches at the sides and 84 inches below. Send us a photo of the structure and we will tell you whether it works.