Electric Heater Recommendation?

[velvetfoot]

Can someone recommend a good electric heater or your of electric heater? I'm thinking of using one or two to take the chill out. Should I look for one with a fan, or maybe an oil filled radiator type. I'd like to warm the room as opposed to radiating people, so that would probably rule out the glowing kind, but I'm not sure. How much juice do they take, 1500 watts? Thanks.

 

[Grisu]

Most heaters I know have two settings which are 750 W and 1500 W. If you want to heat a room quickly I would go for one with a fan. Efficiency will be the same between cheaper or more expensive units. What you pay for is longevity. We use one in the bathroom sometimes if the heat from the stove has not traveled that far yet. Takes less than 10 min on high to get the room warm but it is only ~30 sqft.

 

[velvetfoot]

That make sense about the fan, thanks. This would for upstairs in a couple of upstairs rooms to bump up the temp some in the evenings. The downstairs is toasty, of course. I'm thinking it might be more cost efficient, or at least equal, to that of the oil boiler coming on and heating the upstairs zone, cycling on an off. I'm not sure though; should get a timer to time the burner on time.

 

[Dune]

Grisu is right, all electric resistance heaters operate at 99% efficiency.

 

[velvetfoot]

Now that I think of it, I wonder if the fan would be too obtrusive.

 

[Grisu]

I think at current oil prices there is not much difference between oil and electricity for heating anymore especially if you take in account the efficiencies of the two. If you only have to heat a room getting a small electric space heater make a lot of sense IMO.

 

[velvetfoot]

I was thinking of trying a couple of these:
(broken link removed to http://www.homedepot.com/Electrical-Portable-Heaters-Humidifiers-Portable-Heaters/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbve7Z1z110v6Z1z110v6/R-202295960/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051)

 

[stee6043]

I've had great luck with a decent/mid-level oil filled radiator I picked up from HD several years back. It has a timer on it so you can program it to come on before the room is going to be used and shutoff sometime later.

I personally find the oil filled units to be more comfortable. No need to worry about which direction the fan is pointing, silent operation, no smell.

 

[velvetfoot]

They do take a little while to warm up though, right?

 

[stee6043]

They do take a little while to warm up though, right?

Yes, the oil filled units need some time to get going. They are warm to the touch in a few minutes but to really fill the room with warmth I typically give it 20 minutes. That being said, you also get 20 minutes or so out of the unit after you shut it down, all things being equal.

 

[jeffoc]

We have a honeywell baseboard heater that we got off of amazon for ~80 bucks. CR had rated it highly and it works really well. It has a fan that is silent and helps to warm the room and then you can shut the fan off and use it like a radiant heater.

http://www.amazon.com/Honeywell-HZ-...=1353518096&sr=8-12&keywords=honeywell+heater

 

[BillT]

We had a problem with one room at the end of the house a little too cold. We tried a few different electric heaters through the years, but I always liked the idea of an Oil Filled Heater. We bought a DeLonghi Oil Filled at one of the box stores about 5 years ago and it's been a near perfect solution. It balanced off the house just right.

Bill

 

[BrotherBart]

I bought some of those tower heaters and I hate the things. They have a thermostat on them but since it is on the heater they are way off from the room temp. And I have plug in thermostats that I love but they won't work with the towers because they turn the power to the heater on and off and when the power is turned back on to the tower you have to hit the start button.

They are wrapped in plastic wrap on a shelf in the basement.

 

[velvetfoot]

If you were closer, I'd have maybe bought them from you . I got two Lasko towers:
http://www.lowes.com/pd_144568-2409...rentURL=?Ns=p_product_avg_rating|1&facetInfo=

They seem to heat up pretty quickly with the fan.
There's such a bewildering array of electic heaters available, that you could spend thousands of dollars and still probably not find the dream model.

 

[begreen]

I like quiet heat so the oil filled units appeal to me. But in my office I have one of these. It's made by Braun, but Caframo now took over manufacturing. It's quiet and effective and has been in use for over 20 yrs.

(broken link removed to http://www.caframo.com/home_office/homeoffice_products_spaceheatersbootdryers_truenorth9206CABBX.php)

 

[tlc1976]

I bought some of those tower heaters and I hate the things. They have a thermostat on them but since it is on the heater they are way off from the room temp. And I have plug in thermostats that I love but they won't work with the towers because they turn the power to the heater on and off and when the power is turned back on to the tower you have to hit the start button.

Sounds like a good idea to use cheap hard switch heaters with your thermostats. That's all I use, is the cheap ceramic cube heaters if I need any extra heat.

I just never saw how one could justify a $300 Edenpure or the other brands. I know many people with them. Can they really be that much better? The engineer in me says electric heat is 99% efficient (minus the fan) no matter what you use, and if it's something you can plug into a household outlet it's going to be limited to about 1500 watts. I've run my cube heaters 24/7 with no problems and in the years between furnace and wood I heated the house exclusively with them.

 

[woodgeek]

Um. All the energy from the fan also gets turned into heat. I guess if it were loud some acoustic energy would escape to the outside.

 

[xman23]

If you don't have a space issue the 5 or 6 foot free standing oil filled baseboard 110 VAC are the best for a quick fix. We use one for a cold room. It does nice even heat..
For a more permanent installation. You can install 220 V oil filled baseboard. They make a proportional control thermostat. It will give you much better temperature control.

 

[WellSeasoned]

I love my oil filled electric radiator, when I need it. Its like a woodstove, warming the air as well as the things around it; walls, bed, dresser, ect. A blower type will only warm the air for the most part. Good luck!

 

[daveswoodhauler]

Good thread, as was looking into picking up an electric heater as well.

My situation is that I work from home three days a week, so I just wanted to heat up my office vs running the entire upstairs zone.

I picked up one of these:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_100813-3345...l=1&currentURL=?Ntt=%22de+longhi%22&facetInfo=

Got it running and plugged into my kill o watt meter, and it looks like it will cost appx 20 cents a day to run while I am home. (current rates are $.144 kwh)

Would be interested to hear how you like your unit.