Winter is coming, so it’s time to choose the best home heaters. There are many options on the market, and choosing one can seem daunting.
We will answer all of your questions about which heater for large rooms and small ones to choose as well as what features you should pay attention to when purchasing a new heating system for your home.
What Type of Heater is Right for Me?
There are many types of electric heaters. All have their pros and cons so you should choose the one that suits your needs best.
Convection Heaters
Convection heaters use natural airflow to distribute warmth evenly around the room. These heaters are also quieter than fan heaters. One disadvantage is that they take longer to heat the room.
Portable Fan Heaters
Portable fan heaters are suitable for small rooms, such as bathrooms. They have many benefits: they do not take up much space and can be used when you go to bed at night to warm your feet in the winter season or cool them off in the summer season. These devices only work with electricity, so that is one disadvantage.
Radiant Heaters
Radiant heaters are among the most popular systems. They create an even, soothing warmth that heats objects in your home rather than heating air. The greatest advantage of these devices is their ability to provide comfort in any room with various designs and power sources, including electric wires or gas. Such a heater can be used for both small rooms (kitchen, bathroom) and large spaces (living room).
Radiant heaters have a significant drawback: they are not very effective when used in open rooms. However, if you use them with other heating systems in your home or business premises, this issue can be easily resolved.
Panel Heaters
Panel heaters are very popular because of their low cost and easy installation. You can try out Blue Raven. They can be placed on the floor, wall, or ceiling. Moreover, some models feature wheels for moving around easily. As with any heating unit, they provide comfort to people staying in one room only but do not work as well as traditional radiators which spread warmth all over the house.
Night-storage Heaters
Night-storage heaters are a great choice for small rooms. The main advantage of night-storage heaters is that the heater heats up right before going to sleep and warms it completely during your period of rest.
This type of heater can be used both in houses and apartments. It is best to choose a model with adjustable power since the heating capacity depends on the size of the room. For example, if you use it to heat up your living room or bedroom at night, take one that warms up about 20-25 square meters.
Heater Size
Size is an important factor. It determines whether a heater can be used for heating large spaces, small rooms, or anything in between.
Small heaters are great for bathrooms and other small areas where you want to keep the temperature comfortable but don’t need it to get very warm – they generally only output around 500-1000 watts of power which is enough for a small room.
Medium-sized heaters are the most common and suitable for all but the largest rooms – they typically output between 1000 and 2000 watts of power which is enough to make a medium-sized room warm and cozy without overheating it (although larger rooms will benefit from more powerful models).
Large heaters generally output over 3000 watts of power which means they’re best suited to very large living rooms, halls, or other larger open areas. They can also be used in multiple smaller spaces as long as you have a suitable electrical supply.
Heat Output
Heat output is another important factor when choosing a heater. The output of heat is measured in BTUs, which stands for British Thermal Units.
A BTU refers to the amount of heat required to raise one pound (or 0.45 kg) of water by one degree Fahrenheit.
So if you want a heater that can quickly warm up your home and keep it cozy through the winter, then opt for an appliance that has a high BTU. A large house with an open plan can go for heaters ranging from 100,000 to 200,000 BTUs, while a medium-sized room will do fine with 50K-80K BTUs.
Heater Functionality
The next most important thing to consider when choosing a heater is its functionality. Each room has different heating needs, so you need to select the best option for your specific space.
First of all, for a living room, you need to choose a model that will provide heat in the space where people will spend most of their time. It is best to enjoy warm clean air near them when they sit on chairs or sofas and still feel comfortable even when standing up from these seats. In this case, it is recommended to pick a tower heater as it can heat larger areas and provide comfortable airflow.
For smaller rooms such as bedrooms, it is best to choose an option that provides directed heating. It means the air should be only directed towards where people will spend their time in this room – so usually near beds or tables for studying and working.
Any heater can be used for a guest room or utility area as long as it is properly installed and isolated from the rest of the house with thicker walls to prevent heating larger areas. In this case, choosing an option that provides adjustable heat settings will make your life easier – you’ll get more control over how much energy it uses and how the room temperature changes.
Safety
When you are choosing the heater for your home, safety should be your number one priority. These devices not only heat spaces but can also cause severe fire damage if they are not used properly. Therefore it is always wise to check that all parts of a device are in good condition before using it.
The most important thing about the safety of a home heater is the automatic shut-off. If an electric device starts overheating, it will switch itself off to prevent any accidents.
Thus you should go for heaters with this feature – there are plenty available on the market nowadays, and they don’t cost much more than regular ones without automatic shutdowns.
Another important thing for safety is that all electrical devices should be placed away from inflammable objects. Besides the home heater itself, you need to pay attention to furniture or other items in your room that can cause fires if they are too close to heating appliances.
Conclusion
These factors mentioned above should help you choose the best home heaters for your house. As you can see, it is not too hard – and if you follow all safety tips and choose a device with automatic shut-off, your home will stay warm for years to come.
