Space Heaters

[Skel]

Does anybody know anything about space heaters?

I always have this problem; part of my basement is finished and the heat coming out of the (2) vents that are on the ceiling just don't get it.

I was at Home Depot looking at space heaters. I think they had about 3 types, electric, maybe kerosene, and these cool little radiators.

I'm looking for info as to the most economical (or practical) way of heating this basement independently from the rest of the house.

Thanks

[Skel]

And since I should have put this in O/T, I need to make this musical. All my stuff is in the basement and that's where I practice. It's my music room.

[bluestarbass]

I have an electric one that I love. Its hard to say you love a space heater but this thing is awesome. It wont burn or start things on fire. During the dead of winter when my room would be like 55 degrees, itll take a 15x18 room to 80 degrees in an hour or 2. You dont have to worry about changing fuel out or anything. If your reall interested PM me and ill see if I can dig up the manufacturer. I think i got it at best buy for like $80.

[ROON]

What on earth is a space heater? (no pun intended).

[Skel]

Originally Posted by ROON

What on earth is a space heater? (no pun intended).

LOL - us crazy Americans. We have available to us, these small (usually) electric heaters as I'm sure you do. In a cold room, or garage, you plug the small heater in and it heats the room.

[Vandelay]

Since it's your basement, you should probably first look into running another duct or two from your furnace into the room. Surely it wouldn't be that expensive to do, it'd probably save you money in the long term, and it'd add some value to the house.

Otherwise, for something that's going to be on most of the time, I like the oil-filled radiator type of heater. They're quiet -- no noisy fan -- and there's not much chance of it ever starting a fire. (Just don't set any oily rags on top of it).

[Skel]

Originally Posted by Vandelay

Since it's your basement, you should probably first look into running another duct or two from your furnace into the room. Surely it wouldn't be that expensive to do, it'd probably save you money in the long term, and it'd add some value to the house.

Otherwise, for something that's going to be on most of the time, I like the oil-filled radiator type of heater. They're quiet -- no noisy fan -- and there's not much chance of it ever starting a fire. (Just don't set any oily rags on top of it).

Vandelay, the part I need the vents is already finished with a drywall ceiling. You still think I can run more ducts without this being a major construction problem?

Is the oil filled radiator less expensive to run than an electric heater? Because I would like to keep the room at a certain temperature, rather than have it freezing, then turn on the heater and wait, etc.

Thanks

[snappytom]

Originally Posted by Skel

........

Is the oil filled radiator less expensive to run than an electric heater? Because I would like to keep the room at a certain temperature, rather than have it freezing, then turn on the heater and wait, etc.

Thanks

The oil filled ones are electric, they resemble an old fashioned hot water radiator, it is just filled with oil that gets heated by the electricity.

About $40 at Home Depot, they have thermostats so they can be set easily. It is not instant heat but once warmed up they provide a very even temperature and can warm a large area. Usually have several power settings so you can run them as low as 500 watts.

[ROON]

Originally Posted by Skel

LOL - us crazy Americans. We have available to us, these small (usually) electric heaters as I'm sure you do. In a cold room, or garage, you plug the small heater in and it heats the room.

Oh... that's just called a heater down here. LOL.

Well, now that I know what you're all on about, ceramic heaters are pretty good. We have three in our house. The loungeroom needs two, but our loungeroom connects to our kitchen, so it's a big area to heat. I use one in my medium sized bedroom, it works really well! Sometimes a little too well!

[Vandelay]

Originally Posted by snappytom

The oil filled ones are electric, they resemble an old fashioned hot water radiator, it is just filled with oil that gets heated by the electricity.

About $40 at Home Depot, they have thermostats so they can be set easily. It is not instant heat but once warmed up they provide a very even temperature and can warm a large area. Usually have several power settings so you can run them as low as 500 watts.

Correct, it's electric with a built-in thermostat, so it will turn itself off and on as needed. So you can just leave it running all the time if you like.

[Wesley R]

Originally Posted by Vandelay

Since it's your basement, you should probably first look into running another duct or two from your furnace into the room. Surely it wouldn't be that expensive to do, it'd probably save you money in the long term, and it'd add some value to the house.

Otherwise, for something that's going to be on most of the time, I like the oil-filled radiator type of heater. They're quiet -- no noisy fan -- and there's not much chance of it ever starting a fire. (Just don't set any oily rags on top of it).

I used them at my cabin for several years. Work well and are easy to place as compared to electric basebord heat. My parents use on on porch thats insulated well, but has a lot of windows.

Getting a forced air vent is a better idea , but you also need a return vent.


Best of Luck,
Wesley R.

[Skel]

Ok the part I don't understand is; What is the advantage (or disadvantage) to using the electric oil radiator type as opposed to just an electric one with a thermostat?

Thanks

[Vandelay]

Originally Posted by Skel

Ok the part I don't understand is; What is the advantage (or disadvantage) to using the electric oil radiator type as opposed to just an electric one with a thermostat?

Thanks

My experience has been that the radiator-type is quieter.

And other heaters have only one side that produces heat, so the room ends up with one spot that gets REALLY hot. With the radiator, the entire thing heats up, and it heats more slowly, so the overall room heat feels more even. I can't speak to whether it's more or less energy effecient, but I like it better.

[Skel]

Originally Posted by Vandelay

My experience has been that the radiator-type is quieter.

And other heaters have only one side that produces heat, so the room ends up with one spot that gets REALLY hot. With the radiator, the entire thing heats up, and it heats more slowly, so the overall room heat feels more even. I can't speak to whether it's more or less energy effecient, but I like it better.

Ok thanks Vandelay. Honestly the little radiators looked so cool that I probably would have gotten one just for that reason. Sounds groovy.

[MakiSupaStar]

LOL. This is funny. In California our problem is a fan for heat. We have the opposite problem. Have fun with the winter my friend.

[bluestarbass]

LOL. This is funny. In California our problem is a fan for heat. We have the opposite problem. Have fun with the winter my friend.

Maki, when its -10 degrees here in indy ill send you a snoball via UPS.

[leftyforlife]

I have this ceramic heater,

Made by Lasko, and it swivels like a fan.
i put it under my computer desk to keep me warm works pretty good, and after half an hour or so the whole room is warm and i usually have to turn it off

[Pilgrim]

Skel, a couple of thoughts from Fort Collins 40 miles away, where the climate is fairly similar ....

Seems to me that the problem you're having is warm air rises and since it's coming out of ceiling vents, it's just staying too high. if you can circulate that warm air downwards, you might have the problem at least mitigated, if not solved.

One option might be to try those curved plastic vent ducts that mount on the outside of vents with magnets. If nothing else, that would let you aim the air in either of two directions.

Another option might be to mount a small fan near the ceiling to move the warm air downwards and around the room. This would be easy to try.

Another fix might be to add a ceiling fan. You can reverse them so in the winter, moving air downward might solve the problem. A four-speed fan with a very slow minimum speed might be good.

Space heaters will work, but they'll cost a lot more in the long run because you're simply converting energy into heat. I wouldn't buy one for your application unless it had a fan to move the heated air around, and was VERY quiet.

I grew up in the pacific Northwest where electric baseboard heat is common, but they have low power rates there because it's mostly hydroelectric power. That might actually work well (at a price), but you'd want to have good thermostatic control, and it might mean adding another electrical circuit to the basement - they impose a real load on the electrical system.

[Skel]

^ Ok...very good ideas. I agree the warm air is just not getting circulated. I'll try the stick on things and maybe a small fan first.

Thanks.

[Jeff Martinez]

Space is a cold, dark place.