Choosing the Right Electric Heater

Choosing and using the right type of electric heater can keep you both warm and safe.

Electric heaters can be an excellent and safe way to keep warm, and they can even help you save energy by allowing you to warm up the room you're in and turn down the heat in the rest of the house. Following a few tips will help you choose the most effective model for your intended use and also use it safely.

Portable Heaters versus Fixed Heaters

Portable space heaters are a popular addition to many living spaces during the winter months. They're convenient, inexpensive and some are portable from room to room. They can also be very dangerous if left unattended. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that more than 25,000 fires are caused each year by space heaters in American homes.

Fixed heaters are zonal heaters controlled by thermostats located within each room. As air within the heater is warmed, it rises into the room, and cooler air is drawn into the bottom of the heater. Some heat is also radiated from the pipe, fins, and housing. As with any heater, some surfaces of our units may become very hot. Lock the controls and teach children that a heating unit is not a toy. Never leave a child unsupervised near any heater that could get too hot. Choose a unit designed for maximum safety. How Heat is Delivered – Choosing the Type of Heat

Fan-forced convection

Fan-forced convection electric heaters use a small fan to force air past heating coils and out into the room. Heaters of this type can be very compact and inexpensive. The advantage of a fan-forced heater is that it can warm an area relatively quickly since air is moved past the heating coils rather than being allowed to move throughout the room naturally. Some disadvantages are that heaters of this type can make a room feel drafty due to the moving air, and that the area nearest the heater is likely to be warmer than areas farther from it.

Safety-wise, fan-forced convection heaters are not quite as advantageous as natural convection models because a failure of the fan could allow the unit to overheat. Also, objects placed near the heater could block the airflow and likewise cause the unit to get too hot. Many good quality fan-forced models offer overheat sensors and tip-over switches to counter these disadvantages. Also, all-metal construction is a safety advantage since a metal heater that did overheat would not melt down or ignite the way a plastic one could.

One excellent application of fan-forced electric heater is the ability to quickly warm up a bathroom for a bath or a shower without spending money to overheat the entire house. For example, a Convectair Calypso heater is equipped with a timer allowing you to dial up to 30 minutes of high heat and letting the heater shut off when not needed. It is designed to be safe in a humid environment and is equipped with a lint filter for minimum maintenance.

Natural Convection

Baseboard units and electric radiators are examples of natural convection heaters. These units take longer to heat up a room than fan-forced models, but once the room is warm, it will be uniformly so from wall to wall. Air moves past the warm surfaces of the heater by natural convection, with cool air being drawn in at the bottom of the heater and warmed before it is discharged back into the room.

Natural convection heaters are the best choice if you plan to use a heater often and want the safest possible option. Because they use no fan, there are no moving parts to fail, and the possibility of overheating is reduced. With natural convection heaters, users just need to be careful not to block the airflow around the heater, especially above it, which is the primary direction the heat will move.

While baseboard heaters need to be installed under windows to be effective, wall convectors such as the Convectair Apero can be installed on any wall. These very efficient heaters come with their own electronic thermostat built-in. This insures comfort-perfect performance and easier installation.

Radiant Heaters

Radiant heating is a different principle entirely from fan-forced or natural convection. Radiant heaters warm people and objects in a room. The air acquires warmth too, but only as it is given off by people and objects that have been warmed by the heater. Radiant heat is perfect for a workshop or other area that's usually unheated but where some heat is needed when a person is working there. Radiant heaters will make people near them feel comfortable far sooner than either type of convection heater.

As with fan-forced heaters, users need to be careful of how a radiant model is placed. Since objects in the path of the radiant heat can become very warm, it's crucial to keep a 3 foot space in front of the heater free of obstructions. A tip-over switch is a very good feature, too, since portable radiant heaters without that feature could pose a fire hazard if knocked over by a pet or a child.

For higher end applications where room decor and aesthetics are important, wall-mounted radiant heaters offer supplementary heating solution with flair; for rooms with little or no available wall space, the Convectair Opera heater installs in a corner. Some radiant heaters also use innovative materials like glass to provide an elegant yet functional appearance."

The Convectair Advantage – A Smart Choice Natural convection heating units use this phenomenon to turn a potential problem into a better solution. The Convectair heating unit naturally draws in the cool air along the floor and then reheats it, using a highly efficient patented heating element. The heated air rises in the unit and is gently diffused through the grilles at the top. The intake of cool air from the bottom of the unit and the output of warm air from the top is known as the “chimney effect.” This natural acceleration pushes the hot air to the front of the unit rather than towards the wall, and helps the heat to spread evenly throughout the entire room. Hot and cool air mix more rapidly and efficiently. You feel much more comfortable, since the degree of warmth that you’ve selected is the same throughout the entire room. With Convectair, cold feet are a thing of the past! But that’s not all: convection reduces heating costs, since the heat produced is distributed more efficiently and evenly. And since a natural convection Convectair unit doesn’t require a motor or fan, it operates in total silence. For more information call 800-463-6478 or visit www.convectair.ca

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