Electric Oil Type Room Heaters

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Does anyone here use these type room heaters? I was thinking about buying one from EBAY. There is a 700 watt for $32 and a 1500 watt for $45. I have never been around one so I don't know what size to buy for my bedroom (15'X 15') and living room (22'X16'). Do they do a good job of keeping a room warm? I will be moving it from room to room. Opinions please.
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I guess the word oil is used, so it belongs in this forum. Yes, I’ve used them in a cabin I used to have. Oil filled heaters are silent, and can keep a room comfortable with a slight lag in temperature but are quite effective once the room reaches the desired temp. They typically have a thermostat and might have a hi and low mode to control the rate at which they heat. 700 Watts is too small. I recommend the 1500watt version. The 22 x 16 room might need two 1500 watt heaters. It all depends on the outside temp. I kept a 15 x 15 room comfortable with one heater. And that’s with 2 x 6 construction and 0 degrees F outside. Hope that helps.

SF
 
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I you want heat fast, those are not it.

I heat my place with little fan heaters. A little noisy, but it's just me here.
 
Basically all electric heaters are 100% efficient.

The only problem with electric is that they're probably the most expensive per btu even if they're 100% efficient.

Single cycle gas combustion turbines are only 20-35% efficient, combined cycle around 50-60% efficient. But generation is probably less than half the total cost of electricity, transmission is the other half and you have line losses along with the infrastructure costs. So unless you're in an area with cheap electricity, it can be 2-3x more than other heating sources.
 
Found them good for baby's room, 3 feet from the cot or thereabouts.

As space heaters...meh. The vertical ribs and low temperatures encourage a convection current that's good for drying socks, but not good at "radiating" (down here they are called radiators) the heat to the end recipient. Hot air ends up at the roof.

The electric bar style are, IMO dangerous, but you feel the heat from them much better.

Have been interested in the radiant oscillating infra red things. They should feel better from a human perspective, but not really heat the room.

Wife and most of the office staff identify with a small fan heater under the desk. Doesn't heat the room, but they feel much better.

To heat a space, you need to force circulation of the warm air.
 
I have a radiator type oil filled room heater. It's 1500 watts. These are nice room heaters however, their failure rate is high. Get them as cheap as you can. I am much less impressed with the infrared room heaters.
 
I wouldnt buy one from EBAY but thats just me. Not only are you contending with cheap chinese parts, but the beating that the package takes along its journey.


On high failure rate items I buy at brick and mortars such as Walmart, TSC, Lowes, Home Depot etc.. due to easy return and exchange.

If you do buy it you will end up mcgyvering a house fan to circulate the warm air, unless you already have ceiling fans.
 
I dont have one but you need a 1500 watt, heat from electric is heat, no matter the heater, 700 is way to small for much of anything.

Also question the need for EBAY on this one item, I really like EBAY but these heaters are a dime a dozen at almost any retailer and if you dont like it, you can easily return it, with ebay, on a heavy item your really stuck if you have to return it.

Also with a major retailer on an item like this "electric heater" if there is a defect or recall you will most likely hear about it, as defective model can be dangerous on an item like this.
 
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Hmmm, tough crowd here. Mixed opinions, although, 1500 watt is the best choice if I go this route. Honestly, I probably won't need it after the next few days, as we will have a heat wave starting today (56*).
I remember back in my high school football playing days, we had those kerosene/diesel turbine heaters on the side lines. If you got to close to them they would singe the hair from your legs and/or melt your socks!
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Well, I'm going to check out WM and Sam's.
Thanks for the replies.
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I recently got the 1500 watt model from Walmarrt for about $30. It works very well. I use it in the living room because the air vent from the furnace is undersized for the room, and the thermostat is down the hall, so it's always colder than the rest of the house. Now it's the warmest room.
 
Keep in mind that the 1500 watt(ers) also has lower settings on them for those who don't need the full power. Which is why I purchased the higher wattage unit.
 
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Just purchased this one and has been in use 3 weeks.

Dr Infrared Heater Portable Space Heater, 1500-Watt.




Seems to do the job.
 
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For sure go for the 1500W as they usually have 2 elements, so you can run it at half power to maintain a temp without the thing cycling on and off all the time, or use full to bring temps up faster if needed.
I don't trust leaving the heater on full power either if we leave the house so I like to have the lower wattage setting in case the thermo switch sticks on.
Kind of OT, but if we actually heated the majority of our house with electricity, I'd look into bitcoin mining or indoor gardening as you might as well get something for all those electrons flowing through your house.
 
When dealing with these, as previously stated, better to go big with adjustable settings. They are not terribly good heaters compared to fueled units, but probably a ton safer.

I used to use similar units to keep my boats engine bay warm up North, but at home, I preferred the kerosene units I inherited from my grandparents.

Down here, I once used electric bar type space heaters in my old apartment back during the freak cold snap of 2009 (electricity included, not my problem lol), but they sounded like science fiction mind control weapons and scared me half to death. But man were they effective!

I slept warm, but moved everything around to create a 10 foot DMZ around it in the middle of my tile floor, and kept two fire extinguishers handy.
 
Remember to not overload your house circuits.

Some shoddy wiring jobs can't handle the full 1500 watts for extended periods of time.
 
Every year, I get calls to replace several of these…

The cause is always space heaters in the winter & window unit air conditioners in the summer

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Originally Posted By: Linctex
Every year, I get calls to replace several of these…

The cause is always space heaters in the winter & window unit air conditioners in the summer


.



I would guess that if you had a 20 amp breaker and #12 wire to begin with, your photo would be prevented.
Or is there more to it ? ? ?

Possible:
Distance between breaker and outlet.
Age / condition of outlet.
 
There's always "more to it". Don't forget loose fitting plug blades. I feel wires and sockets for heat but know I can't reach every inch involved.

We've (family) been using them for years. The 1500 with "LOW or HIGH and BOTH" switching is the only type I've ever seen.

2 feet of clearance is all you need.

We bought a DeLonghi Type TRD40615D this year and it had a built in timer.

It is a 24 hour wheel with 4 settable in-and-out pins per hour (ergo 96 pins). Works great.

Our guest room is over the garage and can be chilly.
 
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