What is the best type of space heater?
Today, space heaters come in a multitude of designs and shapes, from electric to infrared and microthermal, from quartz to baseboards, and from kerosene to propane and natural gas. This can make choosing one of these appliances very confusing; however, there are, for all intents and purposes, only two fundamental types – radiant and convection. Your circumstances will ultimately dictate which one you choose.
Convection heaters work by heating the air around the appliance, which in turn will warm you up. Oil- or water-filled radiators, electric baseboard heaters, and almost all heaters that directly burn fossil fuels are classified as convection heaters. As a simple explanation, imagine that you are in front of an electrical outlet connected to the central heating system of your house and you feel the warm air flowing over you; this is known as convective heating.
On the other hand, radiant heaters make use of light waves to heat a particular object or item, and it is then this item that heats the surrounding area. It’s similar to the way the sun warms you, but you can still feel the cooler air around you; once the sun goes down, it seems like the temperature drops. This is radiant heating. Halogen, quartz and infrared heaters all fall under the banner of radiant heating.
For a human being to feel “comfortable” with the ambient temperature, three very important elements come into play: humidity, heat and wind (speed). The heat part of the equation is self-evident, however, when humidity levels are low, you evaporate it through your skin, making you feel cooler; with a breeze blowing you will lose heat at a faster rate.
With radiant type heaters, you will find that they do not create any “wind speed” or air movement as such, nor do they reduce humidity. However, as these elements heat up and then the elements heat up the room, the overall temperature rises more slowly. So, if the area you need to heat is a small area, then a radiant heater would be the best alternative for you, but if it is a larger room that you want to heat, a convection heater is usually the best option.