How About Quartz Heaters?
- Thread starter sylvie
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We had a 1500 watt quartz heater that did a nice job in the bathroom. That's a lot of juice though. Like any space heater they work best in enclosed rooms.
We lived in this real dumpy double wide. I don't think they attached the heating ducts properly when they set it up. Heat would come out of the ducts on the side with the heater but only cold air came out on the other side. I closed those ducts off That was the coldest place we ever lived.
We lived in this real dumpy double wide. I don't think they attached the heating ducts properly when they set it up. Heat would come out of the ducts on the side with the heater but only cold air came out on the other side. I closed those ducts off That was the coldest place we ever lived.
patandchickens
Crazy Cat Lady
Honestly, all electric heaters perform roughly equivalently on a per watt basis. A 1500w quartz heater will do just about as well as a 1500w oil-filled or 1500w bare wire or any other electric 1500w heater. The differences are minor and relate more to safety and convenience than to heating *efficiency* or *cost*.
So, you just need to decide whether you want to pay for the wattage that thing will run, and then decide whether its features (as opposed to any other equal-wattage electric heater) are the closest to what you want.
Also bear in mind that when advertising copy says "heats up to a X sq ft area" it is kind of like when chicken coop/tractors say their product "holds up to X chickens". Which is to say, yeah, but how *well* does it do that <g>
Good luck, have fun,
Pat
So, you just need to decide whether you want to pay for the wattage that thing will run, and then decide whether its features (as opposed to any other equal-wattage electric heater) are the closest to what you want.
Also bear in mind that when advertising copy says "heats up to a X sq ft area" it is kind of like when chicken coop/tractors say their product "holds up to X chickens". Which is to say, yeah, but how *well* does it do that <g>
Good luck, have fun,
Pat
we used a couple of electric heaters a few winters ago and the power bill was not kind. we have since swapped over to kerosene and are much happier, although k1 is fairly expensive and a gas station near me sold me off road diesel as red dye k1 (a huge STINKY mess) last year, it is still my choice for single room heat
FarmerChick
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never checked into a "quartz" heater.
I use a small electric heater in my master bathroom. Farthest away from the heat pump so that room is chilly in the morning.
I have it on a timer.
I set it for 1/2 hr. before Tony gets up in the AM (4:00 am) and off at 6 AM cause I am up by then at least. So I only use it 2-1/2 hrs max. in the morning. Power bill is fine. Warms that nasty cold bathroom up!
But I do not rely on these heaters for warmth thru the house. Too expensive that I can see.
Do you live in a "very cold area" cause it means that puppy will be running alot. I live in NC and winters are milder here.
What you get to heat a home depends on just how severely cold your home gets. How much power, over wood, over propane etc. will be used.
I use a small electric heater in my master bathroom. Farthest away from the heat pump so that room is chilly in the morning.
I have it on a timer.
I set it for 1/2 hr. before Tony gets up in the AM (4:00 am) and off at 6 AM cause I am up by then at least. So I only use it 2-1/2 hrs max. in the morning. Power bill is fine. Warms that nasty cold bathroom up!
But I do not rely on these heaters for warmth thru the house. Too expensive that I can see.
Do you live in a "very cold area" cause it means that puppy will be running alot. I live in NC and winters are milder here.
What you get to heat a home depends on just how severely cold your home gets. How much power, over wood, over propane etc. will be used.
keljonma
Epicurean Goddess
We used one to take the chill out of the bathroom during winter. 
Like firem3 mentioned, they are not kind to the electric bill. After we purchased it my dh noticed my $15 hair dryer is 1875watt. 
Like firem3 mentioned, they are not kind to the electric bill. After we purchased it my dh noticed my $15 hair dryer is 1875watt. 
OK here it goes, electrical and HVAC is one of my specialties. First off electric heat is 100% efficient as it converts all input power to heat whereas a wood stove or gas furnace will lose some to the outside chimney.
A $400 quartz heater will produce the exact amount of heat as a $15 space heater, that being 3400 btus per 1000 watts of electrical input, there are no exceptions to this law of physics. period ...
Yes they can make them pretty and load them up with digital displays but the actual heating is still created by a $15 resistive element. Even the cheap ones now have over temp and tip over shutoffs, just read the box to make sure before buying. Also no electric space heater should be ran with an extension cord, not only because of the trip hazard but because the electrical line loses can turn the long cord into a heating element of its own.
As a rule of thumb a well insulated room will need about 5000 btus per 100 square feet, meaning a 10' square bedroom should heat fine with a 1500 watt heater.
Quartz heaters are known as radiant and will tend to only heat objects and not the room air, convection heaters do both and are the most common type of space heater. I prefer the oil filled radiator type but are slow to heat but once at temperature they keep a nice steady heat but are kinda heavy and bulky.
I have two oil filled ones that cost $35 each, one for taking the chill out of the living room though it will not heat it very warm because the room is too big, and another for my bedroom which will keep that room very warm. I have a small $15 heater with a fan and automatic temperature control mounted on a bathroom shelf to quickly heat up that room.
As far as costs to operate all electric heaters are the same and depend on your local rates, at the national average of 10 cents per kilowatt a 1500 watt heater will cost 15 cents per hour to run or about a dollar for 7 hours. So to keep a bedroom toasty for a month would be an additional $30 on your electric bill, though I doubt it would run at full power all night unless the room is drafty and very cold outside.
A $400 quartz heater will produce the exact amount of heat as a $15 space heater, that being 3400 btus per 1000 watts of electrical input, there are no exceptions to this law of physics. period ...
Yes they can make them pretty and load them up with digital displays but the actual heating is still created by a $15 resistive element. Even the cheap ones now have over temp and tip over shutoffs, just read the box to make sure before buying. Also no electric space heater should be ran with an extension cord, not only because of the trip hazard but because the electrical line loses can turn the long cord into a heating element of its own.
As a rule of thumb a well insulated room will need about 5000 btus per 100 square feet, meaning a 10' square bedroom should heat fine with a 1500 watt heater.
Quartz heaters are known as radiant and will tend to only heat objects and not the room air, convection heaters do both and are the most common type of space heater. I prefer the oil filled radiator type but are slow to heat but once at temperature they keep a nice steady heat but are kinda heavy and bulky.
I have two oil filled ones that cost $35 each, one for taking the chill out of the living room though it will not heat it very warm because the room is too big, and another for my bedroom which will keep that room very warm. I have a small $15 heater with a fan and automatic temperature control mounted on a bathroom shelf to quickly heat up that room.
As far as costs to operate all electric heaters are the same and depend on your local rates, at the national average of 10 cents per kilowatt a 1500 watt heater will cost 15 cents per hour to run or about a dollar for 7 hours. So to keep a bedroom toasty for a month would be an additional $30 on your electric bill, though I doubt it would run at full power all night unless the room is drafty and very cold outside.
A 1000 sq. foot well insulated house in a temperate climate (not Ohio) would need about 45,000 btus of heating or nine of those heaters. I believe the ruse they use is to say that it will heat just the room you are in so you can turn down your main furnace to 60 degrees then the electric heater only has to heat from 60F to 70F and not from the 20F outside temperature.sylvie said:
The costs change all the time but electricity is the most expensive way to heat being 3 times more than natural gas and twice that of propane. The way to make it save is to do exactly that and to turn down your main heat and enclose a room with the space heater. The rule of thumb is you save 3% of energy cost per degree that you lower your thermostat.
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That's what I suspected; sales spin, costly to run, one "breadbox" not really heating my large 850 sq' great room.
DH has a flyer on the heaters and I said I wanted to run it by those on SS before considering buying one (or nine plus!).
DH has a flyer on the heaters and I said I wanted to run it by those on SS before considering buying one (or nine plus!).
FarmerChick
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Exceptional information XPC
I have the $39 oil one also. Works great for the bathroom for that chilly morning!
I have the $39 oil one also. Works great for the bathroom for that chilly morning!
