OT - Quartz heaters

[dekindy]

I was at lunch with my wife and her girlfriends recently. One of the girls was talking about quartz heaters and how effecient they were. Apparently the store Tuesday Morning had one for sale that she was interested in. She intended to put it in her basement to heat that area and for the radiant heat to heat the upstairs through the floor.

Anybody using a quartz heater and can comment on their virtues?

[Birddog]

Read this......................
http://www.green-energy-efficient-homes.com/quartz-space-heaters.html

[dekindy]

Read this......................
http://www.green-energy-efficient-homes.com/quartz-space-heaters.html

Thanks. I assumed that she had done her research and that it was just a matter of level of effectiveness. From this description it appeasr that the type of heater she was purchasing is not designed to do what she wants it to do.

[Louis]

She intended to put it in her basement to heat that area and for the radiant heat to heat the upstairs through the floor.

This sounds way inefficient to me. Why use all that energy to heat up the basement and get who knows how much heat from the floor of the 1st story? Unless the walls of the basement and the basement floor are super-well insulated I would think that the ground will be more than happy to soak up lots and lots of kw-hrs. Obviously there will be some heat gradient in the basement, with the warm air being where she wants it. But still, I wonder how much heat will actually make it upstairs?

Insulate the upper floors as well as possible, minimize heat loss at doors and window, insulate the attic (kind of late for that) and put the heaters where the heat is needed.

[Lifelover]

This sounds way inefficient to me. Why use all that energy to heat up the basement and get who knows how much heat from the floor of the 1st story? Unless the walls of the basement and the basement floor are super-well insulated I would think that the ground will be more than happy to soak up lots and lots of kw-hrs. Obviously there will be some heat gradient in the basement, with the warm air being where she wants it. But still, I wonder how much heat will actually make it upstairs?

Insulate the upper floors as well as possible, minimize heat loss at doors and window, insulate the attic (kind of late for that) and put the heaters where the heat is needed.


+1. Her problem is not heater selection it's just a bad idea.

However, if her real goal is just to add a little heat to the basement she needs an oil filled electric heater. Probably not the most efficient heats source but most likely not much worse than any other portable, electric heater. It is however the best heat and among the most safe.

http://image.made-in-china.com/2f1j00BeUascOlCGbI/Classic-Oil-Filled-Radiator-GYD-KTF-.jpg

[alancw3]

not sure which category this falls in but i have a friend that swears by this heater. has used for the past three winters to heat his bedroom at nighttime when his heating system goes to 62. keeps the bedroom so warm he has to set it on a low setting. he says there is virtually no increase in electric (possibly because his fossil fuel heater is not running for eight hours). anyway that is just what he tells me. i have no personal knowledge or experience.

http://www.biotechresearch.com/edenpure/edenpure-gen4.html

[dekindy]

not sure which category this falls in but i have a friend that swears by this heater. has used for the past three winters to heat his bedroom at nighttime when his heating system goes to 62. keeps the bedroom so warm he has to set it on a low setting. he says there is virtually no increase in electric (possibly because his fossil fuel heater is not running for eight hours). anyway that is just what he tells me. i have no personal knowledge or experience.

http://www.biotechresearch.com/edenpure/edenpure-gen4.html

This is interesting since the link Birddog gave me indicated this would not be a good application for the quart heaters. The reasoning is that the heat only warms the object that it is directed at which in this case would be the side of the bed instead of you.

[Lifelover]

This is interesting since the link Birddog gave me indicated this would not be a good application for the quart heaters. The reasoning is that the heat only warms the object that it is directed at which in this case would be the side of the bed instead of you.

If nothing is in front of the quartz heater it will still heat the air. They work just like any other portable heater but the heat is just a little more concentrated.

When measuring the efficiency of converting electrical current to heat, damn near all of the portable electric heaters are basically 100% efficient. This is true for the quartz, oil filled, or the incredibly over priced unit linked above. 100% efficient at converting electrical current to heat does not mean cheap. Generally a thermal unit of electrical power cost more than a thermal unit of oil or gas. This is because the loss on the electricity happens at the plant and being delivered to your house.

The only limitation to the amount of heat you can get out of a portable heater is the amperage of the circuit you plug it into. Most residential heaters draw up to 1500 Watts which means 12.5 amps. Most standard wall receptacle are on a 15 amp breaker. Thus, it can support the full load of the heater but you better not be running the fridge, toaster or microwave on the same circuit.

Portable heaters should be chosen based on safety and your desire to have the heat fan driven or radiant. I hate fan noise so I would always choose radiant. They are all pretty safe these days but a oil filled heater on low couldn't burn you if you pressed your face up against it.

[Birddog]

All radiant heaters heat objects. After an object (human being, couch, cinder block etc) has been heated, it in turn can heat the surrounding air, but it is less efficient. Google up a question as to whether or not Eden Pure heaters work as advertized and you'll likely get a "can a bike plane" type debate.

[19wisconsin64]

hi, i work with a lot with properties, so use small heaters for several applications.

some quartz heaters are a little "dangerous"...... they get too hot.

i've used some of the bionaire models with great success. these are flat panel electric "mica" heaters, with lots of great features for less than $80 (even cheaper at big box stores). they have a tip-over shut-off safety power supply. they are warm, not too hot, to the touch. they have a wide surface area and use a natural convection / circulation to heat spaces faster. they have variable heat settings for wattage and also for temps. the bionaire is a great electric heater when one is needed.

http://www.amazon.com/Bionaire-Silent-Micathermic-Convection-Maxflow/dp/B0043G7VWC/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1292385149&sr=8-7

just my 2 cents.

[RPS]

Anybody using a quartz heater and can comment on their virtues?
The main advantage/virtue is to concentrate heat delivery to the needed area so less is required to get the job done. Using “less” heat is what makes them more efficient, not that they convert more electricity to heat (as stated by others all electricity is converted to heat, hence 100% efficient).

Efficiency (in the sense of economy) is achieved by making a person feel warmer without having to warm the entire room -- not unlike standing in the sun makes us feel warmer given a certain temperature. We used them in cool manufacturing environments to keep equipment operators warm without having to warm the entire facility. For instance, if you have a packaging room the size of a football field with only 10 operators who stand or sit in specified locations most of the time it is far more energy efficient to install radiant heaters over the 10 small work areas than to heat the entire facility.