Portable heater for lounge/living room?

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TeaLeaf

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#175085 16-Jun-2015 20:03

Our 1 bedder has a combined lounge/living and a big long hallway and unfortunately very high ceilings (10ft) and vented glass sky lights/windows.

I tried a 2400w convection heater, barely took the chill off the air. conversely set to 1000w it easily heated our bedroom which is quite small and know sun window thing in the roof.

The heater was on for 5 hours in the lounge and we could barely feel the difference, no surprise i guess given the size of the room and long hallway combined with lots of glass and tall roof.

Is there a better option for portable heating on those really cold nights. most nights we are happy with a blanket a warm layers. but come end of august there will be some chilly ones. i was considering a radiant tube type heater. i remember we had one in the family growing up and it would be like a fireplace hot instantly, but it was a very big one.

I know W for W they all put out the same heat but the convections or oils fins seem to rise up and with that tall roof and glass sun lights which are vented it kind of seems like pn up wind.

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#1326883 17-Jun-2015 23:01

Yes exactly as you found. You either need a radiant heater (also called an infra-red heater) So the heat rays coming from the heater will directly warm you up instead of trying to heat up all the air. Also try a small fan heater so you can direct the air stream directly onto you.

And do you have piped Natural gas at the property? If so consider a Rinnai convector heater. As 6kW output ones are available. Sure it is unflued but it seems you have plenty of ventilation so moisture buildup shouldn't be a problem.

lissie

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#1326896 17-Jun-2015 23:50

I'd second an unflued gas heater (on CNG - not a bottle gas thing) - they are cheap to run and throw excellent heat.

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timmmay

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#1326921 18-Jun-2015 05:43

Gas heaters produce CO2 and H2O. The water will make the place more difficult to heat. Radient heaters don't heat the air so much, so you're still breathing cold air in.

If it's your place I'd suggest getting a triple glazed skylight and a heat pump. 10kw of heat (at the cost of 2-3kw of power) will make a heck of a difference.

andrewNZ

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#1326991 18-Jun-2015 08:24

Please explain more about the vented skylight. It sounds to me like you need to stop heat escaping or you're just throwing money away.

TeaLeaf

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#1328625 21-Jun-2015 11:42

to be honest its just a glass panel that has vents to let condensation escape, stupid thing is there is no way to close them.

i think a radiant heater it is, they had the goldair 300 for $40 at briscoes last week, $60 off. Its not the big jobby but thought it might do. But whats funny is it looks identical to the evantair one at the warehouse, identical. Was $35 at the warehouse.

the convection i got on a run out sale for $10, wa $60, rebranding so they didnt wnt to confuse people so out the door sale. Does the job at 750w for the bedroom, so not a crap buy after all. 2000w and its like an oven. i find the fan useless to be honest. not strong enough to blow air further than 10cm.

lissie

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#1328698 21-Jun-2015 15:08

timmmay: Gas heaters produce CO2 and H2O. The water will make the place more difficult to heat. Radient heaters don't heat the air so much, so you're still breathing cold air in.

If it's your place I'd suggest getting a triple glazed skylight and a heat pump. 10kw of heat (at the cost of 2-3kw of power) will make a heck of a difference.

Gas heaters don't make a place damp - I've had unflued gas heaters in houses before - and unless you place is perfectled air tight - and very few NZ houses are - they you should be fine. Indeed apparently gas heaters heat a place 40% faster than a HP - according to the Rinnai brochure I just picked up.

They are also flexible in a way a HP is not - they attach to the bayonet with a short hose - so you can move the unit around t o point in a different direction ie to warm the kitchen end of an open plan area - and then turn it around to face the living area at other times.

And, this is to my surprise they are cheaper to install - so long as you can get a free connection - which you can in Wgtn if you are putting in heating or hot water. The unit is about $1000 and the amount of piping involved I can't see the gas fitters bill being more than a $1000 tops

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Dunnersfella

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#1328712 21-Jun-2015 15:35

I'm about to move into a place with gas connections for heating, I'm not 100% sold on the concept to be fair...
Non-flued gas heating really will work better with a dehumidifier. But why run a dehumidifier just because the house is plumbed with gas?
I just want a heatpump...

lissie

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#1328716 21-Jun-2015 15:47

Dunnersfella: But why run a dehumidifier just because the house is plumbed with gas?
I just want a heatpump...

I've never owned a dehumidifier - and until I read this tread (and similar) I had no idea that the unflued gas heaters I had in a previous house for about 7 years, put water into the atmosphere - ie it's at such a trace amount you're highly unlikely to notice. Unless of course the house is air-tight - but that's very rare in NZ

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TeaLeaf

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#1328778 21-Jun-2015 19:17

No gas where Im at. Ive used conventional bottle gas heaters before, can really heat a place fast and seems to feel like a mix of radiant and convection type heat. But I dont think gas bottles in our rental is a safe option.

Its probably not going to get used often until it drops to 1-5 degree evenings. Happy with blankets, saves money :-) But do need something quick and effective for those nights.

jonathan18

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#1328789 21-Jun-2015 19:36

TeaLeaf: Our 1 bedder has a combined lounge/living and a big long hallway and unfortunately very high ceilings (10ft) and vented glass sky lights/windows.

I tried a 2400w convection heater, barely took the chill off the air. conversely set to 1000w it easily heated our bedroom which is quite small and know sun window thing in the roof.

The heater was on for 5 hours in the lounge and we could barely feel the difference, no surprise i guess given the size of the room and long hallway combined with lots of glass and tall roof...

The first step I'd suggest is limiting the space you're trying to heat. From the above text it seems like the lounge/living open directly into the 'big, long hallway' and you're also attempting to heat this. Is there no doorway into the hallway you can close? If not, I'd suggest putting a curtain across the space leading into the hall.

We have two large spaces (lounge and kitchen/dining), with a large opening between them (say three doorways' worth) - some basic curtains from Briscoes does an incredible job of limiting heat loss when heating only one of these two spaces.

Batman

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#1328800 21-Jun-2015 20:00

i can't see any heating solution that will work (I've been there done that)

you have 2 options

- use an electric blanket (not sure of risks/downsides) and sleep under the sheets
- use a heat pump

I am not sure how you can make your space smaller without renovations

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Batman

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#1328801 21-Jun-2015 20:01

ah for living room ... no electric blankets then ... just use a giant radiant heater. but bear in mind you are heating your neighbourhood with any option

TeaLeaf

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#1328804 21-Jun-2015 20:07

jonathan18:

The first step I'd suggest is limiting the space you're trying to heat. From the above text it seems like the lounge/living open directly into the 'big, long hallway' and you're also attempting to heat this. Is there no doorway into the hallway you can close? If not, I'd suggest putting a curtain across the space leading into the hall.

We have two large spaces (lounge and kitchen/dining), with a large opening between them (say three doorways' worth) - some basic curtains from Briscoes does an incredible job of limiting heat loss when heating only one of these two spaces.

yep you are precisely onto it and what we are considering, only issue is the height of the roof, they will be at least 10ft curtains. and the mrs doesnt want it to look too tacky and at same time spend too much as its a rental. but yep, thats what im considering.

Batman

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#1328812 21-Jun-2015 20:09

there are curtains with thermal backing. they are better than "basic curtains". but air is like water .. any gaps -> straight out.

andrewNZ

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#1328934 22-Jun-2015 00:26

Are you certain you cant close the vents in the skylite? (as in actually inspected it).
If you really cant, then can you cover it? (hell, I'd probably run tape over the vents)

Basically, any heat is going to rise and exit straight through the vents, so you're fighting an unwinnable battle.

The radiant heater is probably the best option. That or a heated throw which is not much more than an electric blanket for the couch.

You could always move the TV to the bedroom and/or take up "bedroom sports" professionally.

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