storage heaters v panel heaters

tiddly_widdly

Has any body switched?

We have storage/convection heaters. They were put in when the house was built in 1989. They are on Economy 7. We are paying though the nose for electricity (no gas to the house). my brother in law is a manage for a letting agency and said we should switch to panel heaters. Every house he has that has storage heaters he changes to panel heaters to save money.

Has anyone else done this? Are they warm, effective, cheaper to run?

JennyR68

I haven't got any experiance of panel heaters so can't advise on that. But what I have done recently is rip out our storage heaters and replaced them with thermostatic electric radiators I'm not allowed to include links yet but if you google economy radiators the company comes top of the search 'royale radiators' or 'economy radiators'.

We've had them in 2 weeks now are very impressed. They are at the moment in this cold snap using 10hrs of energy in every 24. Which for the combined kw of our radiators works out at 42kw per day for all 5 radiators.

We now have 5 radiators instead of 3 storage (heating more rooms) and they use over 10kwh a day less than the storage.

They dont work on the E7 rate but on standard. And if you find a cheap rate are very affordable to run.

Cardew

There is not an easy answer to your question on costs.

The sole advantage of Storage heaters is that they store their heat from electricity costing around 5p/kWh.

You can also make use of that 7 hours cheap electricity for heating water, using washing machines etc on a timer.

The disadvantage is they leak heat during the day and if nobody is in the house it is wasted; thus they can run out of heat in the evening when you need it.

Also being on an Economy 7 tariff you pay more for the rest of your electricity in the other 17 hours than you would if you were on a 'normal' 24/7 tariff(typically 20% more)

Using panel heaters or any other type of electrical heater means you have heat available when you want heat; albeit you are paying twice as much for that heat, and for hot water etc.

Really it is your lifestyle that will determine which is the cheapest method.

JennyR68

Cardew wrote: »

There is not an easy answer to your question on costs.

The sole advantage of Storage heaters is that they store their heat from electricity costing around 5p/kWh.

You can also make use of that 7 hours cheap electricity for heating water, using washing machines etc on a timer.

The disadvantage is they leak heat during the day and if nobody is in the house it is wasted; thus they can run out of heat in the evening when you need it.

Also being on an Economy 7 tariff you pay more for the rest of your electricity in the other 17 hours than you would if you were on a 'normal' 24/7 tariff(typically 20% more)

Using panel heaters or any other type of electrical heater means you have heat available when you want heat; albeit you are paying twice as much for that heat, and for hot water etc.

Really it is your lifestyle that will determine which is the cheapest method.

If you get the right kind of electric heating it doesn't cost twice as much as it uses less energy and it's thermostatically controlled to each days needs not just throwing out heat needlessly

Cardew

JennyR68 wrote: »

I haven't got any experiance of panel heaters so can't advise on that. But what I have done recently is rip out our storage heaters and replaced them with thermostatic electric radiators I'm not allowed to include links yet but if you google economy radiators the company comes top of the search 'royale radiators' or 'economy radiators'.

We've had them in 2 weeks now are very impressed. They are at the moment in this cold snap using 10hrs of energy in every 24. Which for the combined kw of our radiators works out at 42kw per day for all 5 radiators.

We now have 5 radiators instead of 3 storage (heating more rooms) and they use over 10kwh a day less than the storage.

They dont work on the E7 rate but on standard. And if you find a cheap rate are very affordable to run.

Jenny,

I am not trying to put you down, but no electrical heating is affordable to run - it is the most expensive way to heat possible.

Also:

To anyone reading this, if you do decide to go with electric radiators, you would do well to remember that all electrical heaters give out EXACTLY the same amount of heat for the same running costs.

The website for the Royale heaters is full of the usual Bull**** these firms usually produce. To pay £hundreds for each plug in radiator is simply a joke in money saving terms.

The heaters here for £10.99 or £34.99 give exactly the same heat output for the same running cost as those Royale heaters of any others of the same ilk.

http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/offers_week02Sunday10.htm

Obviously the style of these heaters may not suit but there are plenty like these:

http://www.dealec.co.uk/acatalog/Dimplex_EPX_Panel_Convector_Heaters_Online.html


If you do decide to go down the electrical heating route, please don't be taken in by these adverts that imply that their heaters somehow give out more heat for the running costs than other heaters - they don't - they cannot!

tiddly_widdly

thanks everyone. Im going to look into it all. I need to cut my electricity bill. I dont have any other option as the village doesnt have anything else.
Jennny, I did have a look at your radiators and have asked for a quote, they do look good.
Cardew, thanks for your opinion as well. I partially agree with you about them all costing the same to run. It all boils down to the individual effectiveness of the heater which then gives the differences in running costs.

JennyR68

I'm sorry I don't want to argue but unless you've tested them yourself you can't say what they do or don't do.

I am very happy with my heaters and have constantly monitored them since they went in and they do everything that was promised. I certainly don't agree with your Bull**** theory. We've been down the route of trying cheaper oilfilled radiators, you don't throw £1000 + at an electric heating system without any thought. And i can assure you the oil filled were way more expensive to run.

JennyR68

tiddly_widdly wrote: »

thanks everyone. Im going to look into it all. I need to cut my electricity bill. I dont have any other option as the village doesnt have anything else.
Jennny, I did have a look at your radiators and have asked for a quote, they do look good.
Cardew, thanks for your opinion as well. I partially agree with you about them all costing the same to run. It all boils down to the individual effectiveness of the heater which then gives the differences in running costs.

We picked them up direct from the supplier and he was ever so friendly. If you have any queries give him a ring. Apparantly most of his business is in the highlands and Islands of Scotland. Sells alot there due to lack of gas supply.

Cardew

JennyR68 wrote: »

you don't throw £1000 + at an electric heating system without any thought. And i can assure you the oil filled were way more expensive to run.

Then please do assure me, and others - by giving some facts.

I am stating unequivocally that your heaters give out no more heat for the same running costs, than any other heater.

This is a Money Saving forum, and I am stating that you are giving very bad advice.

Without arguing(as you put it) will you please explain to us how the Aldi £35 2kW oil filled radiator(with timer, LCD control panel etc) will be "way more expensive to run" than your plug in radiators?

JennyR68

Cardew wrote: »

Then please do assure me, and others - by giving some facts.

I am stating unequivocally that your heaters give out no more heat for the same running costs, than any other heater.

This is a Money Saving forum, and I am stating that you are giving very bad advice.

Without arguing(as you put it) will you please explain to us how the Aldi £35 2kW oil filled radiator(with timer, LCD control panel etc) will be "way more expensive to run" than your plug in radiators?

Mmm, if it weren't my money I'd be wasting I'd unplug the heater in sitting room drag out the old oilfired and attach it to the monitor and do a 24hr test for you. But I'm not that daft, I really don't have to prove anything to you.

I imagine it's thermostat control rather than timers that makes most of the difference, you create exactly the amount of heat you need. Could be the stuff inside holds it's heat better. I personally don't need to know 'how' it works, just that it does. Yes I was still sceptical myself to start with. So much so I invested another £20 in a plug in electric monitor to measure what each heater was doing. The results being it does exactly what it says on the box. Or the website in this case.

I had 20 years of miserable winters with my storage heaters, I'm a very happy customer. I'm not telling anyone to buy them, just another option out there they might not have known about.

What incidetally do you call affordable to run ? (Im asking this nicely :-) ) For me the average £3.27 I'll be paying a day when I'm on my new tarriff during the coldest part of the year is very affordable. If you average out the cost of night and day units on my old E7 tarrif then it works out cheaper for me but gives more heat.

Cardew

Firstly I am not recommending storage heater or suggesting anyone retains them. I am well aware how many people dislike them.

The £35 Aldi oil filled radiator and the £11 fan heater have thermostats. In fact I am not aware of an oil filled radiator or fan heater that doesn't have a thermostat.

Lots of these radiators advertised, with such claims as yours, are filled with 'magic' gel, clay etc and retain heat for some while, as of course do oil filled radiators.

However you don't get 'ought for nought'. If they have properties that retain heat, then they take longer to heat up.

Heat output is measured in British Thermal Units(Btu) - or joules.

What I am stating is that if you supply your radiators with, say, 2 kWh of electricity they will produce a heat output of xxxxBtu.

Any other type of electrical heater will also produce a heat output of exactly the same xxxxBtu.

The only difference is the way they deliver that heat. A fan heater will produce almost 'instant' heat, but no residual heat. An oil filled heater or your radiators will be slower to start producing heat but will have more residual heat.

The end result though is they all will have produced the same amount of heat for the same cost.

What is "affordable to run" is in the eye of the beholder. If you are happy with your costs then fine. However there is no more expensive way to heat than on a normal electricity tariff.

What is undeniable however is that you could have got heaters producing exactly the same amount of 'affordable' heat with heaters costing a fraction of the price.

As said earlier I really am not trying to 'put you down' about your choice of heating. However this is a money-saving forum and lots of people - apparently like yourself - are taken in by these websites and their carefully worded adverts that imply their heaters are endowed with 'special' properties that somehow produce more heat than other heaters - and quite simply they don't.

Your enthusiasm for your system might persuade others to buy something which they could obtain for a fraction of the price.

There are a few other qualified people on this forum(like myself) who will confirm what I say is accurate.

Sorry.