Fischer Storage Heaters

Truthful1

lstar337 wrote: »

why advise on where to buy so-called 'german storage heaters' when we have already established they are completely unsuitable for the situation?

3kw heaters with timers and thermostats can be bought for £30 in a lot of places.

However, if e7 is being used then direct electric heating is not a sensible solution.

ok.. So where do we get new e7 night storage heaters?

tellsid

It just gives people a choice if they feel they must have these german heaters. And yes, you are right £30 heater will do the job. I would say buying from Amazon you would have the piece of mind of returning it if not suitable, without having these salesman arriving at your door and forcing you to sign on the dotted line which stops you from returning the product if not suitable.

Truthful1

If we are on the lower rate for night storage doesn't it make more sense to get night storage...but which make?

Also if our F rate makes our other rate more expensive, should we change our F meter rate to standard?

tellsid

Personally i would say storage heating is a very old concept. Why would anyone want to buy electricity at todays prices to store heat in a box. You should heat when required. And store the heat in the room and not in a storage clay it would help if the room is well insulated.

Truthful1

If we are getting the electricity at a lower rate, isn't it worth keeping the storage heaters?
Problem is when you have some storage and some electric...

lstar337

Truthful1, you are hard to keep track of as you post so much in a short space of time.

Here is my advice to you:

Find out your tariff details
Use your bill to find out or ring your supplier. It sounds like you are on a E7, E10, or other dual rate tariff, and that it is standard tariff pricing. Standard variable tariff's are usually the most expensive going.

Find a competitive tariff
Use a comparison site to find a competitive tariff using your historical usage on your bill. Look for good prices and ask in the forum about how good a supplier is. I don't like to tell people who they should choose, but if you want hassle free service you may want to avoid NPower, Scottish Power, and First Utility. These are the ones I see most complaints for recently.

Get somebody in to look at your storage heaters
Storage heaters are simple creatures, mostly just a box full of bricks and some rudimentary control mechanisms. Still, if they have broken knobs and are not giving much heat then you should think about having them repaired. This shouldn't cost much as the parts are simplistic and there are few of them.

Make sure your working storage heaters are used efficiently
Always make sure the damper (output control) is set to zero (closed) overnight. This is when the heaters charge up so you don't want that heat escaping straight away. Set the input control based on what is comfortable for you. In winter I would expect your input control to be high, but if the weather is mild like now then you may only need it low. Only use the damper during the day if you really need the heat!

Look into new storage heater designs
By this I mean real storage heaters from the likes of Dimplex, Creda, etc. New designs keep heat locked up tight until you need it and use a fan to release it quickly. They also track external weather to predict when you might need that extra bit of heat. These are not cheap so it would only be worth it if you are going to be using them as you main heat source for quite a few years.

Stop using convector's during the day
Unless you really have no choice. They will cost you upto 300% more to run. If you have to use them in the bedroom then just turn them on about an hour before bed to heat the room.

Think about electric blankets
I know you said you don't like them, but they will save ££'s on heating a whole room when it isn't really needed. New designs are very unobtrusive and can even be left on a low heat for the entire night.

Insulate, insulate, & insulate!
You may not be able to do much about the fabric of your building, but thick curtains, thermal blinds, shutters, draught excluding can all help a lot. Also many places offer free loft insulation if yours is not up to scratch!

That's about all I can think of right now, but maybe it can help you move into the right direction.

tellsid

Ebay sell very good Adax Neo Designer Electric Panel Heater Radiator Convector Slimline Wall Mounted. This will do the job. When a salesman gets into figures of how much you will be saving, i believe this is done only to confuse the old boy. Stay warm and don't get conned

lstar337

Truthful1 wrote: »

ok.. So where do we get new e7 night storage heaters?

http://www.dimplex.co.uk/products/domestic_heating/installed_heating/index.htm

http://www.credaheating.co.uk/products/storage-heaters.htm

http://www.elnur.co.uk/Elnur-UK-Products/storage-heaters/Elnur-UK-Storage-Heaters.html

lstar337

tellsid wrote: »

Personally i would say storage heating is a very old concept.

True, but it works.

tellsid wrote: »

Why would anyone want to buy electricity at todays prices to store heat in a box.

You buy it while it is cheap at night.

tellsid wrote: »

You should heat when required.

A storage heater does this. It just gets the heat at night when it is cheaper, and releases it when you need it during the day.

A simple yet effective concept.

tellsid wrote: »

And store the heat in the room and not in a storage clay it would help if the room is well insulated.

Most of the housing stock in this country is poorly insulated, and difficult to upgrade.

lstar337

Truthful1 wrote: »

If we are getting the electricity at a lower rate, isn't it worth keeping the storage heaters?
Problem is when you have some storage and some electric...

Hit the nail right on the head!

Storage heaters lower the cost of electric heating by about 2/3.

Mixing storage and non storage is the worst of both worlds.

You either need:

Single rate, all direct electric heating, and super insulated home.

or

Dual rate, all storage heating, sensibly insulated home.

or

Lots of money you don't want to keep.