Eletric Radiator VS Oil Filled Radiator, which is the cheapest?

skyjack

Hello everyone,
I am new to the forum, I apologise if there is a post likt this already but I could not find it!

I live in a flat in London, old building (50s more or less), poorly insulated with single glaze windows.:(

I have no gas in the premises and as we all know electricity comes at a dear price.:mad:

I have electric heaters (no storage no fan), very expensive to run and very little efficient. I only need to heat the livingroom for 5-6 hour a day and bedroom night time (I use economy 7)

I was looking around for oil filled heaters, recommended by a friend of mine. I found a couple 2kw at around £50. Would you recommend to buy these and carry them where needed or stick to the expensive option that I have now?

thanks a lot! :beer:

tlh858

Which is cheapest - if they are both 2kW, then neither of them.

The difference is that a convector heater will heat up instantly, but also cool down instantly as soon as it is switched off.

Oil filled ones take a lot longer to heat up, however will retain the heat and therefore cool down slowly when switched off.

Either way, the energy used and the cost of operation is the same.

To save money, get some insulation, fit secondary glazing to the windows etc.

skyjack

thanks for your reply.

both are 2kw but I was thinking that, as the convector cools instantly, if, and only if, the oil cools down less rapidly than it takes to heat up, then it would be a better solution, does it make sense?:T

PasturesNew

You should look at sorting out those windows - and any draughts - too. There are ways you can "double glaze" the windows cheaply - e.g. one is like a cling film you put up and then use a hairdrier to "fix". Also, you can make "window quilts". Also look at making draught excluders.

5-6 hours of heating a day is a lot for somebody living alone (unless you've a good reason like age or illness); I've always rationed myself to 2 hours/day maximum and spent 6 months of the year huddled under a duvet unable to do anything much.

zeupater

skyjack wrote: »

... as the convector cools instantly, if, and only if, the oil cools down less rapidly than it takes to heat up, then it would be a better solution, does it make sense?:T

No .... next question ...

(Quickest reply I've ever typed ) ....
HTH
Z

skyjack

zeupater wrote: »

No .... next question ...

(Quickest reply I've ever typed ) ....
HTH
Z

what I wanted to say is that if the energy used to heat the oil is less that that I save by letting it cool off, then I save money, otherwise not.
:rotfl:

adonis

I have gas central heating but also have a few oil filled electric radiators in case of boiler breakdown, or if I just want to warm one room .
I prefer them to other electric heaters.

macman

No. For the same rating, they both cost exactly the same to run, regardless of speed of heating up or cooling down.
This applies to each and every type of electric heater, as they all have the same efficiency.

skyjack

macman wrote: »

No. For the same rating, they both cost exactly the same to run, regardless of speed of heating up or cooling down.
This applies to each and every type of electric heater, as they all have the same efficiency.

Macman, if they have exactly the same efficiency, why wpuld you choose one or the other kind? expecially thinking that usually oil filled radiators are more expensive than convection ones.

zeupater

skyjack wrote: »

what I wanted to say is that if the energy used to heat the oil is less that that I save by letting it cool off, then I save money, otherwise not.
:rotfl:

Hi

I understand your point but the answer is still no ...

The heating element converts electrical energy into heat ... for a given time of heating you will deliver a given amount of heat ... increasing the mass of the heated object whilst applying the same power just means that the time to reach a given temperature will increase, however, the thermal mass will also take longer to cool, so the overall heat delivered will be exactly the same ....

As you have E7 already, I would have thought that your most cost effective solution would be to install a high-mass E7 storage heater and use cheaper nighttime electricity at less than 1/3 the cost to provide the majority of your heat, however, if this is not an option to consider then any form of resistance based electric heater is effectively just as efficient as any another ....

HTH
Z

macman

skyjack wrote: »

Macman, if they have exactly the same efficiency, why wpuld you choose one or the other kind? expecially thinking that usually oil filled radiators are more expensive than convection ones.

You would choose different types based on reasons other than economy: speed of warm up, looks, noise etc.
If you want the cheapest, just buy a convector from one of the sheds.