Best option for electric heating?

gazfocus

Not strictly 'in my home' as this is for an office where I work, but we are having to put some form of heating in the office and just looking for suggestions as to what sort of heating is more economical.

Up to now we've been using a small 1.5kw oil filled radiator to take the chill off the place but I don't know whether it's just had it, or whether they are generally just crap but you can only really feel the heat from it if you're right next to it.

Unfortunately, central heating isn't an option, so we're pretty much stuck with having to find some form of electric heating that isn't going to cost £100's a month to use (thankfully the office gets really warm most of the time, so the heaters will only be on for probably a third of the year).

Are oil filled radiators generally good? I know convector heaters heat up quicker but I don't think they would be economical to run with the room being so cold.

Ebe_Scrooge

All electric heaters are 100% efficient, there's no difference in the cost to run them ( arguably a fan heater "wastes" a miniscule amount to power the fan, but it's really so tiny as to be totally insignificant ).


The only difference is how quickly they heat up. A fan heater will give near enough instant heat, and stop giving heat the moment it's switched off. A convector heater is almost as quick to heat up and cool down. An oil-filled heater will take a while to heat up, but will continue to give out heat for a while after it's switched off.


But a 2KW fan heater will cost exactly as much as a 2KW oil-filled heater to run.

Grenage

Whatever electrical heater you use, the efficiency is still the same - 1.5kw is 1.5kw. Oil filled are less dangerous, and often at a lower temperature for a longer time, the alternatives such as fan heaters are instant and more direct.

In a large space with a small occupancy, I'd opt for a fan heater directed at the staff - otherwise, just oil-filled.

Either way, jumpers are cheaper.

gazfocus

Thanks - yeah I kinda get that 1.5kw is 1.5kw, but my thinking was that if say an oil filled heater holds the heat longer, it'll take longer for the thermostat to tell the element to start heating again, therefore, SHOULD be cheaper to run than something that's constantly pumping out heat (or am I completely wrong?)

The problem is, we move around a lot as the office is 775sqft and we're a print company so regularly moving from one area to another.

I guess with oil filled ratiators, we could put them on a timer to come on an hour before we start work.

lstar337

The Only form of electric heating that will lower running costs is going to be Night Storage heaters on an E7 tariff, or possibly Air Source Heat Pumps.

Heating by electric is never really cheap, but NSH can approach GCH costs if used correctly. If it is a big space, you might consider some infra red heaters pointed at various zones.

What you really need to do is insulate as much as possible. If you stop the heat from escaping then you don't need to put so much in!

teneighty

Commercial radiant heaters might be the way to go as Istar suggested. That way you are warming up the staff rather than trying to warm up all the air in the workshop.

Something like this http://www.dimplex.co.uk/products/commercial_heating/select_by_product/commercial_radiant_heaters/qxd_range/index.htm

goodwithsaving

Wifi controlled rads on economy 10.

Jonesya

You want to look at air conditioning systems - most of these provide heating by running their heat pump in reverse, pumping heat from outside to inside, a lot have CoPs of 3 or more - meaning 3 units of heat for every 1 unit of electricity.

If the office is rarely occupied a cheap heater may suffice, but if the heating is running during a typical working work then the running costs will be significant and the efficiency savings of a heat pump/aircon system will make it pay.

Ectophile

Fan heaters and halogen heaters have the advantage that they heat whatever is directly in front of them So you could be toasty warm while the rest of the office is still freezing cold. But you'd notice the cold the moment you moved away from the heater.

Oil filled radiators are for background warmth. They don't feel hot unless you are right next to them. The only heater I will leave on a timer is an oil filled one, as it doesn't get as hot as other types.

Kernel_Sanders

gazfocus wrote: »

my thinking was that if say an oil filled heater holds the heat longer, it'll take longer for the thermostat to tell the element to start heating again, therefore, SHOULD be cheaper to run than something that's constantly pumping out heat (or am I completely wrong?)

Yes! The thermostat takes the temperature from the air, not from the oil (I think!). Halogen heaters (the modern alternative to radiant bars) are the only common electric heaters which are on all the time, so they will cost much more to run (because they are producing much more heat over the course of the day) than fan or convector heaters of the same kW. The latter two all have thermostats AFAIK.

ashleypride

Ebe_Scrooge wrote: »

arguably a fan heater "wastes" a miniscule amount to power the fan, but it's really so tiny as to be totally insignificant

Being pedantic, all the energy consumed by the fan is converted into heat (via friction), so there is no waste and no argument.