Oil filled radiators

thatoldchestnut

I own a one bed flat and I'm thinking of replacing the two wall mounted panel heaters (both Stiebel Eltron CNS 200s) that we have in the lounge and bedroom respectively with wall mounted oil filled electric radiators with thermostats so that they kick in when the temperature gets below a certain levek. Is this my best option? We don't have access to gas, have a floor to ceiling window in the lounge, and it gets chilly in winter. I don't like the panel heaters because I worry about forgetting to turn them off, and about how safe and economical they are to keep on for long periods, plus it's not safe to have anything too close to them. We want a cat at some point and ideally I want something that will keep the rooms consistently warm enough for their benefit too (a cat's comfortable temperature is about 10 degrees higher than humans - it wouldn't have to be that high, I just don't want it to be cold for them). 
Is there another system I should consider that would be better instead? Infrared? Or is oil filled best? Bearing in mind gas isn't an option.

Gerry1

It won't make any difference, those kWh will cost the exactly same whether they come out of a panel heater, an oil filled radiator or a boxful of incandescent bulbs.   LPG, an ASHP/GSHP or oil would be cheaper but are probably unrealistic.  Night storage heaters on E7 would be cheaper to run, especially if the flat is occupied during the day.

Cardew

I don't understand your post. Your heaters have the same facilities as any oil fired electric radiator - and better than most. They have a timer and thermostat:

The Stiebel Eltron Timer Panel Convector heaters cater for individual comfort levels by having a variable temperature selection between 6 °C and 30 °C. The 24-hour timer, allows you to set unique heating intervals easily and according to your own requirement, meaning you only use the energy actually needed. Even though these heaters are slender in design they are robust and splash proof.

Apart from the above, you might have difficulty fixing a heavy oil filled radiator to a wall.

thatoldchestnut

Gerry1 said:

It won't make any difference, those kWh will cost the exactly same whether they come out of a panel heater, an oil filled radiator or a boxful of incandescent bulbs.   LPG, an ASHP/GSHP or oil would be cheaper but are probably unrealistic.  Night storage heaters on E7 would be cheaper to run, especially if the flat is occupied during the day.

Yes, have considered storage heaters and I'm not averse to them. Is it safe to leave storage heaters warming the flat while sleeping? From what I can tell panel heaters should never be left on overnight like that, whereas it's safer to do that with the oil filled ones.

thatoldchestnut

Cardew said:

I don't understand your post. Your heaters have the same facilities as any oil fired electric radiator - and better than most. They have a timer and thermostat:

The Stiebel Eltron Timer Panel Convector heaters cater for individual comfort levels by having a variable temperature selection between 6 °C and 30 °C. The 24-hour timer, allows you to set unique heating intervals easily and according to your own requirement, meaning you only use the energy actually needed. Even though these heaters are slender in design they are robust and splash proof.

Apart from the above, you might have difficulty fixing a heavy oil filled radiator to a wall.

Sure, but quite soon after the panel heaters turn off, the room loses heat again, whereas (I understand) oil filled electric radiators are better at retaining the heat after switching off so wouldn't need to come on as often. I'm also always a bit wary of leaving the panel heaters on unattended in general (perhaps I worry unnecessarily though) whereas the oil filled ones are apparently safe enough to have on overnight provided they're properly looked after.

There are oil filled electric radiators that are wall mounted available to buy online, have been looking at them for the last few days.

daveyjp

You need to remember that whilst oil filled hold heat that heat needs to come from somewhere.

It comes during the warming up stage which can take a while, convector heaters give instant heat.

thatoldchestnut

daveyjp said:

You need to remember that whilst oil filled hold heat that heat needs to come from somewhere.

It comes during the warming up stage which can take a while, convector heaters give instant heat.

Yep, appreciate that. But given that I want the flat to stay temperate through the day and overnight during cold snaps like the one we've had recently, is oil filled better than the ones I've got safety wise, and at least comparable performance wise, or should I be thinking of something else entirely for my long term heating solutions? I like the idea of storage heaters - I'm conscious electric heating being more expensive - but feel wary of leaving them to heat the flat (albeit at a low level) when I'm at work during cold weather - are they a greater fire risk?

Gerry1

thatoldchestnut said:

Is it safe to leave storage heaters warming the flat while sleeping?

Is it safe to leave a Night Storage Heater on at night?

Well, there's a clue in the name !

Hasbeen

OP: If you can get Night Storage heaters on an E7 tariff then do so.

If not, it is a pointless exercise to take panel heaters off with a given kWh to replace with oil filled at a given kWh.

Panel heaters instant heat, cools down quick. Oil heaters slow to get heat  but retains a bit longer. 

The term is six of one, half a dozen of the other?

thatoldchestnut

Gerry1 said:

thatoldchestnut said:

Is it safe to leave storage heaters warming the flat while sleeping?

Is it safe to leave a Night Storage Heater on at night?

Well, there's a clue in the name !

Right, okay. I assumed they were called that because they drew the electricity overnight and released it during the day, not because it was safe to leave them releasing the heat during the night.

thatoldchestnut

Hasbeen said:

OP: If you can get Night Storage heaters on an E7 tariff then do so.

If not, it is a pointless exercise to take panel heaters off with a given kWh to replace with oil filled at a given kWh.

Panel heaters instant heat, cools down quick. Oil heaters slow to get heat  but retains a bit longer. 

The term is six of one, half a dozen of the other?

Okay, so they're comparable in terms of power usage. Are oil filled electric radiators safer or are they both about the same in that respect too? Would you leave panel heaters on overnight?