portable heaters that will heat a large room properly

Mstty

I do wonder sometimes when the OP opens up a new thread (where one was already discussing their heating solutions) and doesn't bother to contribute on the newly opened thread.

But yes as per a couple of suggestions above if you are the only one in the property a heated throw will be the cheapest solution.

Scot_39

I found it quite OK down to 12 or 13 Deg.C. Sometimes put a rug over my knees when it was below 10.

Such low temperatures are not suited for passive e.g. desk computer - work for many.

There are no legal minimums in uk for max min temperatures - but their are government guidelines of 16 and 13 for active physical work.  And most offices etc will I suspect be at least a couple of degrees warmer.

And for very young (sub 5?) or old or those with certain medical conditions the NHS recommends minimums of 18-21.

I heat lr to target 16-17 max - and layer to cope (moderately fit, hours of walking and cycling weeekly) it drops to 15 sometimes with just nsh  - but if drops below that I boost using plugins.

I really wouldn't want to sit at your lows.

Given the OP asking about 20C - suspect would not be contemplating even my sort of temperatures.

My friends who wfh say use 18C min for their gch during day.

And then their are the other complications of such low temps health - and dampness mold (min14 recommended to avoid) etc.

And many a home insurance policy would set a minimum temperature above your lows  - i have had 12C and 14C in past.

Qyburn

Scot_39 said:

And many a home insurance policy would set a minimum temperature above your lows  - i have had 12C and 14C in past.

I've never seen that requirement. I'd just choose a different insurer if I did. How on earth can they monitor that, or even define it? 

When we did supervisory controls for commercial and council property a lot were set to 8 or 10 Deg.C fabric protection. A big building probably won't drop that far overnight, maybe not over a weekend, but a school would over the Christmas holiday.

Chrysalis

Well one thing not mentioned is how good is the insulation, my answer was based on the leakage in my home (which isnt good).

Not every big room is the same.  I think if the insulation is very good, try it, and one heater might be enough, but if its bad I think a blanket is the way to go as otherwise you fighting the bad insulation.

Scot_39

Proving a condition and having a condition are not the same thing.

My current insurer just says het 24/7 as required to protect against frost, but does mention need to keep pipes and tank in loft protected, opening hatch if necessary etc.

But I have had simple explicit setpoints in past in above ranges - as had mums insurers when I was POA administering the house in her later life.

From which.co.uk on winter cover - all be it from a few years ago.

https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/winter-2019-will-your-home-insurance-protect-you-a1lSW4o1vDsw

"1. Set your thermostat

It's really important to set your thermostat to the minimum temperature specified in your home insurance policy during cold weather. Damage caused by failing to do so could result in your claim being rejected. The minimum temperature is usually around 12°C but may vary depending on your provider, so it's best to check if you're unsure."

Maybe it's less common now.

Direct line were recommending 15C in their advice pages for empty properties - most of this bit refers to landlords - but for empty temps in this case - but refers to owner occupiers alike.

Not sure about any actual policy conditions or seperate values for occupied so if could explicitly reject a claim if didnt comply arguable.  See e.g.

https://www.directline.com/home-cover/magazine/prepare-property-for-winter

"Keep the central heating on at a minimum of 15C (or 59F) if there’s a possibility of outside temperatures dropping below freezing."

CSI_Yorkshire

Qyburn said:

Scot_39 said:

And many a home insurance policy would set a minimum temperature above your lows  - i have had 12C and 14C in past.

I've never seen that requirement. I'd just choose a different insurer if I did. How on earth can they monitor that, or even define it? 

When we did supervisory controls for commercial and council property a lot were set to 8 or 10 Deg.C fabric protection. A big building probably won't drop that far overnight, maybe not over a weekend, but a school would over the Christmas holiday.

We've requested data downloads from policyholders' smart thermostats as part of investigations.

Qyburn

CSI_Yorkshire said:

We've requested data downloads from policyholders' smart thermostats as part of investigations.

Do you presume their "smart thermostat" (whatever that means) is measuring the coldest part of the house?

Qyburn

Scot_39 said:

Direct line were recommending 15C 

I'll try to remember to check that if I ever consider Direct Line. There's no way all parts of our house rema8n above 15 Deg.C at all times, nor do they need to. Frost protection for our heating is triggered by air temperature below 2 Deg.C inside the boiler housing and return temp below 20 Deg.C. Typically that means on a cold winter day the pump occasionally runs, but the boiler isn't needed. I'd set that return temp lower if I trusted the stat.

We ran similar two stage protection on commercial buildings, run pumps if outside air temp below a certain value, fire boilers only if return temp was below some other value. That was primarily because in big buildings there are often pipe runs though unheated areas.

CSI_Yorkshire

Qyburn said:

CSI_Yorkshire said:

We've requested data downloads from policyholders' smart thermostats as part of investigations.

Do you presume their "smart thermostat" (whatever that means) is measuring the coldest part of the house?

No.

But finding a thermostat set to 5C at the time of a burst uninsulated pipe has led to some 'interesting' discussions.

QrizB

Getting back to the original question:

ButtercupDaisies said:

House was built in 1880 but renovated in 2015. Insulation is pretty good. EPC E but only because hot water + heating are electric. 

I'd rather buy a portable heater than turn on our (electric) radiators. I've been warned that a portable heater won't sufficiently warm up the bedroom.

I think you need to be clear on what you are trying to do. At the moment you don't seem to have a good grasp of the capabilities or running costs of the installed heating system, so saying that you don't want to run it and would rather use a portable heater doesn't really make any sense.

Can you get a portable heater big enough to warm a bedroom? Yes, you can warm workshops and warehouses with portable heater, a bedroom will be no trouble at all.

But exactly what are you hoping to achieve? What is the bigger picture? I can't believe that your 11 sq m bedroom is the only occupied room of your flat, or that it will only be used during working hours. If that was true you'd be renting a workspace from We or Regus, not a 55 sq m flat.

You might, for example, be able to meet your requirements by running the installed heating system at a lower temperature, say 16C, and then heating your workstation with a throw, mat or seat pad.

See for example this thread which looked at WFH heating:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/78770592/#Comment_78770592