Best heater/oil radiator etc

Lucia1980 · 18 June 2019 at 2:08PM

Hi, my dad lives on his own in council housing but as its for over 65's, all flats have storage heaters and his bills have been ridiculously expensive so therefore he doesnt put the heating on!!

So I am asking what other option could he have for cheaper heating? possibly looking at Halogen something etc as this has been recommended but wanted further advice.

Thank you in advance.

Cardew · 18 June 2019 at 2:58PM

Nothing is cheaper than storage heaters. The reason is that they use off-peak(Economy 7) electricity.

With ALL other electrical heaters you get out EXACTLY the same amount of heat for the same running cost. So a £10 fan heater from Argos has the same efficiency(100%) as much hyped heaters filled with exotic substances.

Whilst halogen heaters are also 100% efficient and produce no more heat than any other heater(for the same running cost) they have the advantage that their heat can be directed towards a person. So a person sitting in a chair can have the heat directed toward them.

Ebe_Scrooge · 18 June 2019 at 3:36PM

Cardew has hit the nail on the head. If you're stuck with using electricity then your basic choice is between burning full-price electricity or burning off-peak electricity. The most expensive heater in the world will produce the same amount of heat for a given amount of electricity as a £10 cheap & cheerful fan heater from Argos.

The only thing you can attempt to do is heat a smaller volume - a radiator will tend to heat the whole room, a halogen or a fan heater can be directed towards a person and just heat the area around that person. The overall effect measured over an hour or so is no different - ultimately even a "directional" heater will end up heating the whole room just the same as a radiator would, and for the same cost. But if you just want a quick 5 minute blast of warmth to take the chill off, a fan or halogen heater might make you feel warmer without burning the same amount of fuel as it would take to heat the entire room.

Robin9 · 18 June 2019 at 3:55PM

Lucia - what do you call "ridiculously expensive"

In his situation storage rads may well be the best but he needs to know how to control them and also needs to be on a good tariff. Who is his supplier and what is his tariff ?

LadyDee · 18 June 2019 at 4:55PM

Actually, night storage heaters are probably the best thing for a person who is indoors most of the time as they heat up overnight and release the warmth during the day when needed., but it is essential that they are properly adjusted. A friend had old night storage rads replaced with new and apparently has found them much more efficient - they have various controls and there is a sort of boost or something. Anyway, first thing is to make sure he's got them set properly and on the economy 7 (or whatever the equivalent is nowadays).

markin · 18 June 2019 at 8:05PM

Has the council done any improvements, windows, exterior insulation?

Best heater/oil radiator etc

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