let's talk space heaters...

[purbeast0]

I remembered you posted some pics of your HT. I see an air return grate on the wall (presumably the furnace is on the other side) but only one vent on the ceiling. I think either there is another damper or a major break in the line supplying the vents(s) if you aren't getting much airflow since the furnace is right there.

Also, those windows while they look newish could be letting a lot of air through. I'd double check the caulking and possibly get some interior inserts which shouldn't cost much since they are pretty small.

Edit: upon further consideration I think they may have just run vents between the the joists off the the trunk line feeding the 1st floor. Might try closing up a few vents on the first floor (not ones located on exterior walls) to see if basement airflow improves.

there are 2 ceiling vents in my basement. one is the red one you have probably seen in the pics near the screen, and there is one like diagonal across the room from that one as well.

i have checked the windows and there isn't really any air coming in from that either.

i have also tried closing vents in rooms that would run "along the path" of the same vent goes to the basement, with no luck. just the fact that i feel such little heat coming out of the vents in the basement just seems weird. i definitely can feel heat coming out, but it's so faint it's almost irrelevant.

 

[K1052]

there are 2 ceiling vents in my basement. one is the red one you have probably seen in the pics near the screen, and there is one like diagonal across the room from that one as well.

i have checked the windows and there isn't really any air coming in from that either.

i have also tried closing vents in rooms that would run "along the path" of the same vent goes to the basement, with no luck. just the fact that i feel such little heat coming out of the vents in the basement just seems weird. i definitely can feel heat coming out, but it's so faint it's almost irrelevant.

I'd get someone out there to check the HVAC, something is amiss since you should be getting airflow.

 

[smackababy]

Your code doesn't require heat when you finish your basement?

Can't do that around here. Unless you simply didn't get a permit etc

I was thinking that the basement was finished without updating the heat. They put just enough to keep it from freezing over, but not be particularly comfortable when there is snow on the ground.

 

[Wyndru]

you want an oil filled radiator like the first one you linked to.

lil rudeguy uses one in his bedroom and it works great. I have used the ceramic type before and they suck up a ton of juice to kinda sorta work. Also if this is in your basement, the ceramic has a much great chance of starting a fire than the radiator.

This, I've had all of the different types, ceramic, fan, radiant, etc... and the oil filled are the only units that actually get to a temp, turn off and maintain it for a bit. All of the other units turn on to the max and never hit the shut off temp (in my experience).

I have this one, and it's great:

I think I got it at Walmart for about $70.

 

[cbrsurfr]

yeah lasko in general seems to have pretty good reviews. i was looking at them at homedepot's website but many of them aren't available in store.

is the one you use fairly quiet? i guess maybe the oscillating one makes more sense since i really just need it to primarily heat up the 1/2 of the room we hang out in for the most part, and more of "at the spurt of the moment" type of situation too.

Mine's not too loud, but it will have a fan noise. Mine's on the wall opposite my headboard. Room is 12x22 and it heats it really well. I can watch TV just fine with it. If you are planning on keeping it closer than 8 ft then I'd say the rad will likely be quieter.

My rad still makes some noise, like little ping/click sounds.

Buy one from a place where you can try it and return without a restocking fee. See which one you like.

 

[Booty]

We have a few Lasko heaters similar to this one:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lasko-1-...th-Logic-Center-Remote-Control-5572/100498580

They're ok... not the most efficient things in the world but I don't have any personal experience with any of the other products so maybe they work as good as anything else. We mainly use ours in our living and family rooms - both are about 12x20. I wouldn't say the rooms end up warm and cozy, but they help take some of the bite out of the air.

That said our house is a multi-level so it's a somewhat open layout - some of the heat is probably just rising and escaping out of the rooms. I'm sure they would do fine in a bedroom, especially with the door closed, and maybe in your basement if it's somewhat closed off.

 

[DrPizza]

Here's the facts - physics.

A watt is a watt is a watt. It doesn't matter which type you get, a 1000 watt heater gives off 1000 watts of heat and uses 1 kw/hr of electricity for every hour that it's on. A $25 1000-watt ceramic heater from Walmart gives off 1000 watts of heat. (or if it only gives off 900 watts, then it's a 900 watt ceramic heater.) A $800 Amish made electric 1000 watt heater, ditto. An oil filled heater - ditto.

Now, how the heat seems - that can make a difference for comfort. You're talking about heating YOU, not necessarily the basement. Thus, an oscillating heater that's pointing directly at the couch is going to keep the people on the couch warmer than the air on the other side of the room.

Suggestions: if you have a natural gas furnace, you can consider a ventless natural gas heater or fireplace for the basement. Relatively simple to install, and they have all sorts of O2, CO, CO2 sensors on them, etc., for safety. Drawback: they raise the humidity. So, if the basement is already humid this time of year, then you might consider avoiding it. But, if you have forced hot air, many houses tend to be a little dry during the winter. Quite a few people actually use humidifiers during the winter, so heating the basement - not 100% of the time; just when in use - may help, or may degrade the air in the house; depends on the house. They're relatively cheap, if you can run 1/2 inch black pipe yourself. (Make sure you use the right type of goop on the threads, or the *yellow* teflon tape.)

Or, do what we've done in our living room when we're keeping the house cooler. Or rather, what my wife has done to live with me actually keeping the temperature where I can bear it; it was 76 the other day & my wife had the electric blanket on. Get an electric throw blanket, or a couple of them. Incredibly comfy. Though, if your wife is like mine, she'll crank it full blast & proceed to fall asleep on the couch 15 minutes into a movie.

 

[DrPizza]

We have a few Lasko heaters similar to this one:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lasko-1-...th-Logic-Center-Remote-Control-5572/100498580

They're ok... not the most efficient things in the world but I don't have any personal experience with any of the other products so maybe they work as good as anything else. We mainly use ours in our living and family rooms - both are about 12x20. I wouldn't say the rooms end up warm and cozy, but they help take some of the bite out of the air.

That said our house is a multi-level so it's a somewhat open layout - some of the heat is probably just rising and escaping out of the rooms. I'm sure they would do fine in a bedroom, especially with the door closed, and maybe in your basement if it's somewhat closed off.

See the bolded section. Wrong. They're virtually 100% efficient. Electric heat is 100% efficient (well, close enough. Technically the electric field extends beyond the walls of the house, and if there's a window and someone can see the red glow of the heating element from outside the house, then technically, you lost a tiny tiny bit of energy via visible light photons.

 

[Wyndru]

Here's the facts - physics.

A watt is a watt is a watt. It doesn't matter which type you get, a 1000 watt heater gives off 1000 watts of heat and uses 1 kw/hr of electricity for every hour that it's on. A $25 1000-watt ceramic heater from Walmart gives off 1000 watts of heat. (or if it only gives off 900 watts, then it's a 900 watt ceramic heater.) A $800 Amish made electric 1000 watt heater, ditto. An oil filled heater - ditto.

I'm going to buy an array of halogen lamps and mount them around the perimeter of my room and just wear sunglasses.

 

[Puppies04]

because she has a huge window which radiates in the cold

Gotta love science.

 

[Booty]

See the bolded section. Wrong. They're virtually 100% efficient. Electric heat is 100% efficient (well, close enough. Technically the electric field extends beyond the walls of the house, and if there's a window and someone can see the red glow of the heating element from outside the house, then technically, you lost a tiny tiny bit of energy via visible light photons.

Sorry, I meant economically efficient... like, there's cheaper ways to produce heat, though I'm not sure if there's a better option that's as simple/portable/etc.

 

[Skeeedunt]

A long writeup if you're interested: http://thesweethome.com/reviews/best-space-heaters/

A surprising amount of variation between models in a given brand. Safety and current draw were the biggest issues for me when researching, though if you're only going to have it on occasionally when you're around, safety isn't *quite* as much of an issue.

The "1500W" one we tried (+ a few LCDs and a lamp) was popping the (15A?) breaker on the circuit we had it on. Ended up switching to a 400W/800W model, but they also have 800W/1500W ones that you could force into the lower wattage mode (ours would cycle to a 750W mode but you couldn't keep it there).

Anyway don't burn down your house.

 

[Puppies04]

Use these.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yac7iZW4q58

 

[lxskllr]

Mine bitcoins, or fold if you're feeling altruistic.

 

[natto fire]

Gotta love science.

Are you being facetious or trying to poke fun at the common misconception that heat rises, which is being accurately portrayed in the picture?

As DrP pointed out, electric heat is pretty straightforward, and you will simply not find a cheap residential electric solution that will give you more heat than 1500w. That is barely more than 5,000 BTU, so it is definitely a weak heatsource compared to combustion. The temporary heater at my last job site was 750,000 BTU, and although it sucked down propane it was a godsend while we got electric service installed to run the 3 RTUs. (They were natural gas furnaces there, but we have put in service for 15 kW resistive heaters before)

As pointed out, from a thermodynamic standpoint, you get a lot more heat with combustion than electric, when you compare the cost of "fuel"

 

[Staples]

Never had a radiator but have had countless space heaters over the years.

They usually have two settings and many have burned out after a year on the high setting. Seems a lot of these things are not designed with thick enough wires for the high setting. Currently I use a ceramic heater I bought at Lowes a few years ago. I only use the low setting.

I also have an infrared one I bough from Costco. Have had two over the past 5 years because one died. Not a fan of these but in a room too big to heat, it is your only option.

 

[sao123]

forget that electric crap...
better off to get a 100,000 btu kerosene heater or indoor propane heater.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

That cheap looking power strip is scary lol.

 

[jaedaliu]

Are you being facetious or trying to poke fun at the common misconception that heat rises, which is being accurately portrayed in the picture?

As DrP pointed out, electric heat is pretty straightforward, and you will simply not find a cheap residential electric solution that will give you more heat than 1500w. That is barely more than 5,000 BTU, so it is definitely a weak heatsource compared to combustion. The temporary heater at my last job site was 750,000 BTU, and although it sucked down propane it was a godsend while we got electric service installed to run the 3 RTUs. (They were natural gas furnaces there, but we have put in service for 15 kW resistive heaters before)

As pointed out, from a thermodynamic standpoint, you get a lot more heat with combustion than electric, when you compare the cost of "fuel"

They're just poking fun of the people that say cold radiates.

 

[Puppies04]

Are you being facetious or trying to poke fun at the common misconception that heat rises, which is being accurately portrayed in the picture?

As DrP pointed out, electric heat is pretty straightforward, and you will simply not find a cheap residential electric solution that will give you more heat than 1500w. That is barely more than 5,000 BTU, so it is definitely a weak heatsource compared to combustion. The temporary heater at my last job site was 750,000 BTU, and although it sucked down propane it was a godsend while we got electric service installed to run the 3 RTUs. (They were natural gas furnaces there, but we have put in service for 15 kW resistive heaters before)

As pointed out, from a thermodynamic standpoint, you get a lot more heat with combustion than electric, when you compare the cost of "fuel"

Cold doesn't radiate, cold doesn't exist. It is an absence of heat. So no i'm not being facetious I was simple pointing out the humour in saying "the cold is radiating in"