Buying Heaters the Smart Way: Want to Make an Informed Decision?

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From the household, to the car and all the way to the November football game tailgate – heaters are always being used. Like air conditioners, different types of heaters have many advantages and benefits. From the ventless gas heater, all the way to the portable electric convection space heater you see outside – heaters are giving off watts of heat to keep you warm.

The Most Important Benefits

With the many different types of heaters, there are also many different advantages and benefits of having a heater on hand. For one, they keep you warm – that is definitely a given. However, there are many more advantages of heaters that people take for granted or do not even know about. For one, using a wall heater with a thermostat will keep an entire room warm for hours on end. Although today, in the environmentally friendly (or Green) era, having a heater that has the capability to turn itself off automatically or a heater that will save energy, is huge. In these cases, having an AC and heating unit which are typically outside of you house, with an energy star rating is the best thing you can do. In other cases, obtaining a ceramic heater with adjustable settings or a quartz infrared portable heater will do just fine.

When heating your home, there are many different forms of energy a furnace can use to do so. The two most popular forms of energy are gas and propane. These two gases allow for the radiator to produce the thermal solution that flows up through floor or ceiling vents to warm your house in the winter months – this is always a great solution when you are feeling cold. However, there are a few precautionary steps you should take each and every year:

• Make sure to change the filter every 12-24 months
• Check the safety settings
• Have a heater with thermal safety

For those who use ventless gas heaters or oil-filled radiator heaters, make sure to consistently check the oil and gas levels on the heater and be as careful as possible when using them for extended periods of time. Again, be sure to change the filtration systems every one to two years do avoid your heater giving off a ‘smoky’ or dirty smell. With these simple but essential, tips you will be able to experience a warm and comfortable cold season.

Different Types of Heaters

There are multiple types of heaters – many previously mentioned throughout the article. It really does not matter which source of heat you use to stay warm, as long as you are safe and you know what you are doing when you clean and up-keep your heating system, you will be fine. Some of the many types of heaters include:

• Wall heater with thermostat
• Ceramic heater with adjustable settings
• Quartz infrared portable heater
• Portable convection heater
• Ventless gas heaters
• Oil-filled radiator heaters
• Heaters with thermal safety

To assist in your purchasing of any of the previously listed heaters, we have assembled a few tips. You should be sure to do your preliminary research, look at the size of your room or home and know if you want an energy efficient piece of equipment or not. Mainly, it is important to look for a heater that has the following features:

• A fan-only switch, so you can use the unit for nighttime ventilation to substantially reduce heating costs
• A variable speed air handler for new ventilation systems
• An automatic-delay fan switch to turn off the fan a few minutes after the compressor turns off
• A unit that utilizes an antibacterial and bacteria fighting mesh filter
• A unit that operates quietly and has quality parts and at least a standard full warranty
• A thermal expansion valve and a high-temperature rating (EER) greater than 11.6, for high-efficiency operation when the weather is at its coldest
• A filter and humidifier check light to remind you to check the filter after a predetermined number of operating hours
• A heating unit with environmentally responsible home cooling options

To save consumers and power plants, energy costs, heaters have stated to utilize energy efficient technology. An energy efficient heater can effectively reduce your energy costs and immediately save you’re a fortune. In recent news, heaters and air conditioners consume more than 1500 kilowatt hours of electricity annually. This causes power plants to run at maximum capacity which means over 3000 pounds of carbon dioxide and at least 30 pounds of sulfur dioxide are emitted into our environment – this is just for AC and heating costs, imagine how much emission everyone could save by buying an energy efficient heating system.

Making an Informed Decision

Today, heaters are rated by a ration called the seasonal energy efficiency ratio. This ratio indicates the relative amount of energy needed to provide a specific heating output. The standard SEER (seasonal energy efficiency ratio) today is 13 – which is the recommended minimum. Some of the heaters still in use today that are up to five or six years old have a SEER of 6. Imagine how much money and energy you could be saving by just switching to a standard SEER rated heater – that’s some food for thought!

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