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Electrical Heating

Neilw

Hi all,

Are there any energy efficient electric heaters available?

I’ve seen all sorts of wall mounted radiator type heaters but I don’t want to buy something that ends up either costing a fortune or gives out poor heat.

I’m heating a 5m x 8m room, it’s an insulated mezzanine floor in a workshop.

Thanks.

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2011

First off let me clearly state I am far from an expert on heat pumps. I can and have dealt with them from an electrical perspective but I would be the wrong person to advise from other perspectives.

However, I did talk to a Mitsubishi technical expert at the Ideal Home show in the RDS. His advice was not to install a heat pump in any home with an energy rating below A. His position was that the low grade heat provided from heat pumps is simply not suited to homes with lower BER ratings. Anyway there is no point in debating with me about it, that was his position. It is worth noting that his primary aim is to sell as many as possible, but he also wants happy customers.

maxamillius

Thanks for the reply’s lads, some interesting food for thought there regarding the heat pumps.

What’s actually involved in installing air to air?

Regarding the house, they got outbid and it’s now at 640k, imagine that, a house with no CH and an F BER rating!

ercork

If the insulation and airtightness are brought to a good level then a heat pump would be a really good option.

Air to water are the most common for heating and hot water but are fairly expensive to install. It's also quite a big job, requiring the installation of pipes, rads, underfloor heating, etc.

Air to air are much cheaper and easier to install and could be a good option depending on the internal layout of the house. They don't do hot water but if, as the previous post says, the immersion heater is used during off peak times, this is a decent option for hot water.

John.G

The house wrap is probably a good investment also changing the current storage heaters for ones that really store the heat and only emit it when required, like the Dimplex Quantum might be worth considering, also if the immersion is only timed to heat the water at night rate then while the energy costs still won't match gas/oil, they might be ~ 30% higher.
If the house is cosy wrapped then serious consideration should also be given to the Heat Pump option.

maxamillius

alan4cult wrote: »

Yes and no,
Heating will also give you the benefit of heating water cheaply. Heating water with an immersion needs to be considered too.
Electrical heaters do have the benefit of room by room easier control than water but with modern zoning it's easier to have rooms with valves.

You will struggle to beat oil or gas I would say.

Ye so currently in the house there is an immersion for hot water and that’s it, everything else is storage heating! They are looking at getting the house wrapped in external insulation, my thoughts were that although electrical heaters may be slightly more costly to run, if the house is well insulated then they wouldn’t need the CH on as much

2011

alan4cult wrote: »

Yes and no,
Heating will also give you the benefit of heating water cheaply.

Typo

Heating water with an immersion needs to be considered too.

Consider not doing it would be best.

You will struggle to beat oil or gas I would say.

+1, agree.

This comes up on an almost weekly basis on this forum.
All electrical heaters are almost 100% efficient from the cheapest to the most expensive. The issue is the cost per unit of electricity is high, this makes it far less economical to heat a home (or water) electrically than with a less efficient gas boiler.

Heat pumps are an entirely different matter as they can output more heat energy than they consume in terms of electrical energy. But these of course are not electrical heaters.

alan4cult

Yes and no,
Heating will also give you the benefit of heating water cheaply. Heating water with an immersion needs to be considered too.
Electrical heaters do have the benefit of room by room easier control than water but with modern zoning it's easier to have rooms with valves.

You will struggle to beat oil or gas I would say.

maxamillius

Any thoughts on electrical heating as the main source in a house these days. Friend looking at buying a house with no central heating but has storage heaters. Wondering could they change the storage heaters to a more efficient electrical heater and still be on par with oil or gas CH systems.

antoinolachtnai

You have to factor in the time and cost of hauling timber upstairs to a mezzanine.

You have to take into account your need for extraction/air changes too, depending on the type of workshop.

A radiant type of heater (basically a gas or electric patio heater) might be a good solution, depending on the situation. These heat objects rather than the air.

a.

2011

ercork wrote: »

Have a look at an air to air heat pump. Not sure what your budget is but you could definitely get one for under 2k. The running cost would be about a quarter of what electric heaters would be. And there would be no nasty emissions like you would get from wood burning.

I think a combination of heat pumps and descent insulation is the future.

ercork

Neilw wrote: »

Hmm, my original idea of a wood burning stove is probably going to be a better option.

Have a look at an air to air heat pump. Not sure what your budget is but you could definitely get one for under 2k. The running cost would be about a quarter of what electric heaters would be. And there would be no nasty emissions like you would get from wood burning.

2011

Neilw wrote: »

Hmm, my original idea of a wood burning stove is probably going to be a better option.

That is exact what I went for. I disconnected the only electrical heater in the house, the immersion.

Neilw

Hmm, my original idea of a wood burning stove is probably going to be a better option.

2011

The good news is that all electrical heaters are almost 100 % efficient. The bad news is that electricity is expensive so that most alternative energy sources can produce more heat at a lower cost even if they are less efficient.

Many confuse high efficiency with low running cost.

mikeecho

The first law of thermodynamics.. (look it up)

You'll only get out what you put in.
Electric heaters are never cheap to run.

1 unit of electricity will create X amount of heat... That can't be changed.