Is gel heater really cheaper to run than a normal electric heater?

[JohnD]

Some very well-off people use the cheap ones you can buy in argos, screwfix or B&Q. They work exactly as well as elegant expensive ones.

This old granny is trying to save money for her great-grandchildren with an inexpensive heater.

IME the timer is the part most likely to go wrong in an electric heater, and they are not intended to be repairable, so if you insist on timer control, consider an external one, that you can throw away when it goes wrong.

I prefer oil-filled radiators because they give a more even heat, and are safer. If you drop a piece of paper on an ordinary convector, or a curtain blows across it, it may catch fire.

 

[Notch7]

I have an oil filled radiator with a fan heater.

I feel with the fan heater on for an hour or so it warms the air in the room quite well
I then turn off the fan heater and the oil filled rad heater continues to maintain temperature.

I believe the regs changed so where there used to be free standing heaters that came with brackets for fitting to walls -they can only be sold as free standing now.

the wall mounted ones are all quite expensive

 

[Wayneox]

We've just had new storage heaters in. They actually store the heat at night and pump it out at set times. Power it uses the same. But now it's a more consistent temp throughout the day. Much better than or old creda night feed only.

If I touch the case it feels cold to the touch now... But at about. Four pm. The insides open and a small fan kicks in.

It's also got a boost function if it's a really cold day.

 

[Wayneox]

We've got 13a smart plug and oil radiator in kids rooms too... For when main heaters are off

 

[stem]

We've just had new storage heaters in. They actually store the heat at night and pump it out at set times. Power it uses the same.

That's true about the electricity consumption being the same, but the advantage of storage heaters is that night time electricity usually costs about half of the normal rate, depending upon which tariff you are on, so they are cheaper to run.

When I lived in a property with storage heaters, I was on the economy 10 tariff, which as well as having the usual 7 hours of nighttime charge, also had a 3 hour boost later in the day at the cheaper rate as well.

 

[ericmark]

I remember the council flats being built with off peak storage, in middle of house a big insulated box with heaters in, and a duct and fan to heat rooms as required, that was in the 70's today they use large insulated tanks of water, but however the heat is stored, or even used, the main thing is how to control it so only used when required.

My heating went from 20°C to 19°C at 10 pm, that's when I go to bedroom, and then further down to 18°C at 2:30 am when wife goes to bed, in real terms it does not switch on after 10 pm as heat held in house, the two steps in real terms mean on a very cold night it will fire up, but most nights it does not run.

And I want it cooler at night, can't sleep if too hot, last thing I want is heating to come on before 7:30 am but clearly others want it to warm up over night, it is a personal preference. Well maybe how one was brought up as a child, I remember rolling newspaper and tying knots in it to make DIY fire lighters, and it had to be really cold to have a fire in the day, or you were ill in bed, only in the evening was the fire lit, which often made the room colder as it caused so much draft, OK for parents sitting in high backed chairs, but there was a good reason why 8 pm was bed time for kids, it was too cold to play on the floor.

But each family has to decide how much and when they want heat, we have one family using a oil filled radiator in middle of room, and another forget the expanse they have under floor heating. In younger days I camped on Snowdon in a tent on new years day, would not do that now. But any fuel gives a set amount of heat, all that we can do is reduce how much is sent outside.