Energy efficient heaters?

DB_SamX said:
Probably no use as a temporary measure but underfloor heating is the most efficient and comfortable means of heating. I can only suggest a normal stading heater but with variable settings so you can regulate it.
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Can underfloor heating be hooked up to an existing boiler that is being used to supply central heating radiators?

Are all electric heaters, such as halogen, blow-heaters and convector heaters equally as efficient at heating a room/area?
 
Underfloor heating isn't just as simple as connecting radiators to a boiler is, but the boiler still does the heating up of the water in the same way. So yes, you could use an existing boiler, but it would need additional modification to the plumbing as well (but this would be included in the installation of course). Chances are, if you don't have a condensing boiler then they will suggest replacing it though.
 
djohn said:
[Edit] Just checked for running cost and they use 1 unit per hour when on full setting of 1200w
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Errr, if it outputs 1200W it will use 1.2 KWh per hour - 1.2 units.

I like electric fan fires as I can point them at myself and be bathed in nice warm air ragardless of how cold the room is :)
 
frosty03 said:
Eh? It will also apply to the ones that blow, since the energy consumed will be converted to heat. Unless you can tell me where the energy that was "used" goes to besides heat.
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Electric Heater can't be 100% efficient can it?

Electrical energy (technically kinetic energy) in = heat+light (electromagnetic energy)and in the case of a blowing one noise (or sound energy?)out.

Im sure my physics is wrong though.

Although still likely to be more efficient than anything else.
 
By that reasoning then, the halogen heaters (that also emit a lot of light, during the heating process), are not converting all the energy into heat and therefore less efficient than say a convector heater.
 
Efficiency is measured purely by "useful energy" output.

Don't know if anyone knows/remeber energy efficiency diagrams, big arrow on the left, pointing right as input, then a small arrow in the middle pointing up as energy wasted, and medium sized arrow on the right point right (following from input) represented useful energy.

As a percentage value, it's simply a factor of what useful energy you get from input energy. Tungsten lightbulb, 100W input, 30W waste as heat, 70W useful light (it's probably the reverse, I haven't looked it up), so it is 70% efficient.

The most common way of wasting electrical energy is through heat (look at your PC), but when that's the desired output, then surely it can be 100% efficient, since all energy is useful in generating heat.

To hell with the dynamics of the room, insulation and all that jazz, the OP wanted a 100% efficient heater, and that's basically, any heater as far as I can see. :D
 
Cyberstrike2027 said:
The most common way of wasting electrical energy is through heat (look at your PC), but when that's the desired output, then surely it can be 100% efficient, since all energy is useful in generating heat.
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But what if some of the energy is used to power a fan, which makes noise (as in a blow heater)?

Or, what if some of the energy is used to produce light (as in a halogen heater)?

This would mean that some of the energy is being used to power something other than the heating element.
 
the noise is wasted energy (it's friction causing noise and heat, the heat being useful, the noise less so).

Halogen heaters, if you wanted just heat, then yes, light is wasted, if you're using both light and heat, then it's all useful.

It's really that simple :D
 
frosty03 said:
Eh? It will also apply to the ones that blow, since the energy consumed will be converted to heat. Unless you can tell me where the energy that was "used" goes to besides heat.
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surely the noise the fan produces is wasted energy that wont be converted to heat?
 
Rich1988 said:
surely the noise the fan produces is wasted energy that wont be converted to heat?
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But noise is just moving air molecules, as those air molecules move against each other they move less and warm up a bit hence eventually the sound converts itself to heat.
 
Fraggr said:
The "wasted" energy goes to heating the room? I asked my physics teacher if there was anything that is 100% efficient last year, and that was the answer and reasoning he gave.

Edit: this doesn't apply to the ones that blow obviously. Only the ones that are like the heaters on walls.

http://toad.net/~jsmeenen/electric.html first link on google for electric heater efficiency.

"The truth is that all electric heaters are 100% efficient."
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100%?
No it can't, some power goes to the fan...

But yeah they're mostly efficient.

Got a 2.5 kW one with a fan and in economy mode it heats up my room in a matter of 15 minutes. Also has a thermostat so auto turns off when its too hot...

It aint loud at all, my pc is louder.
 
Samtheman1k said:
An air source heat pump works purely on electric and is upto 400% efficient!
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It multiplies the joules you feed it by 4 when creating heat :eek:?
I didn't know that :rolleyes:.


Qin= Qout, it can't make more than it's getting.

Obviously some power goes to the fan converted into movement, and the rest is converted into heat.

It can't be any more than 100% though in any case.
 
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Consider the energy to drive the motor of the fan and also the friction that it has to work against. You are not losing much energy to drive the fan, but some energy will be used here, thus lowing the efficiency.
 
sunama said:
Consider the energy to drive the motor of the fan and also the friction that it has to work against. You are not losing much energy to drive the fan, but some energy will be used here, thus lowing the efficiency.
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You are correct that the motor is not 100% efficient in turning electrical energy into mechanical energy.

However, in the context of a heater any energy consumed by inefficiencies in the motor is not lost. It goes into heating the room.
 
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