4 Common Types Of Portable Heaters

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Portable heaters are a complementary heating option that can work in conjunction with your central heating system to provide heat to the areas within your home that need it most. There are several different types of portable heaters available on the market, each of which uses a different fuel source or method to create heat. Because of these differences, each type of portable heater possesses a different set of features: understanding the differences between the available variants of portable heaters can help you choose the one that is the best fit for your home.

Types of Portable Heaters

Fan-Forced Air: Perhaps the most common type of portable heater, fan-forced air heaters are powered by electricity. A metal heating element warms up, and a fan blows heated air throughout the room. They tend to be fairly inexpensive, and range in size, allowing you to choose a model that suits your heating needs. However, they are not as powerful as other types of portable heaters, and can be noisy during operation due to the fan.

Infrared: Infrared heaters make use of infrared radiation directed into a certain area to provide warmth. This means that they are ideal at heating up small rooms or a very specific area: however, because they do not heat up the air, they are not very good at providing heating over a large area, and won't warm up the entire room while in operation.

Ceramic: Ceramic heaters are a variant of fan-forced air heaters, and are a more expensive option. However, their heating elements are made out of ceramic, providing a more powerful heating solution to the room in which they are installed. Additionally, ceramic will continue to hold heat for a longer period of time than metal will, which means that a ceramic portable heater will continue to provide heat to the room even while turned off. However, like their fan-forced counterparts, they are noisy during operation.

Kerosene: Kerosene heaters make use of a large fuel tank and a burning wick to provide heat to the area immediately around them. They usually use a series of fans to direct air flow. They are extremely powerful, and can continue heating an area for an extended period of time depending on the size of the fuel tank. This makes them ideal for use in outdoor areas or in extremely large rooms. However, their price and power means that they are probably not well suited for indoor residential use.

Contact a local heating services company for more information.


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