Heating Small Spaces

Infrared space heaters, like all space heaters, are suited only to heating small spaces. Many advertisers make the claim that you can slash your home heating costs dramatically, perhaps even by half. While it is true that an infrared heater will effectively and efficiently heat a small space, it will not do a very good job of heating an entire home. You should still leave the heat on in the rest of the house, even if it is only at 60 degrees or so, to avoid frozen pipes and condensation buildup in walls.

Output

The average infrared heater operates on 110 volts and uses 1,585 watts of power during maximum output, according to Schultheis. A 1,500-square-foot house requires 70,000 BTUs per hour, or more to heat the entire house. With the average infrared heater you can heat one-thirteenth of the house for about 76 cents a day, at electricity rates of 8 cents per kilowatt hour.

Efficiency

Advertisers like to point out that infrared heaters are 100 percent efficient, because they do not remove any oxygen or humidity from the air. While this is true, it is also true of other types of space heaters as well, such as electric heaters. They are therefore not really any more efficient than cheaper options. Schultheis also reports that electric, vented combustion-heating systems and infrared heaters all put out about the same amount of heat.

Other Uses

Infrared heaters are used not only to heat rooms for the comfort of people and pets, but also to heat greenhouses and restaurant kitchens. They are useful for greenhouse gardening because they heat plants directly, avoiding loss of heat from hot air rising. The heat isn't created until it hits the plant. For the same reason, infrared heaters are useful to heat food after cooking and before serving, to keep it from cooling in between. They are also found in bathrooms to warm you as you step out of the shower. They are effective for all of these secondary uses.