heating

[wkelly]

Does anybody have any information on different types of heaters for our apartment? We currently use an electric oil-filled radiator and plan to buy two more. We now found there are new ones on the market, including those claiming to be up to 30% more efficient, such as ceramic and alumino types - costing up to 400 euros, while the oil-type cost 50-100 euros depending upon the watts. Any information would be really appreciated.

[bigjomc]

mestro maco or izi as it is now known were doing what you would call a (super ser ) which is gas and made by a company called ( camping gaz ) with a fan on top to blow out the heat , my neighbour has one of these and they are very efficient , i think it cost about 80 euro , the oil filled radiators dont heat rooms properly , even if you were to get electric fan heaters , but not too many to trip the electricity supply .

[Barry]

Would echo the potential problem of power supply. Many properties in Portugal have a very limited supply compared with UK. We cope by switching off our electric water heater in the evenings, before we turn on our panel heaters, then reversing the process when we go to bed.

[tbbr]

With our new build we have opted for underfloor heating and with just a trial run of a few hours the difference was noticable.

I also think that the wall insulation now required also plays a significant part in retaining heat

We have a 4 year old ( holiday spec apartment ) which even with wood fire at night, oil radiators in the bedrooms and when required the aircon unit used as a heater did not seem as warm.

Are there solar systems which can be used for heating, by circulating the hot water through storage heaters ? ( free energy ).

[Al Garb]

Does anybody have any information on different types of heaters for our apartment? We currently use an electric oil-filled radiator and plan to buy two more. We now found there are new ones on the market, including those claiming to be up to 30% more efficient, such as ceramic and alumino types - costing up to 400 euros, while the oil-type cost 50-100 euros depending upon the watts. Any information would be really appreciated.

Some of the aluminium radiators contain oil but others have a thermal core (sometimes ceramic) The thermal core ones use full power to heat up and then lower power to maintain temperatures. Heat is released consistently using a more effective thermostat. They claim to provide 12 hours heat for the equivalent of 4 hours consumption.
Try somewhere like Worten. They offer cheaper brands also if you keep receipts and packaging they normally allow you to return goods within 2 weeks if you are not satisfied

If you have to pay €400 rather than around €50 you have to save an awful lot of electricity so I suppose it depends if you are a long term winter resident or an occasional visitor.

It is worth considering a dehumidifier. It is not just the actual temperature but the "feel" and this is affected by humidity

[cavuu]

Electric resistant heating is essentially all the same, 1000 watt-hours is the equivalent of 3412 Btu’s. Doesn't matter if it is oil filled, ceramic or fan you can only get 3412 Btu's of heat from a 1000 watts. Oil filled and ceramic give a more even heat but take longer initially to warm up and longer to cool where a fan type gives instant heat and instantly disappears when the power is shut off.
The most efficient way with electric is probably a heat pump and you get air conditioning as a free benefit. The initial cost is high but you may recover this in time.

[bigjomc]

hi , please check other postings on air con , thanks.