How much electricity does a space heater use in 2022 – BestHeaterGuide

Space Heaters can be a great addition to the cold-weather armaments, and they make those freezing nights comfortable or more accessible. Simultaneously, space heaters are portable and small; they are also pretty efficient enough to heat a single room or a specific part of the place where you live. This way you can easily conserve your electricity bills. This article will help you determine ”How much electricity does a space heater generally consume?”

 People have been using space heaters for quite a few years. But like any electric equipment, there are a couple of things you need to be aware of before purchasing a space heater. Those things will constitute the size, cost, and many watts it uses. These space heaters, capable enough to warm a medium-sized room, generally use around 1.5kW of electricity which will cost roughly 15 cents every hour to warm your room. 

Categories Of Space Heaters & Their Consumption

In terms of power consumption, several categories of space heaters use different amounts of power and are rated for different types of areas. Below are space heaters that require power input of just 200 watts, and some are ultra-heavy that require about 4000 watts of power input.

200 to 400 watt Space Heater

These space heaters are not built for primary use, but they can save you in extreme emergencies. They are suited to fewer areas such as office cubicles and are often known as personal heaters. They generally use a convection heating method, and the power input can be from 200 watts to 400 watts. They are suitable for 20 to 40 square feet of space but useless for medium-sized rooms.

Pros

• Extremely lightweight
• Portable and easy to use
• Energy saving

Cons

• Not for whole room heating
• Not  have enough features

Examples

Some examples of these space heaters are:

• Lasko Heating Space Heater
• Honeywell HeatBud Ceramic Space Heater
• 350W Space heater Programmable Wall Outlet Space Heater
• Mini Desk Heater

500 watt to 1000 watt Space Heater

They are generally the energy-saving mode of the standard heater, meaning most of the classic 1500 watt can work on 750 and even 500 watts. They are built to maintain heat without wasting much energy and can be used in small bedrooms. The primary purpose of these space heaters is to save energy. They can be convection or infrared in the heating method and are suitable to provide sufficient power to 100 square feet of area. 

Pros

• Energy saving
• Light and portable
• It can be used to heat the whole room

Cons

• Heating with these leave a lot to desire
• Not suitable for primary heating

Examples

Some examples of these heaters are 

• AmazonBasics 500-Watt Ceramic Small Space Personal Mini Heater
• Vornado VH202 Personal Space Heater
• Vornado SRTH Small Room Tower Heater etc.

1000 watts To 1500 Watts

These are the most abundant and most popular space heaters available in the market because they are best suited for a medium-sized room. They are generally convection heaters, but infrared technology is also becoming more popular with each passing day. They can efficiently and conveniently raise the temperature of a 12 x 12 room that is a standard bedroom size. 

Pros

• Energy efficient
• Can heat an entire room efficiently
• Generally portable

Cons

• If misused, they can lead to high billings.

Examples

Some examples of 1500 watt heaters are: 

• PELONIS PHTPU1501 Ceramic Tower
• Dr Infrared Heater DR-978
• Do Space Heater for Indoor Use

2000 watts Space heaters

These types of space heaters are more for commercial use, like in the garage or office use, but they can also be used for large living rooms that are poorly insulated. They can provide heat to about 200 square feet of area or more. Generally, 2000 watt space heaters are equipped with energy-saving mode to work on lower power input once they attain their required temperature. They are more than enough for home uses and can add a significant amount to bills.

Pros

• Provide power for large rooms
• Extra safety features
• It can be optimized to energy-saving modes 

Cons

• Generally, they are not portable.

Examples

Some of the examples are

• Stiebel Eltron 236305 CK Trend Wall-Mounted Electric Fan Heater
• Portable Electric Space Heater 2000W Ceramic Heater
• WDLWUJIN Space Heater Tower Heater Home Fashion Convector

3000 watts and Above Space Heaters

These space heaters are the best and can outclass any fuel heater or central heating system, but they are not built for home uses. The energy requirement is so high that it can damage the power outlet used for a long time. They require expert assistance in their installation and should be used with maximum caution. Typically, they are used on an industrial scale, but few people use them in homes and offices. 

Pros

• Can heat whole working area
• More suitable for industrial and commercial purposes
• Provide complete control with remote control

Cons

• Need expert assistance in installation and maintenance,
• Extremely power-hungry machines.

Examples

Some examples of these types of heaters are

• Dr Heater DR966 240-volt Hardwired Shop Garage Commercial Heater
• Comfort Zone 5000W Fan-Forced Ceiling Mount Heater
• VENTISOL 5000W Electric Garage Heater
• Dr Infrared Heater DR-975 7500-Watt 240-Volt Hardwired Shop Garage Electric Heater

How Much Does a Space Heater Cost?

To find how much energy your electric space heater consumes, you must check the heater or the owner’s instruction book. The developers usually print and provide the details here. In most cases, space heaters consume around 1,500 watts. But some ecologically friendly space heaters consume energy more efficiently, which is about 500 watts. 

On the other hand, conventional space heaters are expensive and inefficient to warm up the entire house. So, it would be better and more efficient to use it to heat only a single room. Besides that, you can use your insulations to retain heat all inside a single room, and using it more efficiently this way; you can save money.

How Much Power Do Space Heaters Consume?

Do you want to figure out how much energy you will be consuming with a particular kind of space heater? The heater typically shows the electrical ratings in terms of its International System of Units (SI) that are voltage (V), amperage (A), and watts (W) as well. To find out how much power is your heater consuming, you can do it simply by the following formula: Watts(W) = power factor x volts(V) x amperes(A) 

The power factor is generally authorized as 1 unit but can vary. 

So space heaters marked 240 V and 15A consume 240V x 15A x 1 = 3600 watts or 3.6 kW.

Understanding your space heater’s energy usage in wattage, you can next figure out its power rating. This will provide your heating bill’s rough idea. Kilowatt-hours (kWh) is the general unit measured electricity bills.

If you want to find out how much power your space heater consumes in a day, here is how you can do that: 

• The way to determine the power in a day that a 3.6 kW space heater might consume will be the no. of watts(labeled on the space heater) x the number of hours you used.
• For instance, it was a cold night, and you used your 3.6kW/hour labeled space heater for 8 hours, then it consumed 3.6 kW/hour x 8 hours = 28.8 kW.
• It is mostly measured in kW, but if you need to convert it to watts, then you can simply multiply it by 1000
• Since the electricity cost is affected by the per-unit cost of electricity different for every region, you will need to multiply it with your country’s per-unit cost to determine how much it will cost you for those 8 hours.
• If you want to calculate your monthly cost, and you use it for 8 hours every day, then you will simply need to multiply the answer with 30
• Of course, this value excludes taxes and other additional costs. 

As electricity costs vary from one place to another, matching space heaters give different overall directions in other areas. Not to mention, if you are to use the space heater for a long time, it will skyrocket your electricity bill.

Do Larger Space Heaters Cost More? 

So, yeah, it’s true that large heaters consume more electricity than other heaters. On the other hand, the measure is significant because many elements like constitution, structure, and significance contribute to the space heater’s power consumption. 

More giant heaters require more energy for the process and deliver more warmth per square foot than a regular heater. Therefore, as a result, it will cost more.

Conclusion

Electric space heaters cost 44% more than gas furnaces to warm a room. Well, it is to be noted that your bills won’t get too high if you use them properly and in a better way in a very appropriate manner.

It relies on the number of places you want to provide heat to. If you want to warm a few rooms of your house, these heaters are best for you and even cost-effective. But, it is not the case if you are looking to warm your entire house. With the help of being portable and efficient, space heaters are preferred by many people globally.