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Date:         Mon, 9 Dec 2013 12:15:49 -0500
Reply-To:     Larry Alofs <lalofs@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Larry Alofs <lalofs@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: [OT] Efficiency of electric heaters?
Comments: To: Rocket J Squirrel <camping.elliott@gmail.com>
In-Reply-To:  <52A5E8D7.1060908@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

Less than a week ago I remarked to my Mrs.: "These ads for fancy electric heaters are such a scam." In areas where natural gas is available, it is much cheaper to heat your house with gas than electricity. But people turn the thermostat down to save money and energy and then end up using an electric heater to keep themselves comfortable.

M. Squirrel, you are correct. Whether being correct is going to save the marriage is another question...

Larry A.

On Mon, Dec 9, 2013 at 10:59 AM, Rocket J Squirrel < camping.elliott@gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi all, > > (This is not Vanagon-related but I don't know another pool of engineers > and scientists to write to, so I'm writing here for help.) > > It's pretty cold here in Bend, Oregon, and the house that her son is > renting is colder than he'd like. It's an older house, built cheaply, > and only has electric baseboard heaters -- no gas, no fireplace. > > Mrs Elliott has been looking at electric heaters and asks whether some > put out more heat than others. "1500 Watts is 1500 Watts, same BTUs" I sez. > > I sez, "It doesn't matter whether the heating elements are fifteen > one-hundred Watt light bulbs, or whether the heating elements are put in > an oil bath; it doesn't matter whether they write the words `infrared' > or `quartz' on the enclosure: you'll put the same heat into the room. > All heaters are alike in terms of heat output. > > "Sure, an infrared heater can be `aimed' directly at your body, which is > real nice; and others have blowers that can direct the heated air and > stir the air to keep the colder air from pooling on the floor, but in > terms of how warm the overall air in the room eventually gets, all 1500 > Watt heaters are the same." > > That's what I sez. But she knows I'm a bit of an idiot sometimes and is > tempted by expensive 1500 Watt heaters, thinking there must be a reason > why they promote this quartz or that oil-filled feature. She points out > that when you turn off an oil-filled heater, it still radiates heat for > quite some time afterwards; I point out that the slow cooling is matched > by slower warming. > > Can the engineers and scientists in the room comment on this matter? So > that This Marriage Can Be Saved? If I'm wrong, I'm wrong. > > (Probably don't want to clutter up the list with this, please email to > me directly.) > > -- > Jack "Rocket j Squirrel" Elliott > 1984 Westfalia, auto trans, > Bend, Ore. >


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