| What is it with space heater companies that begin | | | | out of reach for toddlers and, since it works by |
| with the letter 'E'? First there was EdenPure with | | | | convection and doesn't require a fan it should |
| their overstated claims of heating coverage and now | | | | operate silently. |
| we have eHeat's new Envi Heater which the | | | | The majority of complaints against heaters such as |
| company claims can heat 120-140 square feet with | | | | these have never really been about health or safety |
| only 450 watts. | | | | related issues but rather too little heat for too much |
| Maybe on a nice sunny day in a south facing room | | | | money, or just plain too little heat. |
| could a 450 watt heater warm up a 10'x14' room, but | | | | As far as too little heat goes you have to temper |
| you have to wonder how a heater with the | | | | your expectations with the fact that all you're getting |
| equivalent of 1535 Btu is going to fare in a poorly | | | | is a 450 watt heater, despite any new technology |
| insulated north facing room with the master | | | | used to enhance its heating capabilities. |
| thermostat set back to save money. | | | | Addressing the problem of too little heat for too |
| Just to put this in perspective, the typical oil or gas | | | | much money is much simpler to resolve. At the |
| fueled home furnace is rated at 60,000 Btu of heat | | | | current sale price of $110, the 450 watt Envi Heater |
| input. If you use the standard rule of thumb of 35 | | | | costs 24 cents per watt. |
| Btu per square foot for basic heating requirements a | | | | This is in comparison to 3 1/2 cents per watt for a |
| 60,000 Btu furnace would heat 1,500-1,700 square | | | | standard 1,500 watt space heater with an average |
| feet. | | | | price of $52. |
| When you apply the same estimating formula to 450 | | | | As of the date of this article, the Envi Heater was |
| watts, or 1535 Btu, the resulting coverage is | | | | not yet available at The reason I mention this is |
| somewhere around 50 square feet, or the equivalent | | | | Amazon is a great resource for honest consumer |
| of a 5'x10' room. This is eerily reminiscent of | | | | product reviews. I suspect if or when the Envi heater |
| EdenPure's claim of 1,000 square feet of heating | | | | is made available at Amazon the complaints will run in |
| coverage from just one of their 1,000 watt heaters. | | | | much the same vein as its forerunner, the Eco |
| On a positive note, the heating appliances | | | | Heater, and similar in nature to the ones discussed |
| manufactured by eHeat and EdenPure have excellent | | | | here. |
| safety records. Although the Envi Heater is too new | | | | The only alternative to the Envi and Eco heaters is a |
| for any type of safety track record its predecessor, | | | | wall mounted micathermic heater. Although |
| the Eco Heater, has no safety related complaints | | | | micathermic heaters are three times more powerful |
| against it as far as I know. | | | | they are plagued by complaints of hot spots and |
| Another feature of the Envi Heater, as with the Eco | | | | shooting sparks. |
| Heater, is that a wall mounted space heater will be | | | | |