Running costs – it’s admittedly a bit of a dry subject but for many customers it can be a deciding factor when looking for a patio heater. While some electric heating systems are difficult to give a precise figure for, halogen heaters are one of the few types that have predictable running costs because of how they’re used and how they create heat. Infrared products make great patio heating solutions, so if you’ve got your current electricity rates to hand, this blog will show you how to easily calculate the running costs of your halogen heater and how to keep your bills as low as possible.
Why is it easier to calculate running costs for halogen heaters?
Most electric heating systems – from storage heaters, to electric radiators, to infrared panels – use thermostatic controls, which means that once they heat the room to a certain temperature, they switch off. Throughout the course of the day, they may only draw power a fraction of the time and how much power they use can vary depending on the build quality and insulation of your home. Halogen heaters don’t have this issue because they are non-thermostatic heaters. In basic terms, this means once they’re switched on, they will be constantly drawing power until they’re switched off again. There’s no thermostat to monitor room temperature because most halogen heaters are designed for use in an unenclosed outdoor space – it would be quite hard to monitor the heat levels of your entire garden! If you purchase a 2.5kW quartz patio heater and use it for three hours, you can simply multiply the hours in use by the heater’s wattage to calculate energy consumption. This would be harder to gauge with a thermostatic heater as you’d need to monitor how often it remained on during a set time period.
How to calculate the running cost of your heater
To calculate the running cost of a halogen heater, you need to have the following information:
- The kW power output of the heater in question
- The energy price set by your provider in pence per kilowatt hour (p/kWh)
- An estimated number of hours you expect to use the heater
To use the example above, let’s assume we have a 2.5kW garden heater and we estimate it will be used for three hours.
2.5 x 3 = 7.5 kWh
Let’s also assume that our electricity tariff is set at 13 pence per kilowatt hour.
7.5 x 13 = 97.5p
This means it will cost a little under a pound to run our 2.5kW heater for three hours. Naturally this will differ depending on your own tariff, but as you can see from the example above, it’s very simple to make your own calculations.
What can I do to reduce the running costs of my halogen heater?
If the above example looks a little expensive, don’t worry; halogen heaters are designed for infrequent, on-demand outdoor heating so you may only be running yours for a few hours at a time every other week. As they’re restricted to occasional use, their running cost over the course of a year won’t make much difference to your electric heating bill.
Running costs become more of an issue for commercial spaces which make use of multiple halogen heaters to warm an outdoor seating space. A large number of high wattage halogen heaters will certainly draw a lot more power compared to a single garden heater, so for businesses that need regular comfort heating outdoors, we highly recommend choosing products with integrated control, or accessories which provide more heat management options.
Outdoor Heaters with Integrated Controls
Electric patio heaters with staged heat levels allow you to reduce the output of the heater in increments so you don’t always have to use maximum power. It’s common for these heaters to have four stages: 25%, 50%, 75% and the full 100% output of the heater. In the case of our 2.5kW heater, this would mean it could be adjusted to 1.25kW at half output, or 0.63kW at quarter output.
Looking at our previous calculation, it would cost 97.5p to run a 2.5kW heater for three hours, but if we reduced it down to 25% output, it would cost a mere 24.6p to run for the same length of time. This has the potential to create enormous energy savings no matter whether it’s for a home patio or a large commercial installation, so we would always recommend looking for a heater that provides extra control. In the case where a heater does not come with integrated controls, it’s a good idea to look at some of the available accessories suitable for outdoor use.
Patio Heater Controllers
Two of the most common forms of outdoor control for patio heaters are push-button timers and dimmers. Push-button timers do exactly what you’d expect: just press a button and your heater will remain on for a set period of time, then once the time runs out, it will switch off automatically. They’re convenient because they offer a ‘set and forget’ system where you won’t need to worry about leaving your heater on overnight accidentally, and they also mean that you can keep a close eye on energy usage by restricting it to a set time period.
Dimmers are the accessory of choice for anyone looking to minimise their running costs by modulating the output level of their heater. Just like a dimmer switch for a lighting system, they provide a sliding scale of output for the connected appliance. They allow you to reduce running costs by lowering output on warmer days when full power is not needed and provide greater freedom when it comes to selecting a comfortable level of warmth. The Burda dimmer we offer at Infrared Heaters Direct even has Bluetooth functionality and allows any connected heaters to be controlled via a smartphone or tablet. Though Burda branded, the Bluetooth dimmer can be used with any outdoor heater, and using Burda’s intuitive heating app you can have convenient control over your heater from the palm of your hand. In larger installations, the app can be used to control multiple heaters which can also be organised into groups for greater convenience. For example, if one side of your outdoor dining space is particularly cold, you can increase heat output in this zone without having to adjust all of the heaters in your system. Dimmers are a superb way of minimising the running costs of your halogen heaters in the long term.
Efficient and Effective Outdoor Heaters
Halogen heaters have easily calculable running costs, and because they heat using radiation only, you can be confident in the knowledge that all of the energy they draw from the wall is converted into usable warmth. There’s no inefficient combustion processes as with a gas system – electric outdoor heaters will provide reliable and instant heat from the moment they’re switched on, and when purchased with controls, you’ve got the freedom to fine-tune your heating to your heart’s content. We offer a wide range of excellent patio heaters, from tungsten element quartz heaters, to cutting-edge carbon fibre heaters, and even no glare ceramic heaters for sheltered spaces. If you need further help selecting garden heaters for your property or business, don’t hesitate to give our sales team a call on 0330 880 8383.