[Scruggs]

They seem to be all the rage now. I see infared heaters advertised everywhere now. Factory representatives come to small towns hawking them, truckload sales in the small town near me, "Amish built" mantles for them advertised in the local rag and displays of them in larger home improvement centers.

The claims are fantastic. Pennies a day in operating costs to heat hundreds of square feet in area. I was offered one for sale by a disgruntled owner and the thing seemed worthless when I tried it out.

I heat with wood during the day and propane at night so I wasn't interested. Are these things any good at all? Just curious.

 

[Sword]

I bought the 'Eden Pure' last year. Great little heater. Only downside was my elec. went up about 80.00 per month...but I saved some on propane.
Did more insulation this summer so we'll see.

 

[joes]

I bought the 'Eden Pure' last year. Great little heater. Only downside was my elec. went up about 80.00 per month...but I saved some on propane.
Did more insulation this summer so we'll see.

Keep us posted on this ok...Thanks

 

[bulrush]

A wood fire produces infrared heat. So does a propane heater, a natural gas heater, quartz electric heater, kerosene heater, and many other heaters. What makes this one so special?

Heat, by its very definition, exists in the infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. When you say "infrared heat" it's like saying "this water is wetter". Water can not be wetter, it's either water or it's not. Sounds like a gimmick to me.

 

[Varmit]

Over Christmas my father-in-law said he was considering the Amish heater
that is advertised in a variety of magazines. So I did a brief amount of
rummaging on the internet. Found this:

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/02/amish_heaters.html

Sounds like they've found a way to market a $40 electric heater for
$300. A bulk of the price you pay for the thing is in shipping costs,
so good luck trying to get that refunded once you find out you've
been screwed.

from the link above:

According to the ads, the Amish Fireplace produces an "amazing" 5,119 BTU.
However, "any 1500 watt heater will provide that amount of BTU, so there is
nothing really 'amazing' about that from an engineering standpoint," said Dr.
Fiona Doyle, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the University
of California, Berkeley.

"Whether a space heater costs $40.00 or $300.00, 1500 watts cannot
magically be converted into more BTU. The maximum amount of heat energy
is 1500 watts and it cannot produce more than that," Dr. Doyle said.

 

[ELBUFO]

This one works

The Sunstar CK 10T Is the greatest thing since sliced bread. We have been using them for 10 years with ZERO problems. The "T" model has a thermostat...set it and forget it (uses no electricity). There is a larger version available, but the 10T will cook us out of our small cabin. I have them in storage buildings just to keep the moisture out. Again set it on a low setting and you have instant thermal regulation. Here is a link:http://www.kennspenns.com/heating/sunstar-infra.html Shop around prices vary.
Now plumb in a Humphries lamp and you have instant heat and light.
http://www.gas-lights.com/interior.html I have done business with this company many times. A note on the lamps. Even though I am at 650 feet, I had to install hi-altitude jets to keep from carboning up my mantles. My local dealer who sells a lot of these lamps says I am the only one with this problem Never have figured it out??? All my pressures are set with a gauge sooo as a mater of principal, I always order an extra jet at about $4. Expect to have mantles last about 6mo to a year. I have found that the mantles for a 500cp Petromax Lantern work as well as the Humphries mantles at 1/2 the cost DO NOT BUY BUTTERFLY BRAND (hecho en Chine) They are worthless.
I would recommend this setup for anyone living in a place with winter power outages as back up heat and light. For you wood burners this also make a good system when you need instant heat!

 

[cranky1950]

You can't beat mother nature. 1500W = 5 BTU, the pretty cabinet and many buttons not to mention paying for Bob Villas's portly presence does nothing to add heat output. That little $18 ceramic heater at Home Despot does the same thing.