How to choose a fan heater?

A fan heater is one of the most common heating devices used in city apartments, country houses, offices, workshops and small shops. Fan heaters have received such distribution due to their compactness, low weight, simple and reliable design, ease of handling and low price. Choosing a fan heater is not difficult — the device is simple, and most of its characteristics are quite obvious, but there are some nuances that we will consider in this article.

The device and purpose of the fan heater

The fan heater consists of a heating element and a fan that blows air through it. Forced air flow, unlike convection, can be directed in the right direction, which allows you to install the fan heater anywhere in the room and at any height without significant loss of efficiency. Intense air movement mixes warm and cold layers well, preventing the formation of zones of different temperatures, which can create drafts, cause discomfort and cause deformation of various materials.

The fan heater is a multifunctional device. Due to its compactness and the ability to control the speed, temperature and direction of the air flow, it can be used not only for space heating, but also in a number of production processes, for example, for fixing paint or heating thermoplastic and shrink materials. In addition, the heating element of the fan heater can be turned off and this appliance can be used as a normal fan.

Technical characteristics of fan heaters

A fan heater is a simple device, and it has few technical characteristics. This is the power of the heater and performance, which reflects the amount of air driven per unit time.

The power of domestic fan heaters ranges from 1 to 2.5 kW, which allows them to be connected to a conventional electrical network. Taking into account the fact that almost all models have several power settings, it is better to choose a device “with a margin”. But it should be borne in mind that the maximum load for most household electrical networks is 5 kW, and when you turn on such a fan heater at full power along with an electric kettle, you may not be able to turn on other appliances.

High performance is needed in order to ensure good air mixing in the room and its uniform heating. If you are going to choose a fan heater as the main source of heat, stop at the device with maximum performance. But if you need it as a working tool or a local heater, you can get by with a smaller value — such devices are more compact, make less noise and, as a rule, are cheaper.

Other technical characteristics of fan heaters include the presence or absence of a thermostat and the number of power settings. Usually there are two or three of them, plus a cold mode.

How to choose a fan heater by type of heating element

Most fan heaters use two types of heating elements — metal and ceramic. Here we will try to compare them, revealing the pros and cons of each.

• metal heating element

  Made of nichrome wire twisted into a spiral or stretched over insulators in the form of a fine mesh. The disadvantage of the wire heating element is that, despite the intense air flow, individual sections of the wire become red-hot. This leads to the combustion of dust entering the fan heater and the appearance of unpleasant odors. But fan heaters with such a heating element usually cost less and do not require warm-up time, which can be an important selection criterion if you use the device as a working tool.

• Ceramic heating element

  It is a ceramic grating, inside which nichrome or tungsten conductors are hermetically pressed. The ceramic grate heats up evenly, and there are no high-temperature zones that can cause dust combustion on it. Due to the absence of contact with atmospheric oxygen, nichrome or tungsten does not oxidize, and such a heating element lasts longer. But the ceramic element takes time to warm up, and the fan heater with it enters the normal operating mode only a few minutes after being turned on. In addition, the ceramic element is more expensive and, in case of burnout, cannot be repaired — it has to be replaced entirely.

Design options for fan heaters

Fan heaters are made in wall and floor versions, as well as in the form of compact mobile structures that can even be placed on a table. With the latter, everything is obvious, and which fan heater — wall or floor — will be the best for your specific situation, we will consider below.

Wall fan heater suspended under the ceiling and does not take up space in the room, which is undoubtedly a serious advantage if you decide to choose a fan heater as a permanent and main source of heat. But the high location creates certain problems. In order for lighter warm air to disperse throughout the room, and not accumulate under the ceiling, it must be directed downward, and at a sufficiently high speed. And for this you need a powerful fan that can create noise and vibration. However, many wall-mounted fan heaters have shutters that help adjust the airflow and direct it in the right direction.

warm air from floor fan heater itself rises, and for uniform heating of the entire space, it is enough just to “push” it slightly in a horizontal direction. Therefore, the requirements for fan power are much lower here, and it will make less noise. In addition, the floor fan heater is mobile, it is easy to move it to another place, take it with you to the country house, and if there is no need to put it in the pantry.

How much does it cost and where to buy a fan heater

As already noted, a fan heater is an inexpensive device. Prices for most compact and floor models are from 500 to 1000 rubles. Wall-mounted fan heaters are somewhat more expensive — their price usually ranges from one and a half to three thousand.

Compact desktop models are also widely represented in retail chains, but you will most likely not find wall-mounted and powerful floor fan heaters there.

You can buy a fan heater in our online store, where a variety of models, both domestic and imported, are presented.