Will an electric space heater be cheaper than my electric baseboard heat?

Answer 1

No. They will both use the same btu (watt hours) to heat the room. But the baseboard will do it better.

Answer 2

I picked up a good book that tells you all the best $$ tips for home energy use - The Carbon Buster's Home Energy Handbook: Slowing Climate Change and Saving Money

If you go to the chapters web site and type in energy saving there are a tone of books.

My answer is..it depends. If you plan to turn the baseboard heater way down in the other rooms and only heat one small room your using with the space heater. But it also depends on size of the room, house, and how long you need to leave it running to be comfortable. You will need to try it out and see, but even then if you have a colder month then you can't really compare the kWhrs shown on the bills from one month to the next.

For example: if you had a one room apt

If you use a 0.5kW space heater and its ON for 2hrs total time, in order to heat the space to a comfortable temperature for 8hrs- you've used 0.500kW x 2 = 1kWhrs of power

If the baseboard heater uses 1kW of energy for only 1hr for the same 8hr of comfort, then you've used the same power 1kW x 1hr = 1kWhr...therfore no savings

your best bets are:
- more insulation if possible (old houses can have insulation blown in through small holes)
- seal any air leaks with caulk or weather stripping (use a feather to look for drafts around windows and doors)
- leave south facing window shades open during the day to let in the sun light

Answer 3

Electric heat is the cheapest to buy and the most expensive to run. The space heater is cheaper if you heat a smaller space but the baseboard is better if you heat the whole room.

Answer 4

only if you can choose which rooms to turn the baseboard heaters on and some off. I have electric central heat but most of my rooms were unused, so got a electric heater with blower, and it kept my bedroom and bath very warm. My electric bill also went way down.

Answer 5

I have used both. I gave up on my base board heaters for 2 reasons;
1. whey were located under windows, so when on you could feel the heat between the closed drapes and the window.
2. With a portable electric heater, i used it where i was instead of heating the whole house.

I now heat with wood.

Answer 6

There is no free lunch here. 1 watt of electric=3.412btu's and the btu's required to maintain room temp is the same weather it is space heat or baseboard.

Answer 7

i would compared that on different aspects. space heater work on the principle of radiant heat blowing out with a noisy fan. hot to touch fire hazard and lifespan is short. baseboard heater using heating element operated at low watts density work on the principle of quiet convection heating. cool to touch no fire hazard and lifespan is forever.