Transcription
Each year, space heaters cause thousands of house fires. So, the question is, is that $440 space heater any safer than the one that cost $23?
And the first test, we'll see which brand moves the most heat. We'll also see which space heaters have the best safety features. Then, we'll see which one makes the least amount of noise.
At a price of only $23, the least expensive space heater we'll be testing is made by QQT. It's a 12,200 W space heater that has two different heat settings. The Glambit offers overheat protection as well as tipover protection. They also claim it's very quiet at less than 30 dB. We're going to test that. One thing very nice about this space heater is that it's very compact. The QQT does not have a thermostat and the QQT is made in China. Weight is sometimes an indicator of quality and the QQT weighs 1.6 lb.
Let's compare the amount of noise from 24 in from the sound meter. The room is very quiet at around 35 dB. The sound levels at 53.9 dB on the low and the high heat setting since the heat setting does not change the fan speed.
At a price of only $24 is this Amazon Basics brand. On the highest heat setting, 1500 watts and 900 watts on low. It has built-in tipover protection, overheat protection, and a power indicator light for safe operation. And the Amazon Basic space heater is made in China. The Amazon Basics weighs 2.68 pounds. The Amazon Basics is about the same as a QT at 54 dB on low. It's almost the same on high heat at 54.1. Most of the space heaters have a thermostat that powers a heating element off and on when the space heater is in use. If you're a light sleeper, the clicking sound from the thermostat on the Amazon Basics might disturb your sleep at 57.3 dB.
At a price of $26 is this A Coper brand. It's a 1500 watt electric space heater with the thermostat. It has a low, medium, and high heat setting as well as a fan only mode. They claim it has tipover protection as well as overheat protection. Made in China and is 2.56 lbs for the A Coper. The A Coper only has one fan speed for the different heat settings and it's the loudest yet at 56.6 dB. The thermostat is less noisy than the Amazon Basics at 56.8 dB.
At a price of $26 is this Give Best brand. The Give Best has two different heat settings, 750 watts and 1500. You can adjust the thermostat from 41 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. They claim it's very quiet at less than 45 dB. They also claim tipover protection. Made in China. The Give Best weighs 2.13 lbs. The Give Best only has one fan speed for high and low heat, and it's the loudest yet at 57.7 dB. The Give Best has a really loud thermostat at 62.9 dB.
At a price of $28 is this Jaboy brand. I think I'm saying that right. The nice thing about the Jabui is it has a 70°ree rotating feature. It can deliver up to 1500 watts of power. It also includes a remote control. It has fan only as well as three different heat settings. And the Jaboy is made in China and it's 3.21 lbs for the Djabi. The Jabui has just one fan speed for the various heat settings and it's the quietest yet at 53.3 dB. However, the thermostat does make quite a bit of noise at 61 dB.
At a price of $32 is this Black & Decker brand. It has two different heat settings, 750 watts, 1500 watts, as well as a fan. The claimment has overheat protection as well as tipover shut off. And the Black & Decker is made in China. The Black & Decker weighs 2.75 lbs. The Black & Decker is the loudest yet at 57.8 dB. The thermostat is also pretty loud at 59.4.
I'll be testing two different space heaters made by Drio. The first one costs $45. It can deliver up to 1500 watts. It includes a remote control. It also has a thermostat and it offers 70° of oscillation. The different modes include high, medium, and low, as well as eco and fan only. They claim it's pretty quiet at 37.5 dB. And the Drio is made in Vietnam. The Drio weighs just over 4 lb. The Drio is by far the quietest yet on low heat at 37.8 dB. Very impressive. The Drio continues to impress at only 43.7 dB on high heat. The thermostat is also by far the quietest yet at only 51.5 dB.
At a price of $47 is this Lasco brand. They claim it has two quiet heat settings, high at 1500 watts and low at 900 watts. Optional widespread oscillation evenly disperses the warmth. They claim it offers overheat protection. It has an adjustable thermostat. Made in China, the Lasco weighs just under 4 lb. The Lasco only has one fan speed for the various heat settings and is quieter than average at 52.6 dB. The thermostat is a little bit noisy at 58.4 dB.
At a price of $60 is this Mr. Heater little buddy. All the other heaters use electricity. The Mr. Heater uses propane. It's supposed to produce 3,800 BTU. They claim 5.6 hours of run time at maximum heat on a one pound cylinder. It is designed for indoor use. They claim it has tipover protection and is 5.75 lbs for the Mr. Heater. Mr. Heater is definitely the quietest space heater since it doesn't have a fan at around 35 dB.
At a price of $90 is this Drio brand. It has three different heat settings in an eco mode. The temperature range can be adjusted from 41 to 95° F. It offers tipover protection as well as overheat protection. And the Drio is made in Vietnam. And the Drio weighs 6.9 pounds. The Drio tower heater is about the same as a small Drio heater at 37.7 dB on low heat. On high heat, 48 dB, which is still really good. The thermostat is one of the quietest yet at 53.8 dB.
At a price of $100 is this real smart brand. It's an electric space heater with a full screen fireplace. They claim it has a realistic 3D flame. They claim it has overheat and tipover protection. Four heat settings include 850 watts, 1500 flame only, and heating only. They claim it's very quiet at just 38 dB. Made in China, and it's 8.32 pounds for the Real Smart. The Real Smart is another quiet space heater at only 48.3 dB on low and high heat. It also has a pretty quiet thermostat at 52.7 dB.
At a price of $440 is this Dyson brand. They claim it has air multiplier technology circulating air throughout the entire room. It also works to cool you as a fan. In addition to being a heater, it's also an air purifier. It oscillates up to 350 degrees. It does include a remote control, and the Dyson is made in Malaysia. And the Dyson's by far the heaviest yet at 11.69 lb. The Dyson's pretty quiet at 47 dB on the lowest fan speed. On the highest fan speed, 55 dB. What I really like about the Dyson is that there's no clicking sound with the thermostat.
So, the Dreal Space heaters make the least amount of noise on the lowest heat setting at 37.7 and 37.8 dB, respectively. It is sort of an apples and oranges comparison, but the Mr. Heater, the propane space heater, makes the least amount of noise at 35.1 dB. For space heaters that have fans, the small do makes the least amount of noise on the highest heat setting at 43.7 dB. The Drio Tower fan also performed well at 48 dB. The sound of the thermostat clicking to power on and off the space heater. It might interrupt sleep, and the Dyson does not have a thermostat that makes noise. The small do is pretty quiet at 51.5 dB, and so is the real smart at 52.7.
Let's compare the ability of the space heaters to broadcast heat 36 in. There are three thermometers placed about 20 inches apart from each other. I'll aim the space heater towards a center thermometer and a fiveminute test is finished in the QT increase the temperature of the center thermometer by 1.2° to 71.4. I'll use a fan to cool down the test area before we test the next brand.
And the Amazon Basics thermometers are all starting off at 70.7° F. And the 5minute test is finished. in the Amazon Basics did a much better job than the QQT at broadcasting heat with the center thermometer increasing by 4.1°. No change to the other two thermometers.
The A Coper is starting off all three thermometers at 70.5. Unfortunately, the A Coper didn't perform quite as well as the Amazon Basics by increasing the temperature by 1.5° in the center. The left increased by 0.4° and the right by 0.2.
The Give Best is starting off at 71.2, 71.2, and 71.1°. After 5 minutes, the give best increased the temperature of the center thermometer by 2.7°. The left and the right thermometers increased by a total of 0.3°.
The Jabui is starting off at 71.2, 71.2, and 71.4°. And the Jabuffy is making by far the most progress yet at 87.6° on a center thermometer in just 5 minutes. Very impressive. The Jabui also increased the temperature by 0.4° to the left and right. Let's see how the Jabui performs in the oscillating mode, starting off at 72, 71.8, 8 and 72. After 5 minutes, the Jabuffi still performed well with a combined temperature increase of 8° across all three thermometers.
The small do is starting off at 72.7, 72.5, and 72.5°. And the Drio is also making a lot of progress in just 5 minutes with the soda thermometer reaching 85.8°. The left and the right thermometers each showed a half degree increase. In oscillating mode, the Drio performed about as well as the Jabui with a combined temperature increase of 7.4°, which is pretty good.
The Lasco is a short tower fan and is starting off at 73.2, 73.9, and 73.4 degrees. After 5 minutes, the Lasco made 8 degrees of progress with the center thermometer, but no progress to the left or right. In oscillating mode, the Lasco is starting off at 73.2° for all three thermometers. After 5 minutes, the Lasco made right at 4° of progress in the middle. It made a little bit of progress at 0.2° to the left and 0.4° on the right.
The Drio Tower fan is starting off at 73.6, 73.9, and 73.6°. 6°. The Drio Tower heater moves a lot of air, and that's making a huge difference at 90.3° in the center. Very impressive. The temperature increase for all three test zones is 18.1° to move into the lead. The Drio Tower fan heats a more vertical space, which puts it at a disadvantage on this test. Even so, the Drio Tower fan still did well with a total temperature increase of 7.7°.
The Real Smart is starting off at 74.8, 74.8, and 74.1°. The Real Smart moves a lot of air and made the most progress yet at 95.5 degrees in the center. Very impressive. And the Real Smart moves into the lead with a total of 20.9 degrees of progress.
With the Black & Decker, all three thermometers are right at 73.4°. The Black & Decker moves quite a bit of air and it performed well with a total temperature increase of 14.7° to move into fourth place behind the Djabi.
I lowered the Dyson so that it can move air towards the thermometers. Just like the Drio Tower fan, it covers a more vertical space, putting it at a disadvantage. But it still performed very well with a combined temperature increase of 15.5°. In the oscillating mode, the Dyson is applying far too much heat to the left and the right of the thermometers, which really held it back for a total of 6.5° of temperature change.
Mr. Heater has a 45° angle. So, I'll place it on the floor so it can direct heat towards the thermometers. Without having a fan, Mr. heater really struggled in this test with a total temperature increase of 4.1° for all three test zones.
For spot heating, the Real Smart came in on top with a total temperature increase of 20.9°. The Drio Tower fan finished in second place at 18.1° and Jabuffy third at 16.9. Five of the heaters have an oscillating feature, and the Jabui came in on top with a total temperature increase of 8°. The Drio Tower fan finished in second place at 7.7° and a small DO third at 7.4.
Let's test the tipover safety of the space heaters next. The QQT powered down immediately and did not melt the plastic. The Amazon Basics also powered down before the face of the space heater made contact with the plastic and the plastic did not melt. The A Coper did power down immediately, but the grill became extremely hot and it did melt the plastic upon contact. Just like the Amazon Basics, the give best power down immediately and it did not melt the plastic bag. Once it tipped over, the Jabuffi took about a second to power itself down and then it sounded an alarm. The fan continued to run to cool down the heating element and it did not melt the plastic bag. The Black & Decker powered itself down as soon as the bottom of the space heater lifted off the table and it did not melt the plastic. The Drio also powered down the heating element in about a second once it was tipped over and it also sounded an alarm. The fan continued to run to cool down the heating element and it did not melt the plastic. The Lasco also needed 1.3 seconds to power down once it was tipped over and the plastic survived without any damage. The Drew Tower fan powered off the heating element in just over 1 second after tip over and an alarm sounded. The fan continued to run to cool down the heating element and fortunately it did not melt the plastic. The Real Smarts heating element continued to run for just over 15 seconds once it was face down. Fortunately, the plastic bag did not melt. The Dyson also performed very well and powered down quickly and did not cause any damage to the plastic bag. The name seems to fit as Mr. Heater is indeed making a lot of heat. While Mr. Heater did power down very quickly, the grill on Mr. heater melted the plastic and would likely cause a lot of damage to carpet, curtains, or plastic.
Assessing tempo for safety of the space heaters is highly subjective, but most of the space heaters receive the best possible rating of one. Many fires are started when space heaters become too close to flammable items like curtains or fabric. I'll cover the CCT with a pillowcase, and we'll see how long it takes before it powers itself down. About 53 seconds into the test, the CCT began making a humming sound. Fortunately, the CCT powered itself down in around a minute and 15 seconds. However, the fabric did reach 356° before shutting down.
The Amazon Basics is also designed to power down when it becomes too hot, and the Amazon Basics powered itself down in close to a minute and 20 seconds. The fabric did become pretty hot at around 297° F.
The A Coper claims that your peace of mind is their priority. I don't have much peace of mind right now as there's literally smoke coming from the A Coper and is not shutting down. Finally, after 2 minutes and 12 seconds, the A Coper finally powered down after reaching a crazy hot temperature of 437 degrees Fahrenheit.
It's been a few minutes, and the pillow cover is cooled down. The Give Best also claims that their space heater powers down when it overheats, and it just powered down at close to 55 seconds. 330° is hot, but it's a whole lot better than the Yakoper.
The Jabui claims to have comprehensive safety protection. The Jabuffy just powered down at just under a minute and 20 seconds. 347° is a little bit hotter than the Give Best.
The Black & Decker also claims to have overheat protection. While the fan is not powering down, the heating element is powering down and 319 degrees is cooler than most of the other brands. I ended the test at 2 minutes and 56 seconds.
The drill claims to offer Shield 360° protection, which includes overheat protection, and the drill powered down the heating element around the 1 minute mark after it reached a peak temperature of 356°. The fan continued to run to cool down the heating element, and the alarm did sound at a minute and 24 seconds.
The Lasco also advertises overheat protection, and it's the quickest space heater in the lineup to power down at only 24 seconds. It powered down at 291°, the best yet.
Propane does indeed make a lot of heat, and it has maxed out the thermal imaging camera at well over 752° F. And it didn't take too long before Mr. Heater created a major problem. Fortunately, Mr. Heater is sitting in a large bucket of water, and that extinguished the flame quickly. Definitely not the safest space heater.
The Drio Tower fan also claims to have overheat protection. And the drill tower fans heating element just powered down at 24 seconds and the alarm has been activated. And 190 degrees is the best yet. And it didn't take long for the overheat protection on the real smart to kick into action at just under 12 seconds. And 212° is good enough to move into second place behind the Drio Tower fan.
The Dyson moves a lot of air, but doesn't concentrate the heat as much as some of the other brands. However, the Dyson is just not shutting down. I even attempted to create a better air seal at the bottom of the Dyson, and it continued to make heat. At 5 minutes and 7 seconds, the Dyson finally powered down. However, the Dyson did not become nearly as hot as some of the other space heaters at 320 degrees.
So, the Drio Tower fan came in on top as the safest space heater at only reaching 190° before the space heaters overheat protection kicked into action. The Real Smart also powered down at 212° and Lasco finished in third at 291.
Electric resistance heating, both ceramic and convection, is very close to 100% energy efficient in the sense that all incoming electricity is converted to heat. On low heat, the QQT is at 787 watts. On high heat, the power draw went up to 1,371 watts very briefly, and then it dropped to 1,191 watts at 30 seconds.
On low heat, around 913 watts for the Amazon Basics. On high heat, the Amazon Basics spiked to almost 2,10 watts, which might trip a breaker. After 30 seconds, it settled down to around 1,434 watts.
The A Coper started out at 743 watts on low and then briefly spiked to 1,762 on high heat. After 30 seconds, around 1,494 watts.
The give best is around 791 watts on low heat and briefly hit 1,823 watts on high heat. After 30 seconds, it's maintaining 1,472 watts.
On low heat, the Jabui is at 690 watts and topped out at 1,85 watts on high heat. After a warm-up period, it held steady at 1461 watts.
The Black & Decker is at 770 watts on low heat and briefly made it to 1783 watts on high heat. Once warmed up, it's at 1,467 watts.
The Drio makes quite a bit of heat on low at 989 watts. It reached a peak of 1,832 watts before dropping to 1,490 watts at 30 seconds.
The Lasco is around 868 watts on low heat and spiked to 1,878 watts on high heat. After warming up, it's at 1,443 watts.
The Drio Tower fan is around 900 watts on low heat. It did a really good job of avoiding a high energy spike at only 1,648 watts. It also makes the most heat yet at 1536 watts.
The Real Smart is at 950 watts on low heat. And then it reached a peak energy load of 1,891 watts on high heat. And 1516 watts moves the Real Smart into second place behind the Drew Tower fan.
The Dyson makes the most heat yet on low heat at 1,265 watts. There's no energy spikes with the Dyson switching over to high heat, and it maintained 1,518 watts, which is pretty good.
If it's all about heat production on the highest heat setting, the Drio Tower fan makes the most heat at 1536 watts. The Dyson finished in second place at 1518 and Real Smart third at 1516 watts.
So, which brand is the best? The left side of the scorecard contains some basic information about each space heater that was not included in calculating the winner of the review. On the right side of the chart, I've converted the raw performance into a first through last place ranking for each space heater. And the Drio Tower space heater came out on top with an average finish of 1.9, which is extremely good. When it comes to space heaters, safety is a big deal, and it performed extremely well with both safety tests. It also performed well in all categories of testing. $90 is sort of expensive, but it would definitely be my choice if it fits within the budget.
The Dyson finished in second place with an average finish of 3.7. My biggest concern is that it took 5 minutes to power down once the Dyson was completely covered with a pillowcase. Another factor is the price. It's pretty expensive at about $440.
If you're looking for a space heater that delivers on safety, has pretty good performance, and a decent price, I really like the Lasco. It seems like a pretty good value for under $50. Compared to space heaters from 15, 20 years ago, safety has really improved.
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