We all know how fleeting the warm months are in Canada– this Spring seems to be taking a particularly long time to warm up. One way to get the upper hand with Mother Nature is to add patio heaters to your outdoor spaces. This will allow you to start using decks and balconies sooner, and keep using them later into the Fall. One client recently joked that she was purchasing a patio heater just to melt the snow off the grill, so they could use it in spite of the cold Spring weather!
One heating technology that you may be hearing more about is ‘infrared’, and it is available in outdoor heaters. Solaira is a Canadian brand that incorporates Quartz heating into its infrared electric heaters. They can heat areas from 64 square feet up to 230 square feet. This is ‘short wave’ heating that acts like the sun, heating people and objects but not the air around them. This means that the heat warms you even on a windy day. This type of heater is 92% efficient at converting electricity to heat energy, compared to less than 40% radiant efficiency for propane and natural gas heaters. Quartz Infrared heaters warm up instantly, while gas and propane heaters, and other electric heaters, take up to 10 minutes to heat up. As with electric fireplaces, electric heaters cost far less to operate than their gas and propane counterparts; you can operate an electric patio heater for $.11 to $.27 per hour, vs. $1.00 per hour for gas, and $2.00 per hour for propane. Electric heaters produce no fumes or Carbon Monoxide, because no fuel is being burned.
With models designed for all types of installations, Quartz Infrared electric heaters are perfect for many situations. There are models designed for low profile areas, such as porches, condo balconies, or under awnings. Many electric heaters plug into regular 120 volt outlets, and offer 1500 watts of heat output, but there are commercial units that offer up to 12000 watts when wired for 240 volts. Solaira Quartz Infrared electric heaters are rated for outdoor/indoor ‘wet’ environments, and are weather-proof, allowing them to be left outside year-round.
Why not look into Quartz Infrared electric heaters and spend more time outside this year?