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Different types of domestic electric heaters

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As the weather gets colder and colder, have you been wondering which types of space heaters are best for your indoor air? Even if that is far from your mind, it’s been on ours and we’d love to share that with you! You’ve trusted Mamavation to bring you indoor air quality topics like best & worst air purifiers, best & worst candles, and best & worst organic mattresses, now join us for the best & worst space heaters in terms of indoor air quality.

Disclosure: this post contains affiliate links. 

knowing the components and reading the space heater manual

Space Heaters Can Warm Your Day But Not All Types Are Welcome

When it gets cold, we are cuddle up with a warm blanket, put on our warmer clothing, perhaps start a fire and turn on the heater. But if you have another room that needs to be heated, what type of space heater is the safest around children, grownups, and pets?

Mamavation is looking at the following variables to ensure you purchase a safe space heater:

  • Promotes safe indoor air quality, i.e. doesn’t emit carcinogens into the air
  • Doesn’t have a hot encasement that would could pose a burning hazard for children
  • Immediately shuts down if it’s knocked over, so cannot start a fire if knocked over by a pet or child

But let’s start off with what we want you to avoid first–propane.

Room heaters, open fire behind metal bars

Space Heaters Can Pose a Deadly Problem If You Buy The Wrong One

Space heaters that use propane as a fuel can pose a deadly problem for your indoor air if they are not vented and if the combustion is not complete. Not only does the EPA warn about that pretty clearly, but you’re still able to purchase one easily online regardless if you understand the dangers or not. This is what is released into the air around combustion products like space heaters:

  • Carbon dioxide (CO2), a non-toxic gas that forms through combustion. (This is what you exhaule)
  • Carbon monoxide (CO), a toxic gas formed if combustion is incomplete. Can cause death or permanent brain and organ damage.
  • Nitrogen dioxide, a toxic gas and upper respiratory irritant causing cough, sore throat, headache, vertigo, and nausea. Also linked with an increase in asthma.
  • Water vapor which can increase moisture problems in the home.

Complete combustion is the most important part here because carbon monoxide poisoning from unvented heaters sometimes happen when there is a lack of air, improper gas pressure, dust, dirt or rust on the burner, incorrect placement of artificial logs, or disruption of burner by air currents.

When other ventilation fans are operating they can reduce indoor air pressure which can trick the machines into back-drafting toxic gases. This back-drafting can happen when kitchen range hoods or bathroom exhaust fans are operating at same time and can lead to levels of carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide exceeding safe levels for California.

The easiest way to avoid this entire mess is to focus on space heaters that are electric instead, which is what Mamavation recommends.

Different types of domestic electric heaters

5 Types of Indoor Space Heaters

We found five types of indoor space heaters available for purchase online. Some are also a combination of the choices below. But we are going to start off with the least safe option and go down to the rest for you to see the differences.

Propane Space Heaters–WARNING NOT SAFE

WARNING: Propane space heaters do not use electricity, so instead they use liquid propane (LP). As we learned with candles, burning of fossil fuels creates indoor air pollution, which is why they can be so dangerous to families. These space heaters also pose a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning if not ventilated properly. These propane space heaters also emit electromagnetic waves into the air (similar to infrared) to heat up objects close by.  Mamavation does not recommend you purchase these types of space heaters.

Pros

  • Propane products can produce the hottest heat available out of all the types of space heaters
  • Doesn’t require electricity
  • Cheapest to operate because propane is cheap
  • Very inexpensive to purchase

Cons

  • Carbon monoxide poisoning warning
  • Can present a very serious indoor air quality problem if not vented properly (so vent!)
  • Present higher risk of explosions and fires
  • Some cannot be operated within a home safely so please check the manuals!
  • Some propane space heaters emit carbon dioxide and must be well ventilated in order to create a safe indoor air experience.
  • Likely emitting low levels of formaldehyde into the air, which is a carcinogen that can cause cancer

Fan Space Heaters–SAFE

Fan space heaters heat up a metal coil and that coil sends heat into the room with a fan. They are typically not as pretty as the other ones and powered by electric.

Pros

  • No dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning
  • Safer for indoor air quality than an unvented space heater
  • Inexpensive in price
  • Very compact in size and lightweight
  • Creates Instant heat
  • Heat can oscillate throughout the room
  • Box around the unit is cool to the touch, so safer around children
  • Easy to move around the room

Cons

  • Heat immediately stops when it’s turned off
  • Less energy-efficient than ceramic or infrared space heaters
  • Takes more electrical energy because it must be run all the time to work
  • Better for smaller areas
  • Typically doesn’t have a precise monitoring
  • Heat transfer can be blocked by physical objects in the room

Electric heater on white background.

Ceramic Space Heaters–SAFE

This type of space heater has ceramic plates that are attached to metal coils. They run on electricity that heats the coils and warm up the ceramic plates. Then the heat is released out of the machine and into your room. Some of them have fans and others do not. If they have fans, they heat up the room quicker.

Pros

  • No dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning
  • Safer for indoor air quality than an unvented space heater
  • Small and compact in size
  • Heat can oscillate throughout the room
  • The outside exterior box isn’t hot to touch
  • May include a digital thermostat
  • Heat continues to radiate after it’s turned off because ceramic plates are still hot

Cons 

  • Louder than infrared pace heaters
  • Works better in smaller places than bigger spaces
  • If they don’t have a fan, they take forever to heat up the room
  • Heat transfer can be blocked by objects in the room

Infrared Space Heaters–SAFE

Infrared space heaters emit safe electromagnetic waves into the air that heat up the physical objects that are present in the room like furniture and people. This technology is the same type of radiation that comes from the Sun to heat up the Earth without the UV rays. These units do not need a fan to operate, however, some do have fans.

Pros

  • No dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning
  • Heat is not blocked by objects, but rather heats up objects in the room
  • Heat last even after the infrared heater is turned off
  • They are typically designed nicely and look like wood cabinets and furniture
  • It’s not hot to the touch so safer around children
  • Sometimes they include a digital thermostat
  • Easy to move across the room if it’s on wheels
  • More sustainable because it’s uses less energy than most other units.

Cons

  • Pricier than other space heating units
  • Can be heavy, so not easy to pick up (but typically on wheels)
  • Heat is one-directional, so it’s not radiating from both side of machine
  • If you have nothing in the room, the room won’t get as warm.
  • More expensive than ceramic and fan heaters

the portable heater and working on the machine

Oil-Filled Space Heaters–SAFE

Oil-filled space heaters are filled with diathermic oil that is heated up and circulates through the columns and when it gets hot, it’s released into the air.  These heaters do not come with a fan.

Pros

  • No dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning
  • Longlasting and continues to stay hot after turned off
  • Easy to move around because it’s likely on wheels

Cons

  • Has been known to ruin furniture from water/oil deposits from machine
  • Can only really heat a room about 150 square feet or smaller
  • The unit gets really hot and can pose a potential burn for children
  • Heavier than most heaters

Panel Space Heaters–SAFE

Panel space heaters are becoming popular because they can be mounted on the wall or sit on the floor with a stand. They work similarly to oil-filled heaters by letting hot air radiate off the device to heat the room, however, they do NOT use oil. Instead, they use electrical currents to produce heated air.

Pros

  • No dangers of carbon monixide poisoning
  • Stylish and modern in design
  • Can be mounted on the wall
  • Easy to use
  • Safest in terms of fire

Cons

  • Doesn’t work as well as other types of space heaters
  • Only heats up small rooms, so will need other sources of heat
  • Not mobile and cannot move from room to room

Fridges, heaters and and vacuum cleaners in the premium home appliance store

Space Heater Safety Features to Look For

There are some tricks to looking for the perfect space heater in terms of safety.

  • Make sure it’s tested for safety — Look for some certifications like UL (Underwriters Laboratory), CSA (Canadian Standards Association) or ETL (Intertek), which is the most popular you’ll find.
  • Find one with a shut off valve around kids — To prevent burns, pay close attention to how hot the exterior is to the touch. Some units have a shut off valve if the machine gets too hot or is knocked over. We highly recommend that function.
  • Propane gas heaters need to have a Low Oxygen Shut Off (ODS) — We’ve warned you to death about space heaters and the potential to leak dangerous chemicals into the air, but if you want to ensure that doesn’t happen, look for a unit with a Low Oxygen Shutoff (ODS). The ODS function means it will monitor the oxygen levels and shut them down when they reach a certain threshold. This reduces the possibility of carbon monoxide poisoning but does not prevent it completely.

Best & Worst Space Heaters for Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality is Important Considering You Spend Over 90% of Your Time Indoors Breathing

Your indoor air is actually more important than the air quality outside because, well, you are breathing it constantly. The air inside your home is concentrated in such a way that it’s estimated to be anywhere from 2-5x more polluted than the air outside according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) while other organizations have estimated that number to be almost 100x more polluted. Why? That’s because contaminants get trapped inside our homes, especially when they are super energy efficient. Outside, the wind and sun beat down the contaminants and break them down, but inside they have nowhere to go.

This is why it’s important to make a concerted effort to clean up your indoor air and keep it clean. Here are some tips on how you can do that.

  1. Open windows every day to allow contaminants outside (yes, even when it’s cold.)
  2. Bring in more houseplants. NASA has given us lots of information on what plants have the ability to filter out contaminants in the air.
  3. Dust every week and focus especially on the removal of dust bunnies anywhere. In the new study published by the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology, scientists researched the exposure to 7 different flame retardants and discovered a clear reduction of exposure to these chemicals achieved through routine increased cleaning inside the home.
  4. Get a professional air purifier. The strongest air purifier on the market is the Intellipure Ultrafine 468. Click here to receive 10% off a machine for your home and use “Mamavation10” at checkout. For our entire investigation on purifiers go here.

Industrial fan heater isolated on white

Mamavation’s Investigation on Space Heaters

Mamavation sifted through over 150+ space heaters available online. From the perspective of safety for children, followed by ease of use, and having additional safety features, we found that these brands were superior in general.

  • De’Longhi (although no certifications)
  • Dr. Infrared
  • Heat Storm
  • Honeywell (although no certifications)
  • Lasko
  • Life Smart (although people complain of smells when taken out of the box)
  • Pelonis

Not Our Favorite Space Heaters

These space heaters are powered by propane. These is not all the propane space heaters out there, but represent lots of the options.

  • Bluegrass Living Bluegrass B30TPB-BB Vent Free Blue Flame Gas Space Heater with Blower and Base Feet-30,000, T-Stat Control, 30000 BTU, Black
  • HeatFast HF160G Portable Home, Jobsite, Construction Site Forced Air Liquid Propane Salamander Torpedo Space Heater with Variable Temperature Control, 155,000 BTU, orange
  • Mr. Heater 18000 BTU Vent Free Radiant 20# Propane Indoor Outdoor Space Heater
  • Mr. Heater Corporation F299720 Vent-Free 20,000 BTU Blue Flame Propane Heater, Multi
  • Mr. Heater Corporation F299730 Heater, One Size, White and Black
  • Mr. Heater Corporation Vent-Free 10,000 BTU Radiant Propane Heater, Multi
  • Mr. Heater F215100 MH4B Little Buddy 3800-BTU Indoor Safe Propane Heater, Medium
  • ProCom Liquid Propane Ventless Ice House Heater – 10,000 BTU, T-Stat, Model# ML100TBAHR

Quartz halogen heater with glowing bars

Better Space Heaters

These space heaters run on electricity and pose no threat of harming your indoor air quality, however, we didn’t find those extra safety features we were looking for.

Electrical heater standing at new white wall

Best Space Heaters

These space heaters run on electric, don’t muck up your indoor air quality, have certifications, and have additional safety features for fire prevention. They also had good ratings on Amazon and we couldn’t find any obvious things wrong with them.

 

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About the Author

Safest Non-Toxic Disinfectant Cleaners Recommended by Both EPA & Mamavation 1

Leah Segedie is a consumer watchdog, author, entrepreneur, environmental activist, and mother of three boys. 

She wrote Green Enough: Eat Better, Live Cleaner, & Be Happier (All Without Driving Your Family Crazy!) in 2018. She’s consistently been featured in the media for the past 15 years in media outlets like ABC, CBS, CNN, Yahoo, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Reader’s Digest, Ladies Home Journal, Shape Magazine, Fitness Magazine to name a few.  

Follow Mamavation on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter or join the Mamavation Community Group. 

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Comments

  1. robert stephens

    I appreciate your website, Leah.

    Right now I’m standing in front of a propane infrared heater. It’s been on all day in my kitchen. My CO detector (that cost over $200) reads 0ppm. ZERO.

    Why all the hysteria over gas? Everyone is eating processed foods and injecting their kids with shots that have heavy metals, mRNA, and God only knows what else… and we’re losing sleep over gas heaters?!

    Where do you think electricity comes from? In this country, most of it comes from burning coal, which releases all kinds of metals and toxins in the air.

    Reply

  2. April

    Thank you for the helpful information about different types of heaters; your blog has saved me a lot of time. I like how you put the pros and cons of each heater, especially the recommendation to avoid propane heaters, that can be dangerous. I also appreciate how you put links on the page to find certain heater brands.

    Reply

  3. Kathleen Potthoff

    Hi there, I recently found out that the Honeywell uberheat (on your list of “better”) has PTFE coated elements. We’ve been using this heater for several years in our bedroom, unfortunately, and since our son was a baby. I appreciate all your work regarding fluorinated chemicals in household products, but just a consideration to review some of the brands on the list here. Allegedly Vornado does not use Teflon/PTFE in their products. I don’t know about other Honeywell products, but I would assume it’s there if it’s in this one.

    Reply

    • Anonymous

      Same with the lasko heater/fan. The off gassing on the one I bought today gave me a migraine and no amount of airing out the house could get rid of the overwhelming smell. My poor baby was exposed to it too. I did a search on the Amazon reviews and there are multiple complaints. It is on the best list of this article too.

      Reply

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