Top Energy-Saving Features to Look Out For
As the scorching summer weather gives way to the cooler, wetter autumn, you might notice your home starting to feel a bit chilly. It’s only natural to start thinking about heating when this happens, but unfortunately, this also means you have to start thinking about your heating bills. Upgrading your heating setup with a modern, eco-friendly electric heater is a good way to reduce your energy bills – but how do you know what makes an efficient heater? Below, we’ll walk you through a few features to look out for when you’re shopping around.
ERP Lot 20 Compliance
This isn’t the most interesting place to start, but it is the most important! While you’re shopping around, you might see heaters marked with a symbol that says they’re ‘ERP Lot 20 compliant’. ERP Lot 20 is part of the wider European EcoDesign Directive, which is part of the EU’s drive to reduce carbon emissions by 20% before 2020. This directive covers all electric appliances, but Lot 20 is specifically about electric heaters.
What all of this means for you is that, if you have an ERP-compliant heater, it’s guaranteed to meet the highest efficiency standards by law. A heater is judged to be compliant if it has a certain number of energy-saving features – if you want to know more about this law and what it means for you, check out our detailed guide to ERP Lot 20.
On our website, you can identify any ERP compliant heater at a glance using the logo to the right. If a heater has this logo, you know it’ll help reduce your heating bills!
Heating Element and Housing
Before you start looking at energy-saving features, it’s a good idea to look at what your heater is made of. Two main parts determine a heater’s performance – the housing and the heating element. The most efficient heaters are the ones made from the most heat-conductive material.
The best material for retaining and storing heat is ceramic. However, as it’s so heavy and fragile, it’s really only suitable for use as a heating element. The other material to look out for is aluminium. Aluminium still conducts heat extremely well but it’s much stronger and lighter than ceramic, making it a natural choice for heater panels and housing. If you want the most efficient heater, an aluminium model with a ceramic heating element is the way to go.
It’s worth bearing in mind that, while aluminium and ceramic heaters will save you money in the long run, they do cost a bit more to buy in the first place. If you don’t want to stretch your budget too much, an all-aluminium heater is a good option to go for!
MYLEK Aluminium Electric Panel Heater Radiator 600w
A superior all-aluminium panel heater, designed to give you an unbeatable heating performance.Price: £130.00
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Accurate Thermostat
Most modern heaters have a thermostat control. These allow you to set your desired room temperature and your heater will keep the room at that level. Once it reaches its target, it’ll turn itself off and on as required to keep you at a consistent temperature. This will save you a lot of money in the long run, as your heater will only use a few minutes’ worth of electricity for every hour of use.
However, be aware that not all thermostats are created equal! They have different levels of accuracy. If your thermostat isn’t accurate, it won’t keep your room at a precise temperature, so you might feel slightly too hot or too cold. It’ll also mean you could waste energy on overheating your room. Your best bet is to look for a heater that’s ERP compliant, as one of the conditions of Lot 20 is that the heater must include a thermostat that’s accurate to within 0.2 degrees.
Timer
Timers give you total control over your heating. There are two types of timers – countdown timers and programmable timers. Countdown timers are the cheaper of the two, allowing you to turn your heater on or off after a fixed amount of time. Programmable timers, on the other hand, give you the freedom to turn your heater on, off, up, or down as many times as you want throughout the day. Some more advanced models give you a full 24/7 timer, so you can have different settings on the weekend without having to do a thing.
The benefits of a good timer are obvious; they allow you to program your heating according to your own schedule, and you never have to worry about forgetting to turn it off.
Remote Control
Remote control heaters are easier control and, as a result, are considered more efficient. The added convenience of a remote control will mean you’re more likely to keep a tighter control over how you use your heater.
Smartphone Control
Everything seems to be smart these days, and heaters are no exception! Smart heaters allow you to control and monitor your heater using a smartphone app. Depending on the heater, this can mean you’re able to control your heater from anywhere in the world (provided you have an internet connection). If you’re away from home and you want to monitor how much energy the kids are using, or if you want to check whether you remembered to turn the heater off after leaving the house, smart heaters will help you dramatically reduce waste energy.
MYLEK App Controlled Smart Electric Panel Heater 1KW
Price: £100.00
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If you’re looking at a smart heater, be aware that the apps aren’t always free. All MYLEK heaters use free apps, but other manufacturers might sneak some hidden costs in there. Be sure to ask about this before you buy!
Open Window Detection
There’s no point using any kind of heater if you’ve forgotten to shut the window. All the warmth will simply escape through the open window and your heater won’t be able to reach its target temperature. This means it’ll work flat-out to try (and fail) to hit its set temperature, so you won’t get any benefit from your thermostat.
To avoid this, pick up a heater with an open window detection mode. When active, this setting checks for the sudden drop in room temperature that only occurs when a window is open. If it senses anything, it shuts the heater off so you don’t have to worry about wasting energy. Once you close the window and the room temperature stabilises, the heater switches itself back on again automatically.
