Want to buy room heaters? Read what the user’s say

With mercury dipping southwards during this chilly winter, room heaters have become as important as air conditioners in summers. Especially for those who have elderly parents or babies at home, room heaters are not just luxuries rather important accessories. 

There are a lot of things to consider when choosing the best room heater. For one, you need to consider how big of a space you want to heat, since room heaters come with different heating capacities. You will also want to analyze energy efficiency, so the heaters don't do too much damage to your electrical bill. 

And since room heaters are priced at a variety of budgets, you will want to have a keen sense of how much you plan to spend before you pick your favorite option.

Miyako, ORH – 13 F
Price: Tk15,500

I picked the brand Miyako as I purchased different products of this very brand earlier and found satisfactory performance. This ORH – 13 F model cost Tk15,500, and it provides a one-year warranty. 

I have been using it for a month and till now have not faced any issues. It has wheels so it can be easily moved from one room to another. 

Though it covers 500 square feet at a time, I can heat the entire house with it as it is moveable. 

But it should never be used at any place which is less than 200 square feet. There is a fan that disperses the heat to all directions.

It takes around 20 minutes to create a comfortable temperature. It has a timer option, which can be set as per the user's choice, and it can serve for 24 hours at a stretch. 

The temperature setting option has made its usage easier because it turns off automatically.

The agent of this brand has put a suggestion to use it either in direct connection or in a minimum 4000W multiplug. 

A common complaint of using room heaters is that they lower the room's humidity. However, this complaint is not valid for this one. This has an oil radiator so it does not create such an issue. 

But the machine itself becomes heated, which makes it unsafe around children. 

Its electricity consumption is usual and it is affordable. It would have been easier to use if it had a wall mount option. However, I am satisfied with its service and will highly recommend everyone to buy this.

• Imran Chowdhury Tushar, consultant at CommunityAction

Walton, WRH-PTC301W
Price: Tk4,700

As I bought it in a hurry, I could not do any research before buying this. I just found Walton to be a budget-friendly brand and grabbed it at Tk4,700, with a six months' warranty. 

I am disappointed with its service. I was mostly convinced to buy this model as it has a wall mount feature but sadly it could not keep the room warm once we set it. 

Its heat does not even reach my bed which is only five feet away. This room heater is one directional and sometimes it does not even work, though it has a capacity to cover 100 square feet.

It has a remote control to set a temperature and has fan / warm / hot options. It is automatic and takes around 25 minutes to heat the space. It can be used for eight hours at a stretch along with the timer option.

It reduces the room's humidity and makes the air dry, which is a concern for my aged parents. It consumes high electricity too. I have noticed that it added an extra Tk1,000 to my electricity bill each month. 

After facing all these, I switched to Green Air Conditioning as it has both heating and cooling option.

I would not recommend this to anyone. And, if I buy any room heater in future, I will probably look for the brand Rowa or Nova.

• Sumir Sutradhar, CEO & Founder at Hostclation.com

Camel, Camel PTC-2000
Price: Tk5,500

It was a gift from one of my friends. Its current market price is Tk5,500 and comes with a six months' warranty. It is a Chinese product but surprisingly it is providing a pretty good service. I have been using it for more than one year now. 

It is a smart room heater which can cover rooms up to 225 square feet. 

The remote control helps to adjust temperature and set the timer up to eight hours. 

Due to its PTC ceramic resistors, it is totally safe to use at home. It can sync with room temperature and adjust automatically. The hot wind is easily regulated by a fan.

It has two speeds of adjustment: low heat and high heat. 

It does not consume much electricity so it is affordable too. There is a slight humming sound but it does not bother much. 

It has both a wall mount and table type option but I preferred the table type as it has overheating protection.

I am satisfied with its service and would recommend it to others.

• Imran Al Kawsar, Software Developer, Spider Digital Innovation

Vision, Wall mount 01
Price: Tk5,000

I chose Vision as it is quite budget-friendly and also my friend suggested it to me. 

Its market price is Tk5,000 and comes with a one-year warranty. I bought it from Othoba.com and it was priced at Tk4,500 there.

It has a safety PTC ceramic heating element and also has overheating protection. However, as it is wall mounted and has a child lock function, I did not have to think much about safety. 

It has fan/warm/hot wind options. It makes a whirring noise like a regular fan which is tolerable. 

There is an option to set the temperature within 10°C to 50°C. With its remote control, the temperature and the timer can be set. So, its usage is like an air conditioner. Using its 24 hours timer, I can set the time as per my convenience.

In the very first month, it provided really good service but now it is taking a bit longer than usual to heat the room.

Sometimes it flows the air in one direction, but after turning it off and on for several times it works again. As I did not buy it from any shop, I am hesitating to take it to after sales servicing. 

I expected it to give good service but I am not satisfied with it.

• Fahad Alamgir, student, University of Development and Alternative