Sunday 17 November 2013

Fire Up a Propane Heater for Instant Heat

When choosing a portable heater to provide instant heat at the touch of a button, a propane heater is really the best choice for getting warm fast in most situations.  In fact, whatever your situation when the temperature is getting really low, a propane heater is the best remedy for feeling chilled of the, all!

So what situations would you find yourself in where you'd need immediate warmth to be provided and why does this kind of handy little unit beat out the alternatives?

When You Need To Get Warm Fast


There are lots of situations that you can find yourself in where you'd need to feel some welcome warmth as fast as possible, so let's explore some of these here.

  • In remote mountain cabins, you may arrive on a freezing cold day and need to get the place warmed up as soon as possible.
  • When camping, there's nothing as uninviting and miserable as a cold, damp tent to return to when you've been out hiking in the pouring rain on a cold day!
  • In a garage or workshop when you need to do some work but don't want to do it in the freezing cold.
  • When the power goes out and you come home to a cold, dark house in the middle of winter.

Let's expand on these points some:

Remote Cabins


A cold cabin is a far cry from the cozy place you have in mind when you are looking forward to spending some time up there. In the time it takes you to build a nice log fire in the fireplace, you can have the whole cabin feeling warm if you have a portable propane fueled heater to get the mercury rising in the thermometer inside.

Otherwise you'll be feeling pretty cold and miserable waiting for the log fire to get going and I'm sure you'll know how long that can take! A small portable propane heating unit can provide you with that all-important instant heat source to make you feel comfortable right from the get go.

Tents and Camping


A cold damp tent is a "yuk" place to come back to when it's been raining and it's cold. You can easily transform that damp, cold space into a warm and dry haven with one of these amazing and compact economical heating units.

The same can be said of camping trailers that can still get pretty cold inside without any kind of heating. Don't be caught in the cold and wet by ensuring you have a small portable heater powered by a light, portable propane canister (and maybe a spare or two) stashed in the trailer's storage area.

Garage or Workshop


It can be a tough time trying to do some work on your car in a freezing cold garage or do some repair work or enjoy a hobby in your unheated workshop in winter. But it's an easy thing to remedy that particular situation fast by having one of these useful yet powerful little heaters at the ready.

As soon as you walk into your garage or workshop, just fire up the unit and enjoy instant heat being pumped out fast so you can get on with whatever job you need to do. A propane garage heater is definitely the way to go when you need warm hands to start turning spanners or sockets in an engine bay!

Power Outs


When the power grid goes down in the dead of winter, a lengthy power out can be devastating as the inside temperature plummets as your electricity supply no longer runs your heating system. Don't forget even natural gas heating systems rely on electricity to control the flow and run the boiler!

In these situations, you can maintain a comfortable temperature in a individual room with a portable heater powered by a propane canister. You can keep a stock of these in your garage or backyard storage space for just such emergencies.

For elderly people, this solution can not only be a means of maintaining comfort, it can save lives during the occasional extended power outs that happen from time to time. And with the frequency of these power outs happening more often these days, it pays to be prepared!

Providing Immediate Warmth


One area that propane fired portable heating units really come into their own is in providing instant heat the second they are switched on and fired up. This is a really important benefit that most other types of heater are unable to provide.

The closest you'll get is a portable kerosene or paraffin heater, but they have the disadvantage of being smelly and they still take a short while before the heat starts to radiate out of them in any usable amount. For truly instant heat that is pumped out the second the unit is switched on, portable propane heaters really have no viable rival.

While there are many different ways of keeping warm when the weather turns cold, the most effective means of providing instant heat in a portable unit is a heater powered by propane. Its low cost, wide availability and portability makes this one of the best solutions you're going to find anywhere!

Saturday 26 October 2013

What Makes Propane Heaters the Best Portable Heating Choice

If you're a little skeptical over what makes propane heaters the best portable heating solution, here's some interesting reading on this choice of appliances for keeping warm on cold days.

There are several factors that propel portable heaters that use propane as their fuel supply to the top of the pile when it comes to the best way to keep warm on those cold, winter days. These points will be true whether you are in need of a viable solution for indoors in your own home, outdoors on the patio, heating the garage or workshop or camping either in an RV or a tent!

Why Propane Makes the Best Heat!


Maybe I'm a little biased sine I personally use propane heaters both at home and in the workshop or garage, but nevertheless it's tough to outdo the sheer versatility and application of these small yet powerful units for providing necessary heat in places that need it. Here are some salient points for you to digest:

  • Instant Heat: Propane heaters provide you with instant heat from the moment you fire them up and keep delivering it until the gas cylinder runs empty, which can take a pretty long time depending on the size of heating unit you're using and the size of gas cylinder is attached to it.
  • Long Cheap Burn: A small portable unit attached to a similarly small gas cylinder (for example a compact one pound bottle) can provide useful heat for up to 10 hours at a crazy low cost. Attach a heater to a full size propane cylinder and you're enjoying heat for several days. Try getting that length of heating time from an alternative heater for the same cost.
  • Efficient: It's surprising just how efficiently modern propane heaters are able to burn the gas to produce the maximum heat with the minimum of wasted unburned fuel (as was a problem for older units). That also means negligible dangerous carbon monoxide produced on unvented units which is a great safety bonus.
  • Safe: As just mentioned, modern propane units are very safe to use as long as you don't get silly and try draping some flammable material over them!
  • Cost: Did I already mention the low cost of this fuel when compared to other portable fueled units? Propane heaters are economical because they work out a lot cheaper than electric heaters (which of course are not exactly portable in the true sense of the word, are they?) and also cheaper than kerosene now that petrochemical prices are rising so sharply.
  • Availability: Being readily available in hardware stores in every town, you are always going to be able to get a supply for your unit and because it stores well, you can keep a reserve in your garage for any emergency.

Perfect for Off Grid Homes


There are a growing number of families that are moving off grid to live more environmentally friendly lives without being slaves to the power companies. By generating their own electricity using solar voltaic panels, wind power or other innovative solutions such as hydro where possible, families are saying goodbye to power bills forever!

One side of the equation that still needs balancing up is that of heating during winter. Electricity is still a highly inefficient way to produce heat especially when every watt produced by an off grid's system is needed to run the rest of the household's energy needs, so other alternatives need to be explored.

Depending on where you are settled, you may have access to good supplies of wood, which means you have no problems creating heat using a wood burning stove or furnace. But for those extra degrees of heat to bring a house up to comfort levels a portable propane heater can step up and fill the void perfectly at low cost.

Off-grid'ers still need to use a workshop if they do a lot of home repairs or have a cottage craft industry business to run out of their homes. Heating the additional building is often not possible using the main house's furnace. One of these amazingly useful off grid portable heaters that run off propane is a great choice of heat production on those colder winter days.

For Campers


Don't forget the amazing versatility of a portable propane heater for camping whether you like to get back to nature and do it in a tent or go up the comfort scale some and have an RV or trailer. You simply carry your fuel and its transportable heat machine with you and enjoy warm nights snug in your sleeping bag without worrying about waking up in the morning with icicles hanging off your nose!

Getting off the beaten track and spending a vacation in the wild is great fun but getting cold and damp is not. Avoid that particular unpleasantness by ensuring you stay warm and dry with your own convenient heat source powered by propane from a handy canister that's easy and relatively lightweight to carry with you.

Are you still unsure about the convenience, usability and value of these little yet powerful heating units? I hope this article has at least laid the foundations for getting your to see the value in propane as one of the best fuels for heating there is coupled with modern, highly efficient heating units that make the best use of that fuel that is currently possible with existing technology and hardware.

Thursday 17 October 2013

What Size Propane Heater Do I Need?

Do you know how big a propane heater needs to be to heat a certain size room, garage or workshop space? The answer is fairly simple and is explained here.

The first thing you need to know about is the rating of a heater, which will be stamped in the information label somewhere. The rating is depicted as a number followed by the letters BTU, which stand for British Thermal Unit.

Now you might jump to the conclusion that this is an American heater, so what have British measurements got to do with anything? Well, this is an old measure that has been adopted pretty much all around the world, so might as well keep it since its pretty universal.

How is BTU Defined?


One BTU is the amount of heat needed to heat one pound of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit. OK, you cam breathe a sigh of relief, cause at least there's no metric stuff in there to confuse things! We all know what a pound of water is and what degrees Fahrenheit are, right?

There is a simple way to work out the amount of BTUs you'll need to heat a space, measured in cubic feet. You first need to measure the room you need to heat and write down the floor's width, length and the height of the ceiling.

Working Out How Many BTUs You Need


Once you know the dimensions of the room you want to heat, you need to do a little simple arithmetic. Multiply these three number together (W x L x H) and that will give you its volume in cubic feet.

By way of an example, if your room is 10ft wide by 20ft long and 8ft high, then the calculation will look like this:

10 x 20 x 8 = 1,600 cubic feet

Then multiply the result by between 2 and 4 depending on how well the room is insulated. If you're not sure, err on the low side and multiply by 4. This will give you a figure of:

6,400 BTU per hour

All you then need to do is check the BTU rating on a few propane heaters that you have in mind and choose the one that comes closest. That's about all you need to do to get a heater that will definitely be capable of heating up your space efficiently and with minimal cost, since propane is still a relatively cheap fuel compared to other forms of energy.

Simple? Sure it is!

Wednesday 16 October 2013

Mr Heater Propane Forced Air Heaters Review

For heating rooms fast, you can't beat a forced air propane heater for doing the job best. This article reviews four top models by Mr Heater so you can choose which is best for efficiently and effectively heating your space.

The models reviewed here come in four power output sizes, which are:

  • 35,000 Btu (Model no. MH35FAV)
  • 60,000 Btu (Model no. MH60FAV)
  • 85,000 Btu (Model no. MH85FAV)
  • 125,000 Btu (Model no. MH1255FAV)

Mr Heater MH35FAV


The MH125FAV is the least powerful of the Mr. Heater line of propane forced-air heaters. It's perfect for smaller jobs such as personal garages, workshops and the like.

The heater gives you 35,000 Btu, which is adequate for heating up to 800 square feet and runs for up to approximately 12 hours on a full 20 pound gas cylinder. The unit measures 20.6 by 12.8 by 9.8 inches

Mr Heater MH60FAV


This unit has a power output of 60,000 Btu which is sufficient to comfortably heat a space of up to 1,200 square feet and runs for approximately 11 hours on a full 20 pound gas cylinder. The unit measures 20.6 by 12.8 by 9.8 inches


Mr Heater MH85FAV


This unit has a power output of 85,000 Btu which is sufficient to effectively heat a space of up to 2,000 square feet and runs for approximately 8 hours on a full 20 pound gas cylinder. The unit measures 21 by 16 by 11.5 inches


Mr Heater MH125FAV


This unit has a power output of 60,000 Btu which is sufficient to effectively heat a space of up to 3,000 square feet. This unit requires a larger 40 pound  propane gas cylinder propane and will run for approximately 11 hours on a full canister. The unit measures 23 by 16 by 13 inches

Features Common to All Four Models


Even though each of the larger models will give you more BTUs than the lower rated model in the range, each of these heaters shares the same basic features. These include:

  • Automatic shutoff with loss of flame or power supply
  • High-output fan that circulates heat quickly
  • Ten foot hose and regulator are included
  • CSA certified and comes with a one-year limited warranty
  • Requires 20-pound propane cylinder which can be bought separately

Hooking any of the heaters up to the propane cylinder is easy and once connected via the regulator, firing them up is child's play. Simply hold down the pilot button to ignite the gas and hold down until the flame heats up a little to keep it going. That's all you need to do and in no time the heat will be pouring out of the compact unit!

These heaters are very reliable and surprisingly powerful for their small size. Best of all they don't rely on the power supply being on. They run off the standard twenty pound propane cylinder (apart from the largest unit which requires a forty pound cylinder). These cylinders can be bought at any local hardware store and stored safely in a garage or outhouse for whenever you need them.


How Much Power Do I Need?


Heaters are rated in BTU, (British Thermal Unit) which is the amount of heat needed to heat one pound of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit. To calculate how many BTU you need for heating a given space:

First calculate the volume of the space to be heated:

Multiply square footage by height

Example:


A 10ft x 10ft floor space = 100 square feet x 8ft height = 800 cubic feet.

Second, multiply that number by 4 if your insulation is poor, 3 if it's average or 2 if it's good. The result gives you a ballpark figure for how many BTU you need.

Where Can I Buy a Mr Heater Forced Air Propane Heater?


You can get your hands on these great portable heaters online at stores such as Amazon for a surprisingly affordable price.

To save you time and effort, I have a direct link to the Amazon page featuring the smallest unit. There you can find out more about it and check through the customer reviews to see just how popular it is and how many people really like it!

Want to go see it? Click the image/link above.

If you need a larger model, there are links to each model on the page at the Amazon site.

Saturday 14 September 2013

Propane for Economical Heating

One of the things I love about using propane as a heating fuel is the great economy I get from small, efficient portable propane heaters and still be warm indoors. Using low settings, only heating rooms that are occupied and making sure my home is properly insulated are the three main cost savings in terms of fuel consumption.

So how can you get the most from your propane heater while using the least amount of fuel and therefore spending the least amount of money on replenishing used fuel? This article takes a look at some of the ways in which I keep my costs down to the bare minimum.

Using Less Fuel


If anyone had said to me that I should economize on my home's heating fuel consumption when I was working a high paying job many years ago, I would have thought they were nuts. Why would I do that when fuel was cheap and I could afford to be a little extravagant?

Now I understand, with the benefit of a very different perspective. I no longer have a great wage and fuel is much more expensive than it once was. So I need to keep my fuel consumption within my current, much smaller budget.

The simple, no brainer approach is simply to use less fuel. Easy, you might say, but wait a minute; how easy is it actually?

Making the Fuel Count


Sure, you can use much less propane by keeping the heaters turned down to their lowest setting, but that might not produce enough heat to keep me and my family warm. In fact, it certainly won't!

Or at least it didn't used to. That was before I got economy savvy and learned a thing or two about energy conservation.

I learned that a properly insulated house uses much less fuel to stay warm because less of the energy is wasted by leeching out through the attic, window and any other gaps. So my first step was to insulate the attic, get my windows all fixed so there were no gaps anywhere and same went for door frames and any other openings to the outside world.

I also bought some heavy drapes to completely cover the windows because these can keep a lot of heat in a room that would otherwise radiate out through the window glass. I had all hot water pipes in the attic insulated as well, so I wasn't wasting that resource to the atmosphere.

Then I turned my attention to the heat source

Choosing Propane as the Most Economical Fuel


As I live in a big town with little usable forest space close by, using a wood burning furnace was not feasible because of the higher cost of that fuel medium. Electricity was also too expensive, so I looked at propane and discovered it was hands down the cheapest fuel. Still is, in fact.

So I got three small portable propane heaters from the local store for a good price and a supply of gas cans for use as additional space heaters, while I also got a full size propane heater for our main living room that was hooked up to an outside tank. One of the portable units went into the bathroom to be used when anyone wanted a shower.

I found the main heater provided enough heat to keep the house warm enough on all but the coldest nights, when one or more of the portable propane heater units were brought out to supplement the heat. I drummed it into the kids to make sure that doors to unused rooms were kept closed and that we should try and all be together in the one place in the evenings, like our communal living room.

Happy Family Bonuses


As a by-product of this, we actually have a better family relationship than many of our neighbors who seem to spread out through their homes and almost never talk to each other! Now we talk more, eat together and are closer because of it.

Using heating fuel wisely and making sure it is not wasted was an important consideration for me because I simply do not have the spare cash to waste. In fact, even if I did, I wouldn't waste it on heat escaping to the outside. Much better to spend it on a nice vacation, right?

More information on home fuel economy can be found here: http://energy.gov/energysaver/articles/overview-home-heating-systems

Wednesday 11 September 2013

How to Stay Warm When the Power Grid Goes Down

Millions of people rely on the power grid for many of their everyday needs, but when it goes down, life can get pretty brutal, especially in the cold days of winter. Do you have a backup plan for you and your family to keep warm and have lighting and other basic needs in these dire situations?

This article takes a look at what we can do to prepare ourselves for the next time the power goes out. It makes interesting reading, because the fact of the matter is that the power is going to go out again at some point in the ear future and it will keep doing it again and again.

Why We Need Electricity


We rely heavily on the electricity grid for so many of the things we need for normal living, such as:

  • Lighting
  • Heating
  • Hot water
  • Cooking (electric cooker and oven, extractor fan)
  • Cooling (air conditioning and fans)
  • Storing food (refrigerator and freezer)
  • Washing machine and clothes dryer
  • Vacuum cleaner

and a hundred and one other things that make our lives easier and more convenient. When it's suddenly not there, very few people are prepared and have the resources to maintain the necessities.

Just think of all the things you will suddenly be without when the power stops flowing into your home! Aside from the real necessities, what about all the peripheral things we have become accustomed to enjoying and we really do take for granted, such as:

  • Television, DVD player etc
  • Music system
  • Internet and WiFi
  • Clocks
  • Telephone
  • Recharging things like cell phones, laptops, tablets etc
  • Kitchen appliances (food processors, blenders, juicers)
  • Electric kettle and coffee maker


As you can see, it’s a pretty impressive list of things you have to do without when there is no electricity!

Heating in Winter


One major problem that families face in winter is how to keep warm. This is a critical consideration for the elderly and very young who may even die from hypothermia in very cold weather for prolonged periods without any form of heating.

One very cost effective backup heating solution is to have one or more small, portable propane heaters to hand for just such an emergency. These heaters can provide essential heat for people when they need it most.

It is relatively easy to store them in a garage or other suitable storage place along with a supply of gas cans to keep them running for several hours as necessary.

Disaster Planning


It is one thing having to suffer for a few hours with no power when the grid goes out. It is another thing altogether when a disaster situation strikes, such as has been experienced in some areas when a major hurricane hits.

In these situations, the power can be out for several days while emergency services work around the clock to try and restore power to homes, offices, stores and public buildings. It is during these times that preparedness with a portable propane heater or several at the ready with sufficient fuel for several days becomes a sensible precaution.

We can't always plan for every bad situation that can crop up. Nor can we know for sure how long it will last. But we can be prepared in some way at least to provide necessary heat and the facility for cooking food and heating water as well as light when the sun goes down.

Be prepared and don't get caught out!

Note: Here us a useful resource with information on disaster preparedness

Saturday 31 August 2013

A Propane Garage Heater You Can Rely On

It can get cold in the garage in winter so having a reliable yet portable heat source is important. This is where a propane heater comes into its own!

Sure there are plenty of alternatives to this type of heating solution, but there are downsides to those alternatives that bring these devices into the spotlight for their many benefits. Let's take a look at why your garage is the perfect place to put this experiment to the test!

When You're Cold You Need Heat!


When you need instant heat right where you need it, you can't beat a propane fueled heater for providing it fast, efficiently and effectively. You can get worm in no time at all when you have one of these great heating units and the best thing of all is they don't cost very much to buy or to run.

In a time when electricity costs are spiraling upward along with the cost of oil and kerosene as portable heater fuels, it pays dividends to opt for a solution that provides instant heat at a cost you can afford. Propane is that fuel and for a space like the garage, it really is one of the best choices.

Economy and Sensibility


The garage is a part of the home that is generally not hooked up to the main heating system, so it can get very cold during the winter months. Naturally, you wouldn't want to spend money on energy costs heating that particular space that rarely gets used. It would be throwing money away!

So the more sensible thing is to leave the garage in the cold and have a portable heating unit in place for those times you are going to spend any time in there. Being portable, these small heater units can be moved around as needed, which is great if you are moving stuff around in there where a static heater would get in the way.

But from an economical standpoint, it make the most sense, That's because you only use the amount of fuel needed to keep you warm enough to do whatever it is you want to do in the garage. And when you are done, you just turn it off and go back in the house!

What is the Best Propane Garage Heater to Buy?


Most of the portable units that are used in the home are also perfect for using in the garage. We already recommend one unit for indoors that will do a great job in the garage too, which you can read about in our Mr Heater MH9BX Little Buddy Portable Radiant Heater Review (click that link to read it).

It provides fast warmth for low fuel consumption with excellent safety features to give you peace of mind as well as save you money. What more can you ask for when you need fast and comforting warmth when the weather gets cold?

Saturday 17 August 2013

How You Can Benefit from Attic Insulation

When using a portable propane heater indoors, it makes sense to maximize the heat that is produced. Attic insulation helps prevent heat loss and is a great way to keep the heat where it's needed most.

It doesn't really matter what the weather is doing outside, if your home is snug and tight and protecting you from whatever Mother Nature is throwing at it, then you can relax and enjoy an ambient temperature along with calm conditions inside.

Insulating Your Home


One of the ways that equilibrium can be found indoors is by keeping the worst of the outside temperature changes at bay by having your home properly insulated. There are a great many attic insulation benefit to be had by installing the right kind of insulating material in this area.

In winter, a large percentage of your heat will dissipate through your roof if the attic is not insulated, so this is really the first place to start. An insulated attic will help keep the heat in where it is needed and the cold out.

Conversely, in summer, heat from outside sneaks in by convection through your roof so again, an insulated attic comes to the rescue to keep the heat out. The cost aspect is offset by lower power bills throughout the year as you spend less on heating in winter and less on air conditioning in summer.

Getting the Most from a Portable Heater


Of course, many people use portable propane heaters to boost the temperature in rooms that are occupied while turning the home's thermostat down in order to save money on heating fuel. It makes sense not to waste money heating rooms that are unoccupied after all!

But even with this strategy, the amount of heat that is lost through an attic that is not insulated can be quite alarming. Installing high rated insulation in this area alone can have a profound effect on reducing heat loss and therefore reduce energy consumption to maintain a certain comfortable temperature in the home.

The benefits speak for themselves in lower energy bills and a warmer, more snug and welcoming home during the cold winter months. It also means you can turn down the output on space heaters and portable propane heaters and save even more money of fuel!

These are benefits that are well worth having. In fact, for the initial investment of having your home's attic fully insulated, you reap the rewards over time in lower bills and money saved.

Tuesday 23 July 2013

A Portable Propane Heater for Camping Enthusiasts

For those folks who love camping, a portable propane heater can be a life saver when the weather turns bad, providing fast heat to dry out wet clothes, warm you up and make you more comfortable. But which one do you choose and what are the most important factors that come into play when making that decision?

This article takes a look at some of the more important points that would govern your decision on the right camping propane heater for your needs. It also provides some recommendations on popular models to give you a better idea what there is available for you.

Benefits of Portable Propane Heaters for Campers


Getting back to nature and camping out in a tent can be a great experience as long as you take the bare essentials along to make it as comfortable as possible without bringing everything including the kitchen sink. It beats going in an RV which is just a home away from home but on wheels!

But when things turn cold and worse, wet as well, you might thank providence for deciding to bring a portable heater with you for comfort. There are several benefits to choosing this type of heat source for when you decide to get out in the wilds away from the conveniences of modern life, so let's take a look here:

  • Inexpensive: They don't cost much to buy and propane refills are relatively cheap too
  • Lightweight: Modern portable gas heaters are compact and don't weigh much
  • Convenient: Simple to use when you're away from civilization's conveniences
  • Availability of fuel: You can get gas refills in hardware stores everywhere
  • Off Grid: No electricity outlets in the boonies. But with propane, you carry your fuel with you

So you see there are plenty of great reasons to chose a small, lightweight gas heater to take camping with you. They don't costs much to buy or to run and they provide much needed heat when you need it, fast!

Are Camping Gas Heaters Safe?


Modern propane fuelled portable heaters are far safer than they used to be, with the latest safety features built into their design. Units are sealed against leaks and while general safety precautions should be adhered to inside a tent, these devices can still get hot to the touch and cause skin burns if you come into prolonged contact with them.

Some of the better units can also resist being accidentally knocked over without setting light to the contents of your tent with a tip-over safety shut off, although you may not want to test that feature out.

What About Fuel Economy?


Being concerned about how effectively a heater uses its fuel is important because when you are off grid. That's because you may be many miles from the nearest hardware store and a refill.

So you need to make the fuel last as long as possible while still providing the heat you need from a compact unit. Modern units burn at high efficiency meaning more of the fuel is converted into heat. That simply means the fuel you have will last longer.

As an example, the compact Little Buddy portable model (Mr Heater Corp) can run for 5 1/2 hours at 3800 btu/hour on a standard 16 oz. disposable cylinder. You might want to read more about this particular model - we feature it in a separate article.

Thursday 18 July 2013

Ventless Propane Heaters Safety First

For heating small to medium spaces in the home quickly, portable ventless propane heaters are tough to beat. We look at the safety issues you should be aware of before using one of these heating units in your home.

It can be very tempting when you come home to a cold house in the evening to fire up a propane heater in the room you will be spending most of the evening in to get it warm. That's fine as long as you observe some of the safety essentials that go along with using one of these heaters indoors.

Understanding the Dangers


The common mistake people make is to close the door and make sure the windows are tightly closed, essentially sealing off the room from drafts and any way of cold outside air getting in. That may be fine if you're heating the room with an electric heater, or a fitted wood burning or gas heater that is vented to the outside.

However, in many cases people are using portable indoor propane heaters that are vent free, meaning they do not vent any unburned or exhaust gas to the outside. And that means the gas stays in the room and builds up in the atmosphere over time.

In new models and those that have been serviced regularly, this is often not so much of a problem as the level of carbon monoxide gas emissions, which is the main danger to be aware of, are generally fairly low. But in older units and those that have not been serviced recently, more of the fuel is not completely and efficiently burned and greater levels of carbon monoxide are given off.

What's So Bad About Carbon Monoxide?


When this gas (CO) is inhaled an any great quantity, such as by standing at the roadside where there is busy automobile traffic, smoking tobacco or being in a sealed room with an old, inefficient gas heater that is not vented to the outside, the body is adversely affected. The inhalation of this gas causes the molecules to saturate the bloodstream, depriving the brain and internal organs of oxygen.

That's because the CO molecules are smaller than those of oxygen and are more easily absorbed by the blood. They attach themselves to the red blood cells and prevent oxygen molecules from doing so, creating oxygen starvation.

When your body becomes deprived of oxygen and saturated with carbon monoxide, you can lose consciousness and if the situation is not rectified over the next few hours, you can die. So you see this is extremely serious!

How Can You Tell If Your Propane Heater is Giving Off Carbon Monoxide?


The best way to test for high levels of carbon monoxide is to buy a CO alarm. These are similar to smoke alarms and are available in most hardware stores and supermarkets. They are quite inexpensive and can literally save your life!

If you don't have an alarm but are using a non-vented propane heater in your home, you can reduce the risk by not closing the door or leaving a window open slightly to let a little fresh air circulate around the room.

Early warning symptoms of carbon monoxide inhalation are drowsiness and a headache. If you experience these symptoms while occupying a room with an unvented propane heater, get up and open the door, go outside and breathe in some fresh air. Stop using the heater until you can get it serviced by a professional, or replace is with a new model.

In all cases, remember that portable heaters should be treated with due respect and safety should be uppermost in your mind. Be aware, be ready and be safe!

Monday 8 July 2013

Portable Indoor Propane Heaters: Facts You Need to Know!

People who want a portable indoor heating solution can read this and find out about propane heaters that are very safe, cost effective and efficient ways to heat the rooms in your home, basement, attic, garage, workshop or other space. When the weather turns cold and the long warm days of summer are fading from memory, thoughts turn to how best to retain some of that warmth indoors when the mercury is plummeting outdoors.

There are plenty of heating solutions available for the many different areas in your home and outbuilding, but this article focuses on the portable kind that do not rely on expensive electricity, but are instead powered by propane.This is a gas that can be purchased in pressurized canisters making it a perfect fuel for a portable or even fixed heating unit.

What Are the Benefits of Propane Heaters?


Propane heaters have many benefits over electrical heaters that budget-conscious householders are much more acutely aware of these days of rising fuel and energy costs. Let's take a look at some of the major benefits:

  • Low cost to buy
  • Efficient energy source
  • Clean burning with low pollution
  • Portable containers can be used anywhere
  • Refills available from hardware stores and gas stations almost everywhere

In short, propane provides us with a truly portable fuel source that is relatively safe to use, widely available and has numerous appliances that use it.

Are Propane Heaters Really Safe?


There has been some bad press about certain types of propane heating units malfunctioning and causing problems for their users. This generally happens when appliances are very old or have not been maintained properly, or are being misused.

Old heaters become inefficient at burning the fuel and can produce higher than safe levels of carbon monoxide gas. Ordinarily in a well ventilated home, this doesn't present a great danger, although the cumulative effect of breathing in higher levels of this gas can lead to medical problems over time.

The effects are similar to those experienced by people who spend a lot of time by the roadside with lots of traffic, since carbon monoxide is one of the constituents of gas engine exhausts. The gas molecules get into the bloodstream and displace oxygen molecules as they are smaller and easily absorbed.

Inhalation of carbon monoxide in large quantities leads to oxygen starvation in the brain and major organs and if fresh oxygen is not breathed in, eventually a person can die. This happens when a person commits suicide by passing a hose from the tailpipe into the car, closing all the windows and leaving the engine running.


With a faulty propane heater, this danger can be averted by keeping a room well ventilated, although during cold weather it is customary to close all windows and doors to "keep the heat in". Unfortunately, this also keeps all the carbon monoxide in as well.

Take Care of Your Propane Heater


This situation can easily be avoided by maintaining your heater in good condition and as it ages, getting it checked out by a professional to make sure it is still burning the gas efficiently. Keep the unit clean and don't obstruct any vents on top sides or at the back.

Keep children away from the heater even when its not turned on and if anything gets spilled on it, clean it up right away. Burners can be brushed lightly with a soft brush to remove dust and light debris, but don't use strong bristles or wire brushes as these may damage the burners.

Safety First


You can also improve your family's safety by purchasing an inexpensive but potentially life saving carbon monoxide alarm.If you do not have an alarm and are using a non-vented propane heater, the best advice anyone can give you is to go buy one right away!

It is difficult to tell if carbon monoxide is present in a rooms atmosphere in any great quantity because it is colorless and odorless. The first telltale signs you may notice are feelings of drowsiness and the onset of a bad headache.

If you feel these symptoms, open all the doors and windows, shut off the heater and go outdoors to get some fresh air. if anyone in the room has fainted, seek medical attention right away.

For more information on portable heater safety issues here are some external resources that are worth checking out: