What is the difference between an infrared heater and a normal one? Moved into a drafty old apartment and looking into heating options.
This article has a nice summary. Basically, infrared heaters emit electromagnet waves that warm up whatever they hit (such as a person). Ceramic heater warm up the air. Infrared heaters are quieter and somewhat more efficient, but I find that they don’t make a room feel as warm as a ceramic heater - but I’ve never tried one as large as this one.
This looks really snazzy, like a piece of furniture rather than a space heater! Over on amazon, this is $114.99 with free shipping; fourteen reviews with an average of 3 stars. Several complaints on this product - and many, many complaints on other LifeSmart products - about their customer service.
Personally, I like oil filled radiator heaters the best. They heat air the quickest and stay toasty. My SO had tested out two diff brands of this type of heater, eden pure and some other nonsense brand.
He finally ended up eating his words. He thought that it would save money. I tried explaining watts are watts and whatever type of heater you use, it will still spend the same amount of energy. In fact it was more expensive then a regular heater and pretty weak and both broke within weeks 
He about cried when he saw the electric bill 
I bought a similar heater from Costco. When I saw the jump in my electricity bill, I returned the heater.
I just looked at a couple reviews online and they are saying that these have no quartz in it at all. They have a tear down video and it just has an element like a normal space heater. Not sure on this one.
[QUOTE=neuropsychosocial, post:3, topic:375519]
[url=http://www.ehow.com/about_5348342_infrared-versus-quartz-ceramic-heaters.html] Several complaints on this product - and many, many complaints on other LifeSmart products - about their customer service.
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I bought one which had a defect, and I have to agree. The problem was a faulty thermostat, and rather than replacing the unit, they talked me into accepting a “repair kit”. Turned out I had to remove twenty something screws and basically dig into the very center of this machine to exchange the part, way beyond what I felt comfortable doing. And there it sits.
Amazing how the price for these things have dropped in the past few years. I bought one for just shy of $300 in 2010.
[QUOTE=nycorso, post:7, topic:375519]
I bought one which had a defect, and I have to agree. The problem was a faulty thermostat, and rather than replacing the unit, they talked me into accepting a “repair kit”. Turned out I had to remove twenty something screws and basically dig into the very center of this machine to exchange the part, way beyond what I felt comfortable doing. And there it sits.
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I also owned one of these and the thermostat broke. It lasted about 1.5 years. It worked very well during that time. If you Google these heaters, you will see that this issue is common and customer service is a problem.
In conclusion, this cabinet heater is very much like the oldschool cabinet TV, it’ll end up breaking and you’ll end up putting another heater on top of it.
[QUOTE=zkjrwp1vgjbfxre, post:10, topic:375519]
In conclusion, this cabinet heater is very much like the oldschool cabinet TV, it’ll end up breaking and you’ll end up putting another heater on top of it.
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:)~
Gives me an idea for my gutted old 1984 rear projection cabinet…it’s made of Wood with Doors, unlike the plain plastic boxes today…put a Heater inside, and then a new TV on top! Double-duty!
^^X^^
depend on how much did you gas bill go down.
Ok so what is it , an infrared? or has heating elements . the purpose in buying these is only if it uses infrared Bulbs. otherwise we all have standard heaters. Can any one make this clear?
LifeSmart 1500 Watt Quartz Infrared Heater - Black
$89.99
Can I TRUST WOOT… ever again ??? I JUST PAY 99.99 NOT TOO LONG AGO from woot 
CAN I GET MY $10.00 BACK ???
jpyramid
[QUOTE=jpyramid, post:14, topic:375519]
I JUST PAY 99.99 NOT TOO LONG AGO from woot 
CAN I GET MY $10.00 BACK ???
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If the price went UP would you send woot more money? Don’t think so.
And you’ve been using it for a while now. That is what you got for your $10.
Can I get my 3 minutes back that you took from me to explain the basic concept of commerce to you?
Can I get my 4 minutes back from reading both his message and your reply? No, but his $10 paid for my chuckle. That $10 is starting to look like gold!
[QUOTE=paintednightsky, post:4, topic:375519]
Personally, I like oil filled radiator heaters the best. They heat air the quickest and stay toasty. My SO had tested out two diff brands of this type of heater, eden pure and some other nonsense brand.
He finally ended up eating his words. He thought that it would save money. I tried explaining watts are watts and whatever type of heater you use, it will still spend the same amount of energy. In fact it was more expensive then a regular heater and pretty weak and both broke within weeks 
He about cried when he saw the electric bill 
[/quote]
I have two of these and have to disagree with you. I also have an oil filed radiator and that thing took hours to warm up a room. Having a fan like this heater does makes a huge difference.
My living room is 24x24 and this heater will warm the room in a matter of about a half hour. The key is how much air unit moves. It has a little squirrel cage fan inside that moves a ton of air. I think that’s why this works as well as it does for a large room.
Yes, electricity bills have gone up. Talking with a friend at work and he mentioned it costing about $2/day to run this thing around the clock. Not sure where got those numbers but I would say it’s fairly accurate. That being said, the furnace doesn’t run near as much.
This works ok but heating as much as advertized? No! Unless you need to raise room temp a very little or the outside temp is not that low.
it was so noisy I couldn’t use it so I can’t actually comment on how it heats.