It’s that time of year again. You can see your breath. You’ll soon be searching for your ice scraper. And you’ll need the heating… on.

But, if the central heating isn’t doing its job, or you need to heat a spare room, the garage or your shed there are plenty of heaters to chose from on Gumtree.

Types of heater

It’s a good idea to understand the different types of heater in order to choose the one you need.

Radiant heaters

These are heaters that only heat up the immediate area around themselves, like a three-bar fire or your average radiator. They come in various strengths and sizes and use an element such as water or electric coils to slowly radiate heat outwards.

Fan heaters

Fan heaters are also a popular choice for indoor heating. They are generally electric and fairly effective depending on the type of heater and the size of the room that needs heating.

Fan heaters generally blow the air across a heated coil or panel, which gets the warm air further into the room than a radiant heater.

Oil or water filled radiator style heaters

These heaters use the conduction method to heat the room and are popular in bathrooms and smaller rooms that don’t have adequate heating. They are spot heaters so won’t warm the room quickly but they do tend to heat evenly which can be an advantage.

If you have children these types of heater may not be a good idea as they can get quite hot to the touch. The water or oil will not need changing as it is only warmed up and not burned to create the heat.

Outdoor heaters

If you’re having a bonfire night party then you may want to look at outdoor and patio heaters. These are usually spot heaters and come in various shapes and sizes.

Outdoor heating can really make the difference and your guests will thank you for the extra warmth. It’s possible to make even the coldest nights bearable with the right heating but they won’t be much help when it starts raining.

What size heater do I need?

Space heaters come in many shapes and sizes and prices vary so it’s a good idea to shop around for bargains on Gumtree. It’s also useful to work out what each heater is capable of and whether it has the right output to heat the space you intend to use it in.

Look for the heater ‘output’

When you are looking for a heater you’ll come across the various different outputs for each model and understanding what these mean will ensure you buy the right heater for your space.

Generally, the output for a given heater is given in watts and the accepted ratio is that it takes 10 watts to raise the temperature of a square foot by 10 degrees. This ratio isn’t exact and there are several factors that can affect how a room heats up. High ceilings, drafty windows and vents, large doorways and stairwells can all be detrimental to the heating of a room.

Before you buy a heater always consider the size of the room you want to heat in comparison to the given output of the heaters you are looking at. If you have high ceilings or need a lot of heat then go for a higher wattage model.

Right, with the technical chat over, you can now get hunting. Stay cosy, folks!

The Gumtree team.