Thanks guys.

Since this is a 'rental' and its only 520 SqFt (the whole unit, not just the
one room) I'm thinking the 1500 watt unit should be fine. The Last tenant
had a portable 1500 watt radiant oil filled heater and they usually put it
on 1500 watt for a bit to take the Chill off, then set it to 700 watt to
maintain.

Being that I've just finished building a house I'm not really interested in
spending much time and effort on this small rental. So I'm looking for
something that I can Fix to the wall/ceiling and hard wire in so I can meter
it (along with the Stove and a few other things) so we can charge for it.
The other Outlets are not on the Meter. (if you really want to know why, I
can explain, but...) Quick and Efficient. (-;

There is no Fireplace or any roof penetrations, so back to the quick and not
wanting to spend time, I don't think a fireplace/pellet stove is in my
future.

Wait, We'll be putting in an Electric Oven.. What if I get one with
Convection? Have her turn on the Oven and the Convection fan... Adjust the
baking tem to what she wants the room to be? (-;

Scott-

"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in message
...

"Scott Townsend" wrote in message
et...
I expected more grief then that! ;-P

The old units look like this: http://tinyurl.com/ywbnz2

Pretty hideous.

If its all Apples to Apple, So maybe something like this then?
http://www.iap-home.com/index.cfm?fu...duct_ID=17 88

I do like this unit though... Seems like the Hydronic would be more
efficient though.
http://www.iap-home.com/index.cfm?fu...duct_ID=17 98
Waste the Energy heating the oil, then the oil still retains the heat.
Exhaust heaters once they are off, you are done...

Scott-

Let's start with the basic physics. It takes "x" amount of heat to make
the room comfortable. For example, you may need 5000 Btu per hour given
the outdoor temperature to maintain 68 degrees. If electric, that will
be 1500 Watts per hour. That means the heater will run 100% of the time.
Buy a 3000 watt heater and it will run 50% of the time.

Next is efficiency. All electric heaters are 100% efficient. All the
heat made by resistance is going into the room the heater is located. Gas
or oil heaters need to be ventilated so from a few percent to 30 percent
of the heat may be going up the chimney. In most areas, electric is the
most expensive form of energy. Here in New England, we pay 17¢ or so per
kWh.

So, why choose one heater over the other? If you need that 1500 watts of
heat on the coldest day and the heat is on al the time, it may be nice and
comfy and cozy. if, OTOH, it is a 3000 watt heater it will run only half
the time so there will be some variations of room temperature as the
heater cycles off and on. How often id determined by the range of the
thermostat. Good ones will turn the heat on, then off, with a tiny
temperature fluctuation. On at 67.5, off at 68.5. Cheap ones may turn on
at 66 and off at 70.

The hydronic heaters are filled with a liquid adding thermal mass, just
like the radiators of years past. It took a little for them to get hot,
but once the boiler stopped, they kept giving off heat for some time
keeping the room steady and gently heated. In any case, the heat is not
wasted, it is just distributed over a longer time period and you tend to
feel more comfy.

If you want to save money, I'd first seal up and insulated as best you
can. I'd also look at alternative fuels, such as propane or wood pellets.
They may or may not be cheaper or as convenient. There are web pages that
allow you to put in the cost of fuels and do comparisons.