Getting large space heaters for large rooms could be potentially expensive and hard to choose, especially if you selected the wrong types of space heaters. As such, you should look to find the most efficient solution for your heating needs to make sure you can get the best space heaters for a large room without spending too much.
We have put together this guide on how to choose the right heaters for large rooms and also included a few of our best models that are currently available on the market at the time of writing this article.
Before we dive down into the list, we should know what kind of heaters are there available.
The best type of space heater for a large room
There are mainly three types of space heaters for large rooms, these are radiant, convection and combination heaters. Radiant heaters for large rooms are powered by electricity of natural gases such as fuel or kerosene and work by radiating heat outwards.
Some radiant heaters are infrared models and these types of heaters work by being pointed in the direction of the heat while some have safety features such as reflectors in order to conduct heat in specific directions.
Convection space heaters work by circulating the air around the space heater and relying on the natural flow of the rising of hot air. When hot air rises out of the heater, it will create a vacuum for cold air to be sucked in. So this will result in an air circulation that is natural while warm air flows into the vacuum of the cold air.
Convection space heaters are designed to heat the entire room space due to their design of heating the air rather than specific objects in a large room.
Other heaters such as ceramic radiant heaters are a combination of both a radiant and convection heater as they use a fan to circulate the heat that gets produced.
Space heaters for large rooms also come in four different types of designs which are the wall heater, freestanding heater, electric fireplace heaters and a baseboard heater. Each four of the types of space heaters are aesthetically different from each other and heats up your large room differently. The type of design of your space heater will influence your decision on the amount of space you have as well as how you would prefer the heat to rise
How to use a space heater in a large room?
Generally, there are two ways to use a space heater in a large room.
Supplemental heat
As space heaters are generally designed to supplement or maintain heat that is produced by a central heating source such as a furnace, boiler or heat pump, supplemental heat generally makes room space for a large room much more comfortable when the source of the central heat is inadequate or its settings turned down. So this is how most large room space heaters will be used.
Occasional heat
A space heater for a large room can be the only source of heat but it is only a good approach for occasional heating. This is due to the fact that electric heat is quite expensive when compared against a gas furnace or a heat pump.
Factors to consider when buying heaters for large rooms
Power
The first factor you will need to consider is power. This is because if you want to heat a large room, you will first need to ensure the space heater has enough power output to actually heat the entire room space. To do this, you will first need to measure its size. It is a general rule of thumb that 10 watts will heat 1 square foot of room space. Because of this, you will need to find a space heater for large rooms that has the capacity of size to heat the room space you are selecting.
Fuel options
The type of fuel and utility of the heater will be another major factor that you should consider. If you have young children running around the house, it would be inadvisable to use a space heater for large rooms that utilises a propane tank heater as it could be a little dangerous.
A gas heater may also not be a viable option if you do not have gas lines installed in your home due to the high initial installation costs and possible disturbance it could result in. So overall, electric space heaters for large rooms would be the most viable option and are cheaper on upfront costs. That being said however, gas heaters are usually cheaper than electric space heaters to run.
Design
If you want to place a heater for garages or workshops, you may want to have a surface wall heater that would not get in the way of other machinery in the large room. If you have portability in mind, you might want to get a free-standing heater as it would be more suitable moving from large room to large room. As such, understanding the different designs of space heaters will help you to narrow down your options.
There are other options/features that are built into a space heater such as a built-in thermostat, cool-touch exterior, an adjustable fan, tip over safety features, automatic overheat switch off, a remote control and adjustable heat settings.
Heating capacity for a large room
You should measure the area of your large room and typically this would be 800-1,000 square feet. For an electric large room space heater, it should be around 1,500 watts while for propane heaters it should be about 9,000 BTUs
Fan
If a fan is present in the space heater, it will help to push warmed air to parts of the room that is furthest from the heater and it would not matter if the room heats up faster as some heater literature might state. This is because the fan does not create heat but just moves heated air.
Oscillation
These are units that move side to side and have fans with a range of motion among various models between about 55 to 85 degrees. As such, if you put these fans in a corner, an 80-degree arch will move air to most of the room space in the large room.
Portability
Space heaters with around 1500 watt are the most portable types weighing less than 6 pounds. A tower or oscillating space heater will also be quite light, being most at lighter than 10 pounds. The heaviest types of heaters would be cabinet heaters which weigh typically between 22 to 30 pounds. However, these cabinet heaters will normally have some sort of wheels or casters so that they would be easier to move over hard floors, and so will be a little harder to move over carpet. A large room space heater that is not portable will usually be wall-mounted units that are fixed in place to the wall.
Remote
It would be best if your space heater comes with a remote control as they would add convenience to any space heater for large rooms. You will be able to adjust the settings of your heater using the remote control as they would give you the same functions as the control panel on the heater.
A space heater will normally normally advertise something like “heats up to 1,000 square feet” but they are usually in accurate statements. The more accurate statements would be more like “This space heater would require supplemental heating for up to 1,000 square feet of space”
Factors that affect how much space a space heater will need
Heating power of space heater
For electrical space heaters, you should look for at least 1,500 watts which is the largest capacity for most large room space heaters.
Insulation
Your room should be well insulated as better insulation for a large room means that the better the space heater is able to do its work
Central Heating
How well your space heater will be able to do the job as the main source of heat and what the thermostat is set to
Outdoor temperature
A space heater might be able to heat 1,000 square feet of room space if it is 60F outside but might struggle to heat a large room if the outside temperature is below freezing temperatures.
Safety features
It is also important to take into account safety features that would come with the heater. You would want to ensure that the heater has been certified and tested for safety. You can do this by looking for a label from a recognized testing lab such as ETL (Intertek), CSA (Canadian Standards Association) or UL (Underwriters Laboratory).
An exterior that is cool to touch will prevent the outside of the heater from getting too hot to handle and posing a fire risk. Other safety features that a heater might have would be an automatic switch-off function if the heater were to overheat. Additionally, there are some heaters that will automatically turn off if the heater tips over.
Another great safety feature on gas heaters would be a carbon monoxide detector that would switch the heater off if there happens to not be enough oxygen for combustions. As such, it will prevent carbon monoxide poisoning in your large room. As such, when you are utilising a gas heater in your home, be sure to have a vented combustion heater as unvented heaters can be very dangerous.
Best Space Heaters For Large Room In 2021
1 Dr Infrared Heater Portable Space Heater 1500-Watt
The DR Infrared Heater possesses an advanced Dual Heating System which combines both PTC and Quartz Infrared Element that keeps you warm during the winter. This space heater is also equipped with a Dual Heating System and High velocity Low Noise Blower which enables it to increase the heat distribution and also results in the heating of your room into a comfortable temperature quickly.
This space heater for large rooms is certified by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) from the USA and Canada. As such, this certification makes sure that the product complies with the highest safety standards set out there. It is perfectly safe around children and pets and will only be warm to the touch. The DR Heater is designed to not have any exposed heating elements that could cause a fire.
Other features that this space heater has include the Energy saving Auto Mode, high and low heat settings as well as an automatic cycle option which swaps between high or low heat settings to instantly make you comfortably warm.
This space heater works by only heating the objects that are in your large room and not the air in order to provide the maximum warmth possible as well as energy efficiency. It is a portable space heater that comes with features such as overheat protection and tip over protection so you can sleep soundly knowing that this space heater will not be hazardous to your home.
It features a dual heating system using infrared and PTC with 1500 watts of power and the temperature ranges from 122-250F. This space heater also comes with a high-efficiency blower but is quiet and operates only at 39 dB.
Overall, this heater operates quickly to warm up a large room and definitely has enough power to do so however, it will be a little costly to run even with some energy saving features that are advertised by the seller. It does have one flaw being that every part of the heater is safe except for the grate that will definitely be hazardous for children or pets if touched.
Pros
- Portable space heater due to wheels
- Efficient and quiet blower
- Does not dry the air out from heating
- Safety features such as tip over and overheats protection
- Heat up to 250F at 3.5 meters per second
Cons
- The grate is not cool-to-touch
- Not electricity saving
2 Cadet Manufacturing 67527 240-Volt White Com Pak Twin Double Fan Forced Electric Wall Heater
With the Cadet Manufacturing 67527 space heater, you will definitely be able to get warm. This is one of the best space heaters that you can get due to the efficient and affordable way you can use it to add warmth without installing any ductwork.
This space heater comes with safety features that will be enjoyed by your family safely and sensibly for years. The design of this heater for large rooms comes with a powder coating designed to eliminate any potentially sharp edges while still providing a high gloss finish.
As such, the Cadet Manufacturing 67527 is great for heating large room space with just one heater. It consists of two heaters behind a single grill that will be able to quickly warm your room space and help eliminate drafts and cold spots in your large room. The product comes with a heater, a wall can, a grille and also a thermostat for hard-wired installation. As such, if you want to have your own thermostat, this model might not be the most appropriate one for you.
Pros
- Easy to install
- Quiet
- Heat up to 250 square feet in minutes
- Design of space heater for a large room
Cons
- The thermostat is not as precise
- An external thermostat can be tricky to install in order to bypass internal thermostat
3 Sunday Living 26 Inch Electric Fireplace, 1500W Glass Fireplace Heater, Wall Mounted or Freestanding, 10 Flame Color, Log Set and Crystal
The Sunday Living 26 Inch Electric Fireplace is a space heater that can be used either wall-mounted or freestanding which gives you more versatility to fit your different heating needs. It also comes with mounting brackets as well as two stand bases that are included for both types of installations with dimensions of 26” x 22.4” x 4.1”
This space heater for a large room also comes with a cool looking 10-colour flame effect and two options for the ember bed of either a log set or crystal stones whichever suits your needs. This change only requires about 5 minutes or less to adjust and change to your preference by referring to the instructions provided that come together with the space heater. As such, it can be an effective decorative fireplace with no heat for a year-round ambience.
The Sunday Living 26 Inch Electric Fireplace comes with two heat settings in order to heat your large room with two modes of either high (1500W) or low (750W) and can be adjusted accordingly for both warm and energy saving features. The thermostat that comes with the space heater for a large room can be adjusted from 59F to 95F in order to suit your preferences.
The space heater comes with a heating outlet that is located on the back of the heater on the upper right which assists in transferring heat.
This heater possesses some safety features which helps to make it ETL Certificate Approved being equipped with overheat protection, which will help to automatically turn off the device if the heater is overheating in order to keep your whole family safe.
The heater is also designed to be quiet, emitting sounds lesser than 59 dB and allows you to enjoy the warmth and also the gorgeous looking flame emitted from the LED screen. Other features include a remote control that comes with the space heater and also a 0-12 H timer which helps you control the heater for more convenience
The Sunday Living 26 Inch Electric Fireplace can be perfectly installed in either the bedroom, living room, dining room or even a basement for the ultimate comfort and relaxation that you can bring into your room and enjoy all year round.
Pros
- Comes with remote
- Two heating modes
- ETL certificate approved
- Versatile (Free standing or wall mounted)
Cons
- Low quality glass (May break)
4 Lasko 5160 Ceramic Tower Heater with Remote Control, Black 5160
The Lasko 5160 Ceramic tower heater will have all the features you need on a portable electric space heater. It comes with a multi function remote control with onboard storage that gives you the option to change settings without having to get up from your couch or desk. It also has a programmable thermostat, two quiet comfort settings as well as an energy saving eight-hour time which allows the user to make any adjustments required to achieve and maximise comfort.
The Lasko space heater features a self-regulating ceramic element and also comes with safety features such as automatic overheat protection as well as designed with an easy to carry handle.
It is an overall great model for people that have children or pets running around as it is designed with a cool-to-touch exterior and also does not knock over easily. Despite its small size, it can surprisingly heat up large room space quickly but the thermostat is not very accurate
Pros
- Quiet
- Cool-touch exterior
- Durable
- Able to warm a room quickly
Cons
- Inaccurate thermometer
- Auto settings require a lot of power
5 De’Longhi Mica Thermic Panel Heater, Full Room Quiet 1500W, Freestanding/Easy Install Wall Mount, Adjustable Thermostat, 2 Heat Settings, Black, HMP1500
This De’Longhi space heater packs 1500 watts of heating power so that you are able to enjoy full room warmth with no worries. It is also designed for a sleek and efficient look and whether you set it on the floor or even mount it on the wall, it will be a stylish way to stay warm.
The space heater comes with an adjustable thermostat and multiple heat settings which allows you to customize your heating needs for more personalized comfort. It is also easily mountable as it comes with a convenient wall mount that makes it safe to mount on any wall including a kit.
Its size and small design allow it to be a lightweight and compact unit with a convenient handle and wheels that allows you to easily move from room to room.
Overall, you are able to stay cozy and save energy with this heater as you will be able to carve out a warm comfortable room, desk or any other cozy spot for work purposes as adding this heater to any designated space will allow you to optimize productivity as well as turning an unexpected heating challenge into an energy-saving win.
Pros
- Excellent heat output
- Portable
- Two heat settings
- Equipped with overheat & tip over protection
Cons
Makes a humming sound
6 De’Longhi Oil-Filled Radiator Space Heater, Quiet 1500W, Adjustable Thermostat, 3 Heat Settings, Energy Saving, Safety Features, Nice for Home with Pets/Kids, Light Gray, Comfort Temp EW7707CM
This is one of the best oil filled radiators that you will be able to get on the market as by heating the room you are in with this space heater for large rooms, you will be able to lower your household thermostat as well as your energy bills due the energy saving features it has.
The space heater for large rooms also does not require any assembly as De’Longhi has patented Smart Snap pre-assembled wheels that do not require any assembly and allows you to easily move this space heater from room to room.
It will also allow you to cut costs by automatically maintaining the optimal temperature and power settings so you will not have to go through the hassle of manually adjusting temperature settings by yourself.
The reason it is one of the best oil filled heaters is because of how it is designed with a maintenance-free system in mind. The oil system is permanently sealed so you will not have to worry at all about refilling the heater.
The heater is also designed for personalized comfort that comes with an adjustable thermostat and multiple heat settings.
This oil filled heater is also able to provide steady heat and able to maintain a constant temperature thanks to its large surface area as well as exclusive design and due to this, it will not be able to tip over easily due to the well-balanced wheel designs. It also comes with three heat settings which are 700W, 800W and the standard high 1500W.
Overall this De’Longhi space heater is an effective and efficient space heater that will be able to comfortably warm and heat up your room while still keeping your electricity bill under budget. It is also a good choice for homes with pets or kids.
Pros
- Assembly not required
- Maintenance free oil filled radiator
- Equipped with Anti Freeze settings
Cons
- Unpleasant smell for first few users
- Slower rate of warmth compared to other space heaters on this list
7 Amazon Basics Portable Eco-Smart Space Heater – Wood
The AmazonBasics Portable Eco-Smart Space Heater features an elegant wood finish that looks sleek and will look stylish while still being able to warm your room. Due to its portable design, whether you are curled up on your couch or sitting at your desk, you will be able to efficiently warm up the remaining space for more comfortable living.
This space heater features a dual heating system which consists of a quartz tube and PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) that runs off 12.5 amps of power and will be able to heat large spaces of up to 1,000 square feet.
Although powerful, it is rather quiet and it offers a standby mode with 3 settings that are low, high or auto and includes a silent 7 inch blower that evenly distributes heat with lesser than 39 dB.
Other features that come with this efficient heater includes a remote control for more versatility and convenience, an automatic timer of up to 12 hours so you will be able to adjust when you would like your room to be heated. It also comes with rolling caster wheels and also an automatic safety shut-off.
Pros
- 1000 W and 1500 W settings
- Comes with remote
- Efficient infrared heating and timer
- Comes with wheels for portability
Cons
- Heavy
8 Pro Breeze Space Heater – 1500W Electric Heater with 3 Operating Modes and Adjustable Thermostat – Room Heater for Bedroom, Home, Office and Under Desk – White
This is another ceramic space heater on our list that is engineered with advanced ceramic heating elements which allow it to provide faster and higher energy efficient heating compared to a traditional electric space heater. Being small and powerful, it would be the perfect room heater for either a bedroom or office.
Although small, this heater comes with powerful heating and features a 750W (low) and 1500 (high) power mode for adjustable heating according to your preferences. It also comes with a gentle fan only mode. The heater will be able to help in reducing your energy bills as it will heat individual rooms rather than expensively utilising central heating for your entire home.
Other features include an adjustable thermostat that is easy to use that monitors the surrounding air temperature and adjusted its own temperature accordingly for optimal heating efficiency.
Advanced safety features that come with this heater include built-in overheat protection with an enhanced anti-tip over switch which ensures that the mini heater instantly switches off if it is placed in an unsafe situation so you will be able to sleep with peace of mind.
The design of the heater is also ultra portable making it lightweight and also compact so this allows it to be very suitable for a bedroom or to be transported to wherever you will need it the most.
Pros
- Immediate heat at 750 & 1500 watt settings
- Light
- Affordable
Cons
- Noisy
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: Are ceramic heaters dangerous?
Ceramic heaters are convection heaters and are generally efficient because they run on electricity and do not release any carbon monoxide or other toxic emissions
Q: Can you run a space heater 24/7?
Some heaters are designed to only run for short periods of time so it might not be advisable to keep them turned on 24/7. Even Though some heaters will be able to run continuously for a long time, you should turn off your heater and not let it run overnight.