To ensure your baseboard heaters are as efficient as possible, turn down your thermostat whenever you can. Baseboard heaters are known for being zone heaters, meaning each heater warms the room it is in rather than the entire house. Practice zone heating by lowering the temperatures of heaters in unused rooms.
Add insulation anywhere you can. You'd be amazed how quickly this stuff adds up to improve comfort/temperature. Especially reducing the infiltration (drafts). And no, don't blow a fan across your baseboard. Blowing air adds to the existing heat loss and won't coax much if any more output from the baseboard.
Not really. The cost of heat is determined by the time the furnace or heater runs. Whenever it is off, there is no cost. After being off, it takes longer to regain temperature, but not sufficiently to be longer than if it were on all the time.
Choose an energy-efficient setting: 68 degrees when you're home and 60 degrees when sleeping or away. (Exception: For ceiling cable heat, change only 2 to 3 degrees at a time for the most efficiency.) Each degree you lower the temperature throughout your home saves an estimated 2 percent on your heating costs.
This is because cold air can leak through and create unpleasant drafts. The heat from a baseboard heater under a window will rise and help to offset that cool air, the more cold air that comes in, the harder a heater has to work. This can lead to higher energy costs.
Electric baseboard heaters are generally more energy-efficient for long-term use because they convert nearly all the electricity they use into heat and can be controlled to heat specific areas. Space heaters can consume more electricity, especially when used for prolonged periods.
Dangerous and uncomfortable
Electric baseboards get hot, which means you have to keep furniture and curtains at least six inches away from them to prevent fire. If you have young children in the house, they can also be a burn risk. The heat generated by baseboard heaters is a very dry heat.
Thermostat settings play a pivotal role in managing your heating system's efficiency. It's a common misconception that leaving your heating on at a constant temperature is more energy-efficient than turning it on and off. Does turning the heat on and off raise the bill each month? The answer is no.
While electric baseboard heaters offer a reliable, cost-effective heating option, the Department of Energy (DOE) recommends heat pump style systems, such as Mitsubishi ductless systems, as a more efficient way of heating your home.
Baseboard heaters are 100% efficient, converting 100% of the energy used to heat. Heat pumps can be as much as 200% to 300% efficient, supplying the same amount of heat for much less energy.
When you're reducing the heat by turning the thermostat knob counterclockwise, you can keep turning it to shut the baseboard heater off altogether. Conversely, you can rotate the knob clockwise to turn the heater on again and increase the heat.
The general guideline for electric baseboard is 10 watts per square foot of space and 1.25 watts per cubic foot for fan forced heat in rooms with 8' ceilings, rounding up to the product with the next highest wattage rating. Square Ft. Example: 100 sq. ft x 10 watts per sq.
Example (you can use an electric heater running cost calculator below for different wattages/kWh prices): If we assume the price of electricity is $0.1319 per kWh, a 1,500-watt electric space heater will cost; $0.20 to run per hour. $4.80 to run per 24 hours (day). $11.20 to run per week (8h/day).
Far Infrared Heaters are the most efficient of all the space heater options and consume the lowest wattage, making them the cheapest to run. Far Infrared is radiant heating and is most easily absorbed by people's skin. In fact, all objects, including us emit and absorb infrared.
Today baseboard heaters are much more efficient than their older counterparts, and when used as a secondary heating source, or even as the primary, the results are drastically different from 20 years ago.
Electric baseboard heaters have an on-and-off switch, but you can leave them running at a regular temperature setting.
Because baseboard heaters are outdated systems, you may need to hire heating repair services more often just to ensure they are in good working order. In contrast, more modern HVAC systems won't require as much maintenance, and they can efficiently heat your entire house through ducts and vents.
One of the main disadvantages of baseboard heaters is that they can be very noisy when operating. Also, since the heater is installed along the wall and not in a central location like a furnace, it can take longer for rooms to warm up compared to other heating systems.
Baseboard heating cost
Installing baseboard heat costs $5,400 to $7,800 for 18 to 26 units to heat a home. Electric baseboard heat costs $480 to $900 per month to run on average.