propane heater

The Mysteries Of Heater Immersion

As the prices of heating fuel soar, many homeowners have become curious about exactly how their home and the water in it are heated, are kept heated and how they might become heated in a more energy-efficient way. Some hot water heaters, for instance, heat the water and keep it warm until it’s used. Other types don’t heat the water until it’s needed, saving the energy needed to keep it hot. Many of the storage types use heater immersion to heat the water. With heater immersion, an electrical element fits into the side of the water tank with the thermostat extending to the exterior of the tank for easy use.

Types Of Heaters

The common storage tank heater can be made more efficient by adding a timer to your heater immersion device to heat the water at off-peak times when energy is less costly. Even if that option is not available in your area, your storage tank can become more efficient by the addition of insulation around it. The less heat is lost to the surrounding area, the less energy is used to keep it warm. You may have an indirect water heater system. This means that your furnace or boiler heats your water while it heats the house. Most often, hot water from a boiler circulates through a heat exchanger in a nearby tank. Less often, a heat exchanger coil filled with water to be heated circulates through a furnace then through the storage tank. Since the exchanger penetrates the tank in either case, it is similar to the heater immersion method. Using modern equipment, this is often the most efficient system. The storage tanks are efficiently insulated, the heating equipment is high-efficiency and the need for the heater to turn on and off is much less frequent.

The on demand water heaters don’t use energy to warm storage tanks. The most efficient ones use natural gas and an electronic ignition to save on energy used in a pilot light. Solar heaters are making a comeback from the 1970s. While the sun’s energy is cost-efficient, the start-up costs are higher since tax credits are no longer available. However, today’s less expensive units compare with electric and propane heaters over the lifetime of the unit while natural gas still beats them all.

Whether you decide on heater immersion, on demand, solar power or some other technology, the most efficient heater for you is the one that uses the fuel you have at hand, works for your climates and personal needs and best integrates with your existing water system.

Keep Warm Safely With Propane Heater

Whether it’s for a tent, a single room or a whole house, a propane heater can do the job, and do it safely, if proper precautions are taken. As with any device, which uses any type combustion, proper ventilation is required to insure the safety of the user.

Small propane heaters are widely used by campers, ice fishermen and others needing heat outdoors. The small, propane heaters, usually attach to a one-pound propane tank and uses a burner, often reflected by a metal dish to distribute heat, provided at about 5,000 BTU. Since 1990, there have been 31 deaths attributed to the unsafe usage of a propane heater.

Larger units are available, which can produce up to 15,000 BTU of heat, and are generally used in larger structures. However, regardless of size of the propane heater, proper ventilation is needed to prevent the build-up of carbon monoxide, a tasteless, odorless and colorless gas, which replaces oxygen in the blood stream and may cause serious injury or death.

Properly Install Whole-House Furnaces

People living in rural areas and those with the benefit of a natural gas pipeline often turn to a propane heater for their home. Propane gas is stored in a pressurized tank outside the house and is fed to the furnace as needed. Most homeowners have their propane heater installed by a professional and it is properly vented, decreasing the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. However, it is a good idea to equip the home with a carbon monoxide detector.

There are also propane heaters, which are used in construction for warming a house under construction during colder months. This type heater generally throws a burning flame into the air, warming the building site. Care must be taken with their use, as not only the danger of carbon monoxide exists, there is the added potential for fire.

While propane heater manufacturers are doing a far better job of cautioning consumers on the dangers of their use, as well as discontinuing production of those not meeting safety standards, there are still numerous propane heaters in use today that were not being sold for several years.

While a propane heater can offer affordable, portable options for when a heat source is needed, certain precautions should be taken to insure the safety of the user. A simple precaution of proper ventilation, even in a tent or ice fishing house, can make the use of this type heater much safer.

Selecting A Hot Tub Heater

The term hot tub refers to watertight containers that can hold from three hundred to one thousand gallons of water and allow one to twelve people to bath in it at the same time. The simplest answer to the question why buy a hot tub heater is that it makes the hot tub work best. Whether your hot tub rests inside or outdoors, a hot tub heater allows you to regulate and maintain the temperature of the tub as desired. Not only do heaters for the hot tub facilitate home baths but also add to the joy of spa experience. Given a hot tub heater, you can set the bathtub’s temperature as you like, regardless of the prevailing weather, even when your bathtub is positioned outside.

Kinds Of Hot Tub Heaters

Three main types of hot tub heaters are named after the source of heat they use, i.e. electrical, gas, and wood burning hot tub heaters. Each of these kinds has its advantages and drawbacks. Hence, it is important to know about each kind in comparison with others before selecting a hot tub heater for your home or spa.

Electrical Hot Tub Heaters
The main advantage of electrical hot tub heaters is their ease of use with standard domestic hook-ups of 110/220V. They do not require much additional wiring and can be used anywhere provided that the standard hook-ups are available. In case they get damaged, their repair is easy and their spare parts are available for most models. A prominent feature is that the heating units in these heaters are self-contained, fitted within the hot tub cabinet.
Gas Hot Tub Heaters

Fuelled by natural gas pr propane, a gas hot tub heater comes to be more economical for frequent users of the hot tub in cold season. It can heat up the water more quickly and is more suitable for installing in the in-ground hot tubs. In cabins or in places where electrical supply is not readily available, or is not reliable enough, an external gas propane heater is the best option for keeping the tub hot.

Wood Burning Hot Tub Heaters

While wood burning hot tub heaters are the most economical, their use is restricted to wooden hot tubs only. Cord Wood or coal is the fuel for these heaters and they have proved to be quick and efficient heating devices for water in the tub. They also require low maintenance, and are very easy to regulate. If you use the hot tub occasionally, wood burning heaters are the best to choose.