Do Space Heaters Save Money?
Can you save money by using a space heater instead of your central heating system when trying to keep your home warm in the winter time?
Consumer Reports looked into the matter and found that in order to cut costs using an electric space heater, you’ll need to lower the heat in the other rooms in your house. Small space heaters are often less expensive to run when you’re heating one room or supplementing heat in one room, according to the Department of Energy. But advocacy group Alliance to Save Energy points out that using space heaters to heat more than one room is not as efficient as a running your central heating system.
What you pay for electricity will, of course, also affect the cost of using a space heater. Electricity rates vary across the country.
The publication tested numerous 1,500-watt space heaters and discovered that it would cost $2.82 a day to use a space heater for 16 hours a day, based on the national average electricity rate.
Consumer Reports cautioned that you should never use a space heater while sleeping, in case of fires, no matter what there safety rating or what safety features they have (such as automatic shutoff if tipped or after a period of time.)
