For particularly draughty buildings, a halogen heater is the best heating appliance you can get. Its infrared heat focuses on heating objects rather than the surrounding air. And that’s perfect when you’re in a building with a constant flow of cold air — a small heater would struggle to keep the entire air mass at the desired temperature. Although the comparison might make your electric heater look cheaper to run, bear in mind that it will only be heating a much smaller area, whereas your central heating will be aiming to heat your whole home. Read our full story on illegal and dangerous plug-in mini heaters for sale on online marketplaces to see those we identified as having serious safety risks. The 1,000-watt burner offers six temperature settings. Even at the highest one, the infrared technology focuses the heat to the cooking surface, which helps keep the base and housing cooler. With this style of burner, the heating element cycles on and off during use. This machine might not be the prettiest thing in the world, but it's a durable workhorse that's easy to clean with a simple wipedown, and it comes at an excellent price for its quality.

They take longer to warm up, but they also continue to give out heat after they have been switched off. They are generally more economical to run than a fan heater or a convection heater. However, the fins still get quite hot so keep children from touching the radiators while they warm.” Convection heaters These have exposed heating elements, which heat up cold air as it passes. This often leads to slower, but more even, heating. They tend to be a little slower than fan heaters, but are quieter, and our tests found some are still pretty speedy.

To find the best electric heater, our experts start by measuring their power consumption. They run each heater for an hour on its highest and lowest setting and calculate how much it costs for that period. These heaters circulate air throughout the unit and into the surrounding space, meaning they are generally quiet and better at evenly warming an entire room. Like radiators, they can take a while to warm up. Fan heaters They also carry out two tests to see how effective each heater is at warming a small room. Firstly, they measure the temperature at a series of set distances away from the heater. This helps them ascertain whether it needs to be placed near you or if it can heat the whole space from afar. Our guide will focus on the most efficient electric heater of each type on the market. We’ll explain the different kinds of electric heaters, what running costs you can expect, and will tell you what’s the best heater we found after reviewing more than 15 models. Types of Electric Heaters

Gas is a cheaper fuel than standard rate electricity, so if you have gas central heating, it will generally be cheaper to use than an electric heater,” she explains. “If you don’t want to heat the whole home, turn your radiator valves lower in the rooms you’re not heating and higher in the rooms you are.The least expensive portable electric burners have a coil-shaped heating element, which is a perfectly good way to heat a pot but is difficult to clean if anything drips on it. A flat cooking surface—either in the form of a heavy cast-iron plate or smooth tempered glass—is easier to clean but adds cost. Beyond shape, there are also multiple burner technologies; both coil and cast-iron burners use a standard electric heating element, while more advanced (and more expensive) cooking methods include infrared and induction, both of which cook on a flat, glass surface. Smart connectivity: Falling firmly in the nice-to-have category, you can connect to some heaters on this list via apps. This means you can control it remotely – perfect if your home office starts getting toasty mid-Zoom. How we test electric heaters Convector heaters are usually taller than fan heaters, but thin and light – making them larger, but still relatively easy to move between rooms. Key specs – Heat output: 2kW; Controls: On/off/heat setting dial, thermostat dial; Extra features: Cool air blow, safety cut-out; Dimensions: 184 x 164 x 522mm; Weight: 2.5kg

Timers and thermostats: These give you more control over how long your heater is on for and the warmth it’s emitting. Setting a timer and thermostat also means you can use your fan more efficiently, as it will turn off once it's been on for a set period of time or when the room reaches your desired temperature – much better than guessing or leaving it on for longer than necessary! A 2kW heater, only being used at half capacity (1kW on the thermostat) will use 13p per hour, but 26p per hour on its maximum 2kW setting. If you’re looking for a portable heating solution, convection (or fan heaters, for that matter) are ideal.Removing melted plastic from a burner can be a stinky process, so you'll want to set up your portable burner outside before you start this process. For a coil or cast-iron burner, turn on low heat just until the plastic starts to soften, and then scrape it off with a wooden or heat-proof silicone spatula. Once you’ve removed as much as you can, turn the heat to high and let the rest burn off. For a glass-top burner, start with low heat and scraping as above, but then shut off the heat and scrub with baking soda to remove any remnants.