How Do You Heat Your Home with Convection?

A heater isn’t necessary for comfortable living in Houston most of the year, but late fall and winter nights can dip low enough to switch on the warmth.

With that in mind, if your home isn’t outfitted with ductwork, you might be wondering about electric convection heating as a solution. What is convection heating, exactly? Let’s discuss how it works and the benefits it offers Houston-area residents.

First, What Is a Convection Heater?

A convection heater is a portable space heater or more permanent electric baseboard heater able to efficiently heat a room by plugging into a nearby wall socket.

How Does a Convection Heater Work?

A convection heater draws cool air from the bottom of your room and runs it past an internal heating element. The heated air then quietly rises from the unit until it reaches your ceiling, forcing cooler air back down to the floor continuously until your desired room temperature is reached.

Electric convection heaters come with individually programmable thermostats that allow you to set your desired room temperature. You’ll need a convection heating unit in each room, so you can choose which individual units run at any given time, meaning you can save money when Houston nights get chilly by only heating the rooms you need to (though overall, convection heaters can be pricey to operate).

What to Know About Convection vs. Radiant Heat

While convection heaters draw, heat, and circulate the air in a room, radiant heaters heat an object, such as the floor, walls, or heating register, and allow the warmth to radiate.

The Pros and Cons of Electric Convection Heaters

Here are a few things to know when considering electric convection heaters as a ductless heating solution: Other ductless heating solutions include mini-split heat pumps, which are wall-mounted heaters that also double as air conditioners. They’re attached to an outdoor heat pump (which now comes with significant federal incentives in the form of rebates and tax credits).

Here are the pros and cons of electric convection heaters as a ductless heating solution:

Pros of Convection Heaters

• Even heat distribution. Convection heaters warm a room evenly as the warm air circulates up, cools, falls back, and reheats again. Rooms with radiant heaters are hotter next to the heat source and cooler farther away.
• Quiet. Most models of convection heaters are silent or nearly silent.
• Customizable. Like mini-split heat pumps, convection heaters are installed in individual rooms, letting you adjust the temperature in each space as you need it. Not using a room? Decrease the thermostat setting and save on energy.
• Energy savings. Compared to electric baseboard heating, portable convection heaters can increase your energy savings by 10% or more. Baseboard heaters are typically located on exterior walls, leading to heat loss, while portable heaters can be placed anywhere in a room.
• Affordable. Compared to other heaters, convection heaters are low-cost, with many units to choose from between $100 and $200, and are easy to install.

Cons of Convection Heaters

• Slow to heat. Radiant heaters and mini-split heat pumps heat very quickly, while convection heating is more gradual.
• Less air quality. There are no air filters in convection heaters, so the air it circulates can kick up dust and aggravate allergies. Pair your convection heater with an air handler to increase circulation and filter air.
• Inefficient for larger homes. If you have a large home, having a convection heater in each room may not make sense.
• Expensive to operate long-term. Electric convection heaters are not designed to be a low-cost solution if used for long periods of time. Like other types of portable plug-in space heaters, they become pricey with regular long-term use. It can cost about $5 to run a convection heater for 24 hours.

Contact One Hour Air Conditioning & Heating of Houston for Expert HVAC Services

Homeowners in moderate climates like southeastern Texas don’t need a lot of heating, but when the lows get down to the 50s and 40s during late fall and winter, you want your ductless home to be warm.

Electric convection heating might be an answer, but there are others, like highly efficient heat pump mini-splits, that come with sizable rebates and tax credits.

If you decide to start heating your home by installing more permanent-style convection heaters or mini-splits (which also double as your air conditioner), the expert HVAC technicians at One Hour Air Conditioning & Heating of Houston offer skilled installation and maintenance. To get started, call (713) 352-7903 or request service online.