13 Dec What You Need to Know About Portable Heaters
When cold winter weather rears its ugly head, you can be scrambling for ways to stay warm. If you don’t want to risk running a high energy bill by cranking up your home’s thermostat, you may begin to look for alternatives that can get your home toasty — and if you’re like many people, that means getting a portable heater or two.
Before you go placing these all over your home, there are a few things you need to know in order to stay safe.
They Need to Have Space
By this, we mean there needs to be an ample amount of empty space, a couple of feet or so, around the heater so nothing catches on fire. Whether through contact or just the radiating heat, curtains, upholstery, paper, and other materials can catch fire if a portable heater is placed to close to them.
They Need to Be Blocked Off
The last thing you’ll want to have happen is for your child or pet to run too close to the heater and burn themselves. For this reason, it’s best to block off the area in which the heater is located by using, for example, a baby gate.
They Need to Be Turned Off
Whenever you leave the house, make sure to unplug your space heater. This helps avoid any safety hazards and the risk of a fire while you’re gone.
They Should Not Be Your Only Source of Heat
Portable heaters are only good for small spaces and the radiant heat they give off only does so much in keeping your home warm. Plus, keeping them on for long periods of time uses a lot of electricity that will show up on your bill at the end of the month.
When it comes to properly heating your home, trust the experts at Wahl Family Heating, Cooling, and Plumbing.