Garden log cabin heater
Discussion
Just ordered a decent quality 5m x 3m log cabin for the garden, the room will be in use most days and so I’m looking at something to heat the place, the cabin will have electricity.
We already have a couple of those portable electric oil radiators we could use, but I was looking at the wall mounted heaters, does anyone have anything they recommended.
Preferences are
1) not cost the earth to run
2) some kind of frost setting would be useful to keep the space above a certain temp
3) doubles as a cooler would be a bonus as the cabin is situated in the constant sun in the summer
4) budget upto £500
We already have a couple of those portable electric oil radiators we could use, but I was looking at the wall mounted heaters, does anyone have anything they recommended.
Preferences are
1) not cost the earth to run
2) some kind of frost setting would be useful to keep the space above a certain temp
3) doubles as a cooler would be a bonus as the cabin is situated in the constant sun in the summer
4) budget upto £500
Any form of electric heater will cost exactly the same to run as they all convert all the power to heat. Bearing in mind though that electricity is three to four times the cost of gas……
https://www.robertdyas.co.uk/electric-wall-mounted...
Unless you go to a heat pump based system, which is 10 times the cost, but can also cool and uses about 1/3 of the power.
Something like this https://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/iqool-smart12...
As the other reply, insulate as far as possible.
https://www.robertdyas.co.uk/electric-wall-mounted...
Unless you go to a heat pump based system, which is 10 times the cost, but can also cool and uses about 1/3 of the power.
Something like this https://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/iqool-smart12...
As the other reply, insulate as far as possible.
Edited by Rough101 on Saturday 4th January 10:42
We’ve used a pair of 1500w oil-filled electric radiators in ours for six or seven years - they cost buttons to buy and are set very low 24/7 so they do enough to keep the damp at bay without costing the earth to run.
The downside is that they can take a while to warm up the space when we want to use it - not helped by the high roof - maybe something that moves the air around would be better.
The downside is that they can take a while to warm up the space when we want to use it - not helped by the high roof - maybe something that moves the air around would be better.
Rough101 said:
Any form of electric heater will cost exactly the same to run as they all convert all the power to heat. Bearing in mind though that electricity is three to four times the cost of gas……
https://www.robertdyas.co.uk/electric-wall-mounted...
Unless you go to a heat pump based system, which is 10 times the cost, but can also cool and uses about 1/3 of the power.
Something like this https://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/iqool-smart12...
As the other reply, insulate as far as possible.
Really? I thought that infra red heaters were much cheaper to run especially so in a garden log cabin of 5m x 3mhttps://www.robertdyas.co.uk/electric-wall-mounted...
Unless you go to a heat pump based system, which is 10 times the cost, but can also cool and uses about 1/3 of the power.
Something like this https://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/iqool-smart12...
As the other reply, insulate as far as possible.
Edited by Rough101 on Saturday 4th January 10:42
dickymint said:
Really? I thought that infra red heaters were much cheaper to run especially so in a garden log cabin of 5m x 3m
An infra red heater is a different sort of thing, it only heats surfaces, not the air, I was talking about electric resistance heaters.Infra red is good for workshops and searing areas where you can target what they heat, but not good for keeping damp at bay.
dickymint said:
Really? I thought that infra red heaters were much cheaper to run especially so in a garden log cabin of 5m x 3m
Infra red heaters (and radiant panels which are a sort of the same thing but different) can be cheaper because they radiate the heat, and if you mostly want one area warm you don't have to heat all the air in the space.In my workshop I have an oil-filled radiator for general not-freezing, and a radiant panel over the main bench for when I'm doing stuff that won't warm me up by doing it (ie not lifting big chunks of wood or moving around/between machines).
The radiant panel produces the same amount of heat per unit of electrickery that goes into it, but it's directed at one area, so it's cheaper than turning the oil-filled radiator up enough to warm the entire workshop.
Also most definitely the thing about insulating the roof well.
usn90 said:
Just ordered a decent quality 5m x 3m log cabin for the garden, the room will be in use most days and so I’m looking at something to heat the place, the cabin will have electricity.
We already have a couple of those portable electric oil radiators we could use, but I was looking at the wall mounted heaters, does anyone have anything they recommended.
Preferences are
1) not cost the earth to run
2) some kind of frost setting would be useful to keep the space above a certain temp
3) doubles as a cooler would be a bonus as the cabin is situated in the constant sun in the summer
4) budget upto £500
If you want the rom to be useable year-round get a heat pump airconditioning system put in. It'll warm you in the winter & cool you in the summer & compared to the cost of a (properly insulated) cabin it's a relatively small expense & make the cabin much more useable.We already have a couple of those portable electric oil radiators we could use, but I was looking at the wall mounted heaters, does anyone have anything they recommended.
Preferences are
1) not cost the earth to run
2) some kind of frost setting would be useful to keep the space above a certain temp
3) doubles as a cooler would be a bonus as the cabin is situated in the constant sun in the summer
4) budget upto £500
Air con/heat pump unit would be best. Cheaper to run, and does cooling in summer.
This is under-budget, or allows for some spending on tools/brackets as required.
https://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/iqool9plus/el...
This is under-budget, or allows for some spending on tools/brackets as required.
https://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/iqool9plus/el...
I use an old wood burner in my garden office. Can be very cheap (free) and a simple flue out of the roof. It is very effective at quickly warming the place up and making it a nice work environment. I also have a cheap fan heater to take the edge off when first in or in for a short time.
In the summer, a small USB powered fan on the desk works for me!
Insulation is the key. My office is 6m x 5m. Double glazed windows. 55mm thick timber walls. Heavily insulated roof.
In the summer, a small USB powered fan on the desk works for me!
Insulation is the key. My office is 6m x 5m. Double glazed windows. 55mm thick timber walls. Heavily insulated roof.
alfabeat said:
Insulation is the key. My office is 6m x 5m. Double glazed windows. 55mm thick timber walls. Heavily insulated roof.
This. We have a dual skinned cabin with thick insultaion everywhere, floor, roof, walls and double glazed. It sits on pads with an air gap underneath, rather than sitting on a cold concrete floor.I’ll take a look at those heat pump units, I’m struggling to get my head around how much it would save in the long run because I don’t have any data to go off with using an ordinary electric unit.
That is a customers photo of the inside although not the same dimensions ,I guess the only way to insulate the roof is to fit something like kingsman between the joists and then cover with plasterboard or something.
That is a customers photo of the inside although not the same dimensions ,I guess the only way to insulate the roof is to fit something like kingsman between the joists and then cover with plasterboard or something.
usn90 said:
I’ll take a look at those heat pump units, I’m struggling to get my head around how much it would save in the long run because I don’t have any data to go off with using an ordinary electric unit.
That is a customers photo of the inside although not the same dimensions ,I guess the only way to insulate the roof is to fit something like kingsman between the joists and then cover with plasterboard or something.
You've now opened up a large can of worms re insulation type, moisture membranes, ventilation etc That is a customers photo of the inside although not the same dimensions ,I guess the only way to insulate the roof is to fit something like kingsman between the joists and then cover with plasterboard or something.
What are you actually using the cabin for? My single bit of advice is make sure the roof ends up warmer than the walls so when (and it will) condensation happens it doesn't form and drip from the roof.
usn90 said:
I’ll take a look at those heat pump units, I’m struggling to get my head around how much it would save in the long run because I don’t have any data to go off with using an ordinary electric unit.
It's not just about the cost of running the unit for heating, it's about making the room useable year round so you'll get maximum use out of it. You've already said the cabin is in full sun so in the summer it's going to be a sauna & I've never read anyone saying they wish they hadn't put one of these units in a garden room/cabin. You might want to work out which size is needed though as I don't think the smallest one would cut it.usn90 said:
I’ll take a look at those heat pump units, I’m struggling to get my head around how much it would save in the long run because I don’t have any data to go off with using an ordinary electric unit.
That is a customers photo of the inside although not the same dimensions ,I guess the only way to insulate the roof is to fit something like kingsman between the joists and then cover with plasterboard or something.
I don’t have many photos of ours going up, but the roof insulation is on the outside, so we have the joists, the pine boards that double up as the ceiling, then 75mm (I think) of Kingspan, then 25mm OSB, then the felt shingles.That is a customers photo of the inside although not the same dimensions ,I guess the only way to insulate the roof is to fit something like kingsman between the joists and then cover with plasterboard or something.
The floor has Kingspan between the joists under the boards, windows are double-glazed and walls are 44mm single-skin.
Put up seven years ago, next summer it will get painted for the third time.
It moves around a lot with the temperature and humidity changes through the year; the height varies by about 10-15mm and the window frames are to all intents and purposes free floating - I imagine plasterboard would be a nightmare for cracking.
KTMsm said:
5kw chinese diesel heater and run it on heating oil
£80 to buy and peanuts to run
Google will show hundreds of videos / threads showing them in everything from workshops to campers
All well and good but how does that prevent the space from becoming an oven in summer? Which it will. £80 to buy and peanuts to run
Google will show hundreds of videos / threads showing them in everything from workshops to campers
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