Room Heater vs Heat Convector: Difference and Comparison

Many of you may have used a room heater or a heat convector, but you may not be aware of the fundamental differences between them.

Both a room heater and a heat convector are used to keep a room warm, however, both phrases aren’t limited to heat because they both perform the same function but with distinct procedures and elements.

Key Takeaways

1. Room heaters are portable and can be moved easily from one room to another, whereas heat convectors are fixed to the wall and cannot be moved easily.
2. Room heaters consume more electricity than heat convectors as they have higher wattage, making them more suitable for larger spaces. In contrast, heat convectors are more energy-efficient and suitable for smaller rooms.
3. Room heaters use a fan to circulate warm air around the room, while heat convectors work by convection, where cool air is drawn in from the bottom, and warm air is released from the top.

Room Heater vs Heat Convector

Room heater does not use a fan or anything else to warm the area but a heat convector uses fans to regulate and spread the warm air in the whole room. Room heater comes in various shapes, sizes, and varieties, on the other hand, heat convector is a specific type of room heater that comes under this category.

For small to larger spaces, room heaters are ideal on the other hand for larger spaces heat convector is best as heat convector works on the principle of thermal conduction due to which it takes time to heat up the surroundings.

Room heaters are are of various types like fan heater, halogen heater, radiant heater etc. on the other hand, heat convector is a generic name for a specific type of heater.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Room Heater	Heat Convector
Definition	Room heaters are heater that are used to make you space warm and provides localized heat.	Heat Convector is a special type of heater that uses convection current to circulate the heated air and makes your room warm.
Source of Heat	Radiant and convector are two sources of room heater.	Convector is the source of heat convector.
Power Rating	It comes in various power ratings that lie between 18p-29p	It has a power rating between 22p-29p.
Based on the Usage	A room heater with radian heat is perfect for a room that needs heat for a short period of time.	For longer period of time heat convector ca be the ideal choice.
Types	There are different types of room heaters like ceramic, fan, oil fitted, infrared, dual kherr room heater, etc.	Heat Convector is a special type of room heater.
Heating	Filament, ceramic plate, thick plate, convection heat, oil, infrared radiation are the types of heating under this.	Convection heat is the type of heating.
Convenient For	Average to Larger Spaces	Average Spaces

What is Room Heater?

Room heaters are the appliances that provide heat from short are to large areas for a specific period of time according to the usage of humans. Room heaters come in various types, sizes, varieties, and categories. Based on which they can be further classified as:

1-Oil-filled radiator
In this type of heater, first, the oil is heated which then warms the air around you and it is suitable to maintain the temperature in the room for a longer period of time. This type of heater is slow in process and execution.

2-Carbon Fiber Room Heater
For evenly distribution of heat carbon fiber can be the right choice that resists your air from drying and does not consume much amount of electricity. 

3-Fan/blower Heater
This type of heater uses convection current mode to warm up the space and is faster in working and processing. Due to the fan that is inside the heater, it creates a noisy sound that can be sometimes irritating and for humid situations, it is not safe to use. 

4-Radiant Room Heater
As the name is self-explanatory that radiant heaters use the infrared radiation that directly goes on the surfaces of the objects and makes them warmer.

What is Heat Convector?

Heat convector room heaters use the convection current to circulate the warm air in the air.

Firstly, the cold air goes inside the heating element then circulates throughout the whole body which gets warms, and as it is the property of air that warm air rises and cold air get dense due to which heated air rise up and goes into the surrounding.

In this way of the thermal conduction process, your room gets heated.

The second series of convectors can be installed at every floor level to minimize the cascading impact of the downdraft in buildings with enormous expanses of multi-story windows.

Convector heaters are ideal for large space areas like offices, hotels, restaurants, and schools.

While the rising heated air blocks the downdraft, it also creates a warm air curtain that works as a buffer between the space and the cold wall, preventing heat loss.

According to the power consumption, a heat convector is classified as a Gas-fired heater that uses gases or any fuel, and the other one is electric heaters that use electricity. 

Main Differences Between Room Heater and Heat Convector

1. The two terms room heater and heat convector do the same work but the difference is that room heater is the whole branch of the heaters that have various types of elements, processes, and series of the heater. Heat convector is a specific type of heater that uses the thermal conduction process to keep the surroundings warmer.
2. Room heater directly heat the air but heat convector first makes the heating elements warm with which cold air gets heated and then after increasing density it gets spread in the whole area.
3. Room heaters come with a different range of power but heat convector comes with only a small range.
4. Room heater gives the loud noise based on the heating element residing in that on the other hand heat convector is silent in nature.
5. For small spaces oil heater, halogen, radiant heater is suitable but for larger spaces heat convector is best.
6. Room heater uses an electric coil while the heat convector warm throughout the air with the help of convection current.
7. Room heaters that have to fan heat up the space quickly due to which they are ideal for small spaces like garages, small rooms, offices while heat convector takes time for processing due to which they are ideal for large spaces for more stability.

Reference

1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378778813002466