Basement heating options

[Hemi-Cuda]

Our house has a walk-out basement that's always cold, regardless of what the house thermostat is set to (single furnace). I thought a couple of electric baseboard heaters might work, but the ones I looked at all require an external central thermostat to work, which I don't want as I want self-contained units. Can anyone recommend something decent that won't break the bank?

[Fuzz]

Are you looking at just one room, or area, or a bunch of separate ones? We got one of these for my wife's office:

https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/n...5997p.html#srp

It has no problem at all keeping it hot. There are lots of options with this sort of idea, maybe even something like his:

https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/heati...cFireplaces_en

Depends if you want it on all the time, or on demand. If it's on demand, something with a fan like my first one, or those fireplaces, might work well.

[troutman]

^ Any fire hazard risk with these?

[Hemi-Cuda]

Basement is open with a TV area and wet bar, then a separate bedroom and bathroom. The open area is probably 500 sqft or so, and there is already an electric fireplace down there under the TV but it doesn't have a blower, plus I wouldn't want to see my gas bill if I tried to use that to keep it warm all the time

[Fuzz]

The one we have doesn't look like it would. It's got a filter on the back you clean occasionally. The rest of the case is far enough from heat it doesn't get to warm. We've had it about 5 years with no issues, and my wife uses it a lot. She's always cold, and her office doesn't have a cold air return, so it gets even colder.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

We've always used the manual space heaters that are turned on when needed. Never used one with a thermostat before.

One workaround is using a timer like you would for xmas lights. So keep the space heater in the "on" setting and then plug it into a timer, which then plugs into the wall. Then you just program the timer for when you want it to come on during the winter.


I would strongly advise against "fan heaters" and instead would look for a "radiant heater" if you are going that direction. I HATE those fan heaters. They are loud and inefficient.


This seems to explain the differences/options available well:

https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/howto...ce-heater.html

I'd stick to oil, baseboard or infrared IMO. Otherwise, I have no advice on thermostat controlled versions. Seems like that option is mostly based on how much you are willing to spend, not the type you choose.

[Sliver]

We just installed this in our bathroom a few weeks ago. It's great and you can adjust the temperature right on the unit.

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/dim...ite/1000709639

[Sliver]

Baseboard heater is also great because it's silent versus a space heater.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

Basement is open with a TV area and wet bar, then a separate bedroom and bathroom. The open area is probably 500 sqft or so, and there is already an electric fireplace down there under the TV but it doesn't have a blower, plus I wouldn't want to see my gas bill if I tried to use that to keep it warm all the time

The thing with electric heat is it's all around the same efficiency. So baseboard heaters aren't going to be any better. The only thing to improve it is a fan, to move air around.

The only better efficiency ones I've seen are the heat panels, but they tend not to heat up more than the air a few feet around it. Why yes, my wife also has one of those, which we got last year due to the efficiency issue, and the other one isn't all that quite. She's been using it more once she gets the temp up, it's right under her desk so works well for that location. But this type only uses 150W, vs 1400. I know, not super useful for your case, but maybe for someone else. This is the most affordable one I could find that is made in NA and metal, not plastic.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00FRFFC4W/

[Hemi-Cuda]

This looks interesting, couple of these in opposite corners would probably keep the whole basement quite warm

https://www.amazon.ca/Heat-Storm-HS-...63&sr=8-9&th=1

[Fuzz]

It's pretty much the same BTU as the one we have(but $100 more), which I think is going to be the limit for a 15A circuit. The first review shows a fried cord, and it looks a bit undersized to me, for that wattage.

[GoinAllTheWay]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

The one we have doesn't look like it would. It's got a filter on the back you clean occasionally. The rest of the case is far enough from heat it doesn't get to warm. We've had it about 5 years with no issues, and my wife uses it a lot. She's always cold, and her office doesn't have a cold air return, so it gets even colder.

This sounds so familiar.

[Geraldsh]

I bought an electric fireplace/tv stand for my basement. It has worked well for a year except after several hours on the switch tries to revert to “on” when I switch it off. A new switch is on the to-do list..unplugged after each use until fixed. It puts out 1500 watts and takes the chill off 300 sq. feet without raising the power bill much.

[Lumby Lager]

We had a similar infrared quartz heater to the one Fuzz suggested in our last house. Ours was from Home Hardware we got it on sale for around $130.00, had it for 5 yrs and never had an issue. Gave it to a young colleague that moved into a basement suite and she has had it for 2 more years with no issues. It is rated for up to 1000 sq ft and our area was pretty close to what you need it for, I don’t think the extra expense of that one from Amazon would be worth it at all.

https://brantfordhomehardware.ca/p/c...filter-3836051

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by Lumby Lager

We had a similar infrared quartz heater to the one Fuzz suggested in our last house. Ours was from Home Hardware we got it on sale for around $130.00, had it for 5 yrs and never had an issue. Gave it to a young colleague that moved into a basement suite and she has had it for 2 more years with no issues. It is rated for up to 1000 sq ft and our area was pretty close to what you need it for, I don’t think the extra expense of that one from Amazon would be worth it at all.

https://brantfordhomehardware.ca/p/c...filter-3836051

Thanks for that, I think this is the route I'll go. Easier install and less noise

[bizaro86]

I had this problem for years, and have tried all sorts of electric heaters. They were are all about the same. I never did the baseboard ones though, so that might be best.

That said, we fixed the problem this year by having a cold air return for our furnace installed just above the floor height in our basement. The heat registers are in the ceiling, so having the cold air return at floor height pulls the coldest air out of the room into the furnace. It also lowers the air pressure in the basement, so more hot air comes from the furnace.

This made a huge difference to our comfort in the space, and I'm pretty sure I'll save the $200 it cost (parts and labour) in electricity in one winter.

[Fuzz]

Since you mention it...threadjack time. Do we have HVAC guys here? Can I run a return using the 4 or 5" round ducting, rather than the rectangular? It would be a lot easier for me to install.

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Since you mention it...threadjack time. Do we have HVAC guys here? Can I run a return using the 4 or 5" round ducting, rather than the rectangular? It would be a lot easier for me to install.

I don’t see why not, my basement return is round. Air is air, square or circle unless the area of the circle isn’t enough for the draw. Usually it’s just a joist bay until it hits a drop. I only play an HVAC engineer on TV though.

[jeffh]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Since you mention it...threadjack time. Do we have HVAC guys here? Can I run a return using the 4 or 5" round ducting, rather than the rectangular? It would be a lot easier for me to install.

Yes, and I’d suggest going to 1” larger diameter sized pipe, than the supply air feeding the room. So, if you can fit a 6” or 7”diameter pipe, it would be ensure adequate return air.

[Calgary14]

When I had my basement developed I had them put in an electric fireplace which works well, but not as well as a gas fireplace. Another thing that made a difference was the subfloor (most of the basement is carpet) which means no cold feet. And heated tile flooring in the bathroom. Obviously only doable if you are renovating or developing a basement.

With all that said if it gets really cold, around -20, I also use a space heater as needed.