Browse Forums Heating, Cooling & Insulation 1 Jul 20, 2009 10:07 pm I guess this is the right section for this question - its about heating anyway DH's birthday is comeing up soon - the BIG 50 for him (of course I am a lot younger - well, 4 years, anyway :: ) Anyway our kids want to buy him a larger than usual present between them, they dont know what to get, I was thinking of suggesting one of those gas patio heaters, you know the free standing ones with the canopy bit at the top , plenty of information and pics on the net but cant find any prices, anyone know the aproximate price range for these. Would like to find out before I suggest something they cant afford Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 2Jul 20, 2009 10:17 pm I think they start around the $300 mark from somewhere like Bunnings Blog: http://bluemistkids.blogspot.com "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark, and professionals built the Titanic." Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 3Jul 21, 2009 12:40 am You may also want to consider in the equation the running costs: Typical output: 18-43 MJ/hr Area covered: 20-25m2 Typical run time from 9kg ($45) cylinder: 10-20 hours ($2.25-$4.50/hour) A patio heater uses about 1.5 to 3x the usual energy to heat a similar area indoors. Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 4Jul 21, 2009 8:46 pm Went to Stratco today, they had a few different ones, dearest is a stainless steel one, on special for $376, they had a maximum budget of about $500, so looks like this is the go Dynomite, I know they are not terribly efficient to run but will only use it occasionally so we can live with that. Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 5Aug 03, 2009 8:01 pm dynomite, just curious, what would you say is the best most efficient way to heat an outdoor area? www.themaxbuild.blogspot.com forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=20717&start=300 www.leahspaperpassion.blogspot.com Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 6Aug 03, 2009 8:02 pm dynomite, just curious, what would you say is the best most efficient way to heat an outdoor area? www.themaxbuild.blogspot.com forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=20717&start=300 www.leahspaperpassion.blogspot.com Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 7Aug 03, 2009 9:49 pm themax dynomite, just curious, what would you say is the best most efficient way to heat an outdoor area? Apart from a jumper then radiant heat. Heat from a fan heater will just get blown away. Can they plumb patio heaters to natural gas - it is a third cheaper in cost. If possible try to seal up the alfresco with cafe blinds to reduce wind movement and insulating above it with batts will help retain warm and reduce demand on the heater. Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 8Aug 04, 2009 7:50 am HAha had to laugh at the jumper! Not sure about the heaters to natural gas, that would be a great idea wouldn't it? I haven't seen one. I hate the cold so I guess in Winter I will be inside waving to the family through the doors to the Al Fresco. www.themaxbuild.blogspot.com forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=20717&start=300 www.leahspaperpassion.blogspot.com Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 10Aug 04, 2009 10:59 am Charlene Keep in mind when using these heaters to read the instructions, they do say that you can only use these in a well ventilated area, so dont seal the alfresco up and have the heater going Of course. I didn't think of that. These heaters aren't flued like an indoor unit. It seems you really can't make them that energy efficient after all. Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 11Aug 04, 2009 11:36 am At the house Im in at the moment, we've got a pretty big alfresco area and its closed off with those plastic cafe blinds to keep the cold out. We pulled our old wood fire out to make room for a split system so now we use the wood heater out in the alfresco and point the chimney out towards the lawn so that nobody gets smoked out Works soooooo well!! Its always toastier out there than it is inside. Wont be doing that in the new house though (as it gets a bit messy with the wood and the ash etc) Ive put a gas point outside so we can plug a patio heater into it, but they only really work when youre standing right next to them. Ahh well, better than nothing Building 'The Kingston' (with 'Boston' elevation) through Blueprint Homes in Hocking, Perth **PCI complete 06.02.10** My Thread - https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=17607 Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 12Aug 04, 2009 8:09 pm themax dynomite, just curious, what would you say is the best most efficient way to heat an outdoor area? In energy terms there is no 'efficient' way of heating an outdoor area but in cost terms using natural gas or electricity is cheaper per kW then using LPG. I found this electrical outdoor radiant heater on the web. The advantage of having individual units is that you aren't blasting heat in every direction. It is easier to 'point' heat towards occupied areas and separtely switch them on as necessary. http://www.thermofilm.com.au/products/h ... stripb.htm Re: Cost of gas patio heaters? 13Aug 06, 2009 12:01 am I've had some pretty good experience with these kinds of heaters in the US. I "closed in" my patio and had a hot tub out there. Total area was about 50m2. This was by no means a sealed space nor was it insulated. Even in this size space, the heater was effective and could increase the temperature in the space from about 25F in the winter to around 55 to 60F. We used that space all year round no matter how cold outside. In the winter I would go through a tank every 1-2 weeks but that was using the heater for several hours on most days. In a different house I had similar results with a much more open arrangement. The trick is to keep most of the weather out. In a totally open space, effectiveness is pretty ordinary. Unless your space is air-tight, these types of heaters don't present much of a hazard from a ventilation perspective. Thanks for the insights, that makes perfect sense, and yeah, I will be leaning on the experience of the excavator operator entirely. 6 16122 Firstly the ableflex that has been installed needs (manufactures specification) a sealant cap over the top, preventing water draining down between the slab and the… 3 7776 If your patio is going to be 35 sqm then that's going to need Council Approval. The fact that they previously approved your 25sqm patio will be irelevant 1 5503 |