Conservatory heating that stands a chance

Why conservatories are so hard to heat

Heat escapes through glazing several times faster than through an insulated wall. A room with glass on three sides and a polycarbonate roof can lose its warmth within minutes of the heating going off. Anything you do to slow that loss increases what a heater can achieve.

Do these before you buy a heater

• Fit blinds — thermal or honeycomb blinds cut roof and window losses noticeably.
• Seal draughts around doors, frames and the base of the structure.
• Close the door to the house, so you are not dragging warm air out of the lounge.
• Lay a rug on a tiled floor; cold floors make a room feel several degrees colder.
• If the roof is polycarbonate, an insulated roof upgrade changes the room completely.

Expected heater sizing

Which type of heater

Fast-response heating suits a room you use in bursts. A ceramic fan heater reaches temperature in minutes, which is what you want for two hours on a Sunday afternoon. An oil-filled radiator takes 20 to 30 minutes to get going and then loses that heat to the glass — the wrong tool here. Full comparison in ceramic vs oil-filled.

What it costs

At 27p per kWh, 1,500 W flat out is about 41p an hour. In a leaky conservatory the thermostat will rarely cut out, so budget close to the full-power figure — perhaps £1.20 for a three-hour afternoon. That is still far cheaper than heating the whole house to make one glass room usable. Method in electric heater running costs.

Where RapidHeat fits

RapidHeat is well suited to a small or medium conservatory with blinds and double glazing, used in sessions rather than all day: switch it on, get warmth within about five minutes, use the room, and let the timer switch it off. In a large single-glazed conservatory it will make the space more pleasant without making it cosy — we would rather say that plainly than sell you a heater that disappoints.