Storage heater controls

[chrism46]

I have 5 storage heaters, 3 of them just have an input and output knob which I understand, the other two also have a knob which the controls the temperature of the room, I have always kept the input on these two on 3 (the highest) but not sure if this is the right thing to do, at the moment I have them both set on 1 1/2 for the room temperature, the one in the hall is warm this morning but the one in the living room is hot even though all the controls are set at the same, am I doing something wrong.

 

[stem]

It's not an exact science with storage heaters unfortunately and often needs a trial and error approach. They store up heat when cheaper electricity is available, usually during the night. The quantity of heat stored up is controlled by the input knob. The trick is to store just enough heat so that they don't run out of heat by the evening.

Much depends upon the physical properties of your home. It maybe that the hall doesn't need as much heat as the lounge because it's a smaller area, or has less external walls and windows. In which case the heater will adjust its output (based on the setting of the output knob or thermostat) and so may emit less heat than the lounge one. Therefore, the hall one will remain warmer for longer, meaning you may be able to set it at a fairly low input, but the lounge heater may require a full charge as it has more work to do.

It will of course also depend upon the sizes of the heaters, a larger heater will store more heat than a smaller one.

Then when the weather changes and more heat is required the the input may have to be higher. Think of it like filling a car with fuel. Half a tank may get you 250 miles, but when you need to do 500 miles a full tank is required.

 

[chrism46]

Thank you for your reply, great help.