blog

EdenPURE Heaters: Yet another expensive space heater

OMG, It's Bob Vila!

OMG, It's Bob Vila!

I was finishing up November's Popular Science magazine last week and I was at the point where I started getting to the bad advertisements at the end of the magazine.  And much to my surprise, I see yet another expensive space heater advertisement that claims to reduce your energy bills by 50%.  This was a different ad than the Sunheat heater; however it is basically the same product with one major difference:  Bob Vila endorses it!  Woo hoo!!!

This heater is called EdenPURE, and it honestly looks like the same device.  From a forum on the topic comparing EdenPURE and Sunheat a person says:

If you look at Sun Heat and EdenPure, their offers are nearly identical. From what I understand from a local dealer for Sun Heat, EdenPure is a spin-off of theirs, made by a guy who used to work for Sun Heat! Prices are very similar also. EdenPure has a plastic casing. Sun Heat is wood and both have Honeywell thermostats.

And yet the best review of EdenPURE and other expensive space heaters (like Sunheat) comes from one of hte most trusted resources out there: Consumer Reports.  From the Consumer Reports review of the EdenPURE heater:

The unit was the second-lowest-scoring space heater we tested, earning only a 24 out on our 100-point scale. According to the folks in our Tech department who tested space heaters, the EdenPure provided lackluster temperature control and was not particularly easy to use, What's more, it was pricey and lacked an overheat-protection feature (key for safety). The GEN3 models do have this important safety feature, according to BioTech Research.

If you're in the market for a new space heater, be dubious about any heater whose manufacturer claims the appliance will slash your heating bills. Here's why:

For every degree that you lower your home thermostat in the winter, you'll save about 3 percent on heating costs. So the only way to really save with a space heater would be to use the unit in the room you're in and turn down the thermostat elsewhere in the house so that your main heating system would not operate. To save 50 percent on your heating bill, you'd have to lower the home thermostat about 17°F. Also, based on national average fuel prices, using an electric space costs more than twice as much to operate as a natural-gas-fueled central-heating system.

Here's an article from ripoffreport written by someone who used to work at the company that makes Edenpure.  I believe it because they aren't trying to sell anything, just give advice.  I wouldnt put too much stock in the warehouse workers though, I'm sure a lot of companies have those problems.

Some of the more common complaints I've read about the Edenpure heater:

  • Quartz bulb burns out
  • Too expensive (about $300) for a space heater you can buy at Wal-Mart for 1/10th the price
  • Doesn't put out enough heat
  • Raises electricity bills

But hey, at least it wont catch your house on fire.

Bottom Line:

The reason they say it will cut your heating bill by 50% is that you are changing from central heat, to a space heater.  This means that you have to move the heater around to each room you are in to stay comfortable.  It's a change in strategy, not a new amazing product.  I'm going to take our a lame ad in Popular Science with the slogan:

SLASH your Energy Bills FOREVER!!!

Do you know what I'll be selling?  A Snuggie.

Snuggie: Slashes heating bills!

Snuggie: Slashes heating bills!

enjoyed our post? let others know: 

Comments

I agree with you, Shame on Bob Vila...He endorses a product which only workd for 3 weeks...He was the reason I bought in the 1st place...NEVER AGAIN
BUYERS BEWARE..EDENPURE MIDWEST has a great scam going. Know that if u buy a heater from EDENPURE MIDWEST and u are not happy with the product, that when you return as you do have 60 days for your full refund,well when u do return, they are going to TRY and charge you a 45 % Restocking fee and a $30 Initial shipping fee, which comes to a Restocking Amount of: $178.65,is they would have posted that on their WEBSITE so you can plainly see it, I would not have purchased it....BY THE WAY, HEATER QUIT WORKING AFTER ONLY 3 WEEKS We did try and contact MIDWEST and they stated that fact is located in the consent to policy box, nice and tucked away that way you will not see, they would not refund my $178.65 to me, so do as I did, contact you credit card co. and they will handle your issue for you, needless to say, I GOT A FULL REFUND
Thanks, Frank! That's $400.00 I wont spend on Ed's gen4!
A 1500 watt heater will deliver 5100 BTU's of heat per hour no matter if it comes from a 20 dollar walmart heater or a 300 dollar heater made in an Amish barn. All electric heaters have essentially the same efficiency at converting electric energy to heat energy. If the heater does not indicate anywhere how many watts or amps it uses, BEWARE of a possible scam. A quartz heater, a ceramic heater, and a plain old baseboard heater all have the same efficiency of energy conversion in spite of what the salespeople try to tell you. You pay the same amount per BTU from all of them.
We love our edenpure heater and it does save about $50 month on electric bill, but only 2 years old and we have had to replace our bulbs and our thermostat and circuit board too expensive for 2 yr but when in good shape works like a space heater should. Anyone from edenpure reads this i would like a respone back to us. thanks
No, I'm sure that is probably fine. I'm not saying space heaters aren't good, I'm saying really expensive ones are probably a rip-off.
Thanks Lyndal. I'm sure it works like a space heater, but the question is, does it work better than just a normal space heater that you can get for $50 at Wal-Mart? How much have you spent on yours?
Hi, Chris! That's my concern... which space heater is most cost effective and does not remove/depleat ambient oxygen? Do you know of a site/product comparison that I can view? Thanks!
Wait, so the space heater in my room that I use instead of the central heat sometimes--should I even bother?

Pages

Post new comment

Subscribe to Comments for "EdenPURE Heaters: Yet another expensive space heater"