Fan heater recommendation?

Posted 1st Mar 2023

I've got a leak in my house. Any recommendation for fan heater for drying out the room and put to use in my basement afterwards? Can I use an extension cord? The room is carpeted. Is it better to use hot fan heater or cold fan? Thanks.

10 Comments

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Backinamo
1st Mar
Wouldnt a dehumidifier work better?
fruitflora Author
1st Mar
I do have one but am thinking of the using the fan heater to speed up drying the carpet. I'm clueless. First time hopefully last time having a leak.
AC-ZEP-GEN-DC
1st Mar
I assume you've fixed the leak?

Just run your dehumidifier for now 24/7. You may benefit from pulling the wet carpet up to allow the floorboards or concrete below to dry as well. Problem is you'd then need to refit the carpet back onto the grippers.......
aLV426
1st Mar
Depending on how long the carpet has been wet - you may need to replace it as the smell of stale water is a difficult one to remove! I guess you could try a wet vac?
Bob24601
1st Mar
Please make sure that you have some idea how much a fan heater will cost to run.

Some are 3kW (or maybe higher), so could be looking at £1 per hour, doesn't sound much but it will soon add up.
fruitflora Author
1st Mar
Yikes. I wasn't aware the running costs is that high. I thought it might be cheaper than buying a shed for storage.
Kb64
1st Mar
Maybe a desiccant dehumidifier that work well in cold rooms?
aLV426
1st Mar
My parents house suffered a leak on their new wooden floor (IIRC the installers nicked a pipe when fitting). Insurance took care of it and ran dehumidifiers 24/7. My dad was not impressed as the insurance didn't cover the electricity costs!

I think you'll need something active to dehumidify as those passive gel based dehumidifiers won't remove as much moisture. Also a fan heater will only cause the moisture to move elsewhere and the water will condense on a cold surface