I have a house with no wall heater, and would like to install one. What criteria should I use to help me determine the best place for the heater? Is it better, for instance, to be on an inside wall? Would it be better to have it beside the door of a room I want to get some of the heat, or on an adjacent wall, to "direct" the heat toward the door?
Where should I install a wall heater
heater
Related Solutions
In most thermostat installation guides, it's recommended to install the thermostat on an interior wall across from the heater. If you trace the existing wires, it's possible the thermostat will end up above the heater. This is not ideal, and could lead to a poorly heated room. You might get lucky, but in most cases there are a couple more appropriate options.
Use the heater as junction point
There should be an area of the heater used to make electrical connections. If this area is large enough, you can use it to extend the supply conductors out to the thermostat and back.
To do this...
- Turn off the power to the circuit at the breaker/fuse box, and insure it's off using a non-contact voltage tester.
- Run 2 new cables (4 wires, 6 if the circuit has grounding conductors) from the heater to the thermostat location.
- Disconnect the supply conductors from the heater.
- Using twist-on wire connectors (or any approved means), connect the supply conductors to one set of conductors leading to the thermostat.
- Connect the other set of conductors from the thermostat to the heater.
- Make the connections at the thermostat.
- Turn the power back on, and enjoy.
Pull all new cable
The other option is to pull all new cable.
To do this...
- Turn off the power to the circuit at the breaker/fuse box, and insure it's off using a non-contact voltage tester.
- Pull a cable from the breaker/fuse panel to the thermostat location.
- Pull a cable from the thermostat location to the heater.
- Disconnect the existing cable from the heater, and remove the cable.
- Connect the new cable to the heater.
- Make the connections at the thermostat.
- Connect the new cable in the breaker/fuse panel to the breaker/fuse used previously.
- Turn the power back on, and enjoy.
Probably not the answer you want to hear, but the manufacturer of your heater would most likely prohibit the alteration of air flow into and out of the unit. Doing so would void the industry safety certifications required for manufacturers, the warranty, and would probably not be safe.
Additionally, all wall heaters have minimum clearance requirements for the placement of objects in front, 8" is likely too close for placement of combustibles (like wood cabinets).
I would recommend that you discontinue use of the wall heater if it does not fit your design plans. There are many types of plug-in electric room heaters that work for a variety of room sizes. Many of these are very quiet, inexpensive, and efficient (probably more efficient then that wall heater) and you can place it anywhere in the room you want.
Best Answer
Most HVAC's are designed with vents near areas or low insulation or drafts, which are typically windows and doors on exterior walls. I'd suggest the same should be done for any space heater, baseboard, or in your case, a wall heater. The reason is to equalize the temperature in the room and counter-balance any drafts.
That said, a wall heater will have different requirements from an HVAC vent, the main one being that you only have a single heater rather than lots of vents. You have to consider the power/fuel source and how you'll run the line to your selected wall. Be sure place it where combustible materials won't be placed near the heater (the specs on the heater will tell you how much clearance it needs).
One last consideration is to maximize the space that can receive heat, and in particular the spaces that you plan on using the most. So if you place it in a room and close the door, no other rooms will be heated, but that room will be heated really well. If you place it in a hallway, the whole home will get some heat, but each room will only get a little of that heat and only when their doors are left open.