The UK's bestPatio Heaters2022 Review

When it comes to fuelling your patio heater there are really just two choices: gas or electric. Both options have their advantages and disadvantages.

Gas Patio Heaters

With a gas heater you have two choices: a heater which produces a visible flame to provide both heat and light; or a more traditional gas heater which features a burning element.

Gas heaters with visible flames are spectacular to look at but are much more expensive compared to the traditional alternative. Both types of heater do of course contain some sort of flame, produced from burning gas, so also come with the responsibility of being aware of the dangers this presents.

The power of gas heaters is measured in British Thermal Units (BTUs), and it’s difficult to know exactly how many BTUs you’ll need to heat a certain area. However, a general rule of thumb is to have approximately 5000 BTUs per 30 m².

You will need to buy either butane or propane gas canisters to fuel your gas heater. Some heaters can be fuelled by either gas, whereas others specify which type to use. Check the manufacturer’s instructions for your specific heater.

Propane is a popular choice for people living in colder climates. This is because it has a very low boiling temperature of -42°C. Propane has also been shown to produce more heat than butane.

Butane will be a suitable choice for most of the year in the UK. It has a boiling temperature of -2°C which means that it isn’t a good fuel in very cold weather. It’s marginally cheaper than propane, plus it doesn’t burn as fast. This makes it a good choice if you’ll be using your gas patio heater frequently, as you won’t burn through your fuel supplies unnecessarily quickly.

You will also need a gas regulator to connect the canister to the heater. Some heaters come with these already included, whereas others don’t. Different regulators exist, with different connectors. You need to make sure that the connectors between the canister and regulator are compatible, otherwise you won’ t be able to hook them up. When choosing which canister to buy, check that you have the correct regulator, and vis versa.

Finally, having a gas heater means you need to deal with the upkeep of gas canisters; this means buying them, storing them, and disposing of them safely when empty. This can put some people off, so it’s something to bear in mind.

Electric Patio heaters

Electric heaters use ‘radiant heat’ and are normally in the form of infrared lamps. They are generally more lightweight, and more versatile, than gas heaters. Freestanding and wall mounted versions are widely available. Electric heaters also tend to be cheaper to run than gas heaters and operate quietly (gas heaters can ‘roar’ when burning fuel).

Another advantage of electrical heaters is that they use mains power, so you don’t have to worry about running out of fuel. The downside of this is that they need to be placed near a mains socket. A lot of electric heaters have a power cable of only 2 – 3 meters long. Therefore, if the socket is far away, you may be left with a lot of impractical wires trailing across your patio.

If it’s too impractical to plug in an electric heater, a gas-powered heater might be more suitable.

A common concern with electric appliances is not being able to ‘see’ how much money you’re spending whilst using them. Fortunately, it’s very straight forward to work out how much it will cost you to run an electric heater.

Calculate how much it will cost you to run an electric heater:

1. First you need to know how much your energy provider charges you for 1 kWh. For this example we will presume that they charge 18.54p /kWh, which was the 2019 average.
2. Find out the wattage of the heater. Most electric heaters have more than one heat setting and use different a different wattage on each setting. For this example we will use settings of 800 W, 1600 W and 2500 W.
3. Divide the appliance’s wattage by 1000 to find out how many kilowatts it uses per hour. In this example, at 800 W the heater would use 0.8 kW/h, on 1600 W it would use 1.6 kW/h, and on 2500 W it would use 2.5 kW/h.
4. Multiply the price you pay per kW/h (18.54p) by the number of kilowatts the heater uses in one hour. This will give you the cost of running the heater for one hour.
   • 800 W = 0.8 X 18.54 = £0.15 per hour
   • 1600 W = 1.6 X 18.54 = £0.30 per hour
   • 2500 W = 2.5 X 18.54 = £0.46 per hour

There are three main designs when it comes to patio heaters: freestanding, wall mounted and table top.

Table-top patio heaters are compact and they can be easily transported and stored. As a result, they’re great for people who have less storage space. They can be either gas powered or electric, and sit in the middle of the table, keeping guests warm. You need a sturdy table to support a table-top heater, just to make sure it doesn’t topple. For this reason, a lot of care should be taken when using table-top heaters around children or pets, in case they knock the table.

Wall-mounted electric patio heaters are a space-saving solution to patio heating. They don’t take up any floor space, so that’s great if you don’t have much to spare. They also don’t require you to have a table. They do, however, need you to have an appropriate wall close to your patio area – relatively clear of windows and other fixtures.

If you can find the perfect place to position your wall-mounted heater, you’ll find it both convenient and effective. Of course, they can’t be moved around like many other heaters, so you are a bit more limited on flexibility. And, finally, you will need a sufficiently close power socket. Many wall-mounted heaters come with relatively short power cables of 2 – 3 metres max, so you may need the help of an electrician to fit an outdoor socket or extend the flex.

Freestanding patio heaters are extremely versatile. The electric versions can be very lightweight and cheap to run, making them practical enough to keep on for many hours and to position and re-position as many times as necessary. Gas versions may be slightly heavier, but don’t require a mains cable so can used anywhere in the garden.

Patio heaters with a choice of power settings will give you the versatility to choose how much heat you’d like in a given moment whilst also giving you control over usage costs.

With gas heaters, you can generally control the power output by turning the dial in order to burn more or less gas. One slight drawback of this is that you don’t know exactly how much gas you are using at any given time, which can be slightly nerve wracking from a cost point of view.

Electric heaters often have a variety of heat settings. Having three settings to choose from tends to be a good amount to offer sufficient control over the temperature.

The benefit of having different settings on an electric heater is that you can know exactly how much electricity you’re spending, depending on what setting you’re using. Using a lower-wattage setting will cost less than a higher-wattage settings.

In the ‘Electric Vs. Gas Patio Heaters’ section above, you can see a more detailed breakdown of how to work out the price of using an electric heater on different settings.

Occasionally, you and your guests may get too hot using a patio heater on its highest heat setting, so having access to some variation can help keep the temperature comfortable.

Naturally, when using any heating device, there is a safety risk involved.

There are a lot of steps that you can follow to keep you and your family safe whilst using a patio heater.

Whilst this may not be a fully comprehensive list, here are some ways to stay safe whilst using your heater outside:

• Only use heaters for their intended purpose. If a heater states it is for outdoor use only, don’t use it inside, and vis versa.
• Avoid naked flames. If using a gas heater, make sure any flames are contained behind tempered glass to minimise the fire risk.
• Look for anti-tilt features. Anti-tilt features can be in the form of a base that is hard to knock over. More expensive heaters can be fitted with a mechanism which shuts off the heat if the heater falls.
• Keep heaters away from flammable materials. This can be anything from plants and plant pots to dry grass or climbing ivy. If you have a gas-powered BBQ or similar, you may have gas canisters on the patio. If this is the case, remove them before using a patio heater.
• Ensure the heater is on level ground. Don’t position it directly on grass and, if you do want to have it on the lawn, make sure to put down a solid, stable surface first.
• Beware of windy days. Wind can catch a heater and knock it over. Try to use heaters in positions where they won’t get caught by sudden gusts, and avoid using the heater on a day with strong wind.