A space heater may be electric, infrared, ceramic, baseboard, quartz, micathermic, natural gas, kerosene, propane etc. It may become baffling. Nonetheless, basically there are only two types namely, convection and radiant. Which type best suits you, is decided by the circumstances you are faced with?
Radiant space heaters employ light energy for heating an item which on getting heated transfers heat to the rest of the room. The experience is comparable to being in the sun on a cool day. Though the sun warms you up, you can still feel the cool air around you. As the sun begins to go down, the temperature begins to fall quickly. Infrared, quartz and halogen type heaters are categorized among radiant space heaters.
Heaters that warm the surroundings thru setting up of convection currents are known as convection space heaters. The heaters falling in this category are baseboard electric heaters and oil or water filled radiator style heaters. One can safely say that any space heater that delivers heat by direct burning of fossil fuel comes in this category. To get a better understanding, imagine being in front of the outlet of the centralized heating system at home and feeling the warm air flashing over you, yet the kitchen counter tops continue to give a cool touch. This kind of heating is known as convection heating.
You should understand that the three factors which affect your comfort level are heat, humidity and wind speed. You can feel heat very easily. But, when the humidity is low, your body releases more moisture which on getting in contact with blowing air causes it to evaporate and we all know that evaporation causes cooling effect. This can easily be experienced on a cool day when you feel like having an extra layer of clothing if the wind is blowing versus a still day, with the same temperature.
Radiant space heaters neither bring down the humidity nor create wind speed. This is their strongest characteristic. But, as already mentioned, they first heat objects which in turn heat the room, therefore they raise the temperature slowly, you may though feel comfortable even with a lower room temperature. If you are looking to heat a small area, a radiant space heater should be your best choice. On the other hand, a large living room may be best heated for a shorter period by employing a convection space heater.