Heater for toilet - advice please.

[pickleye]

I'm looking for advice on heating my father-in-laws back toilet.

Its in the link between two semi's and is totally unheated. The room is approx 800mm x 2M, and damp. The link is brick construction, just painted mainly used for storage, second freezer, tumble dryer etc. Most of these links converted to garages, so the heater doesn't have to be very pretty.

Normally he uses the upstairs loo, but has had a stroke and has had his mobility impaired and feels the cold a lot more. I'm hoping for a heater to take the chill out of the room.

I was thinking of one of these:

http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Heating_Index/Tubular_Heaters/index.html

Sadly, it needs to be cheap to buy and run. It can't be too bulky as not a lot of space in there and his mobility probs. I don't need the room to be toasty. There is no econy 7 type supply at the property either.

Any suggestions welcomed.

 

[ProDave]

That sort of heater will be cheap to run, but next to useless to give any warmth to a cold, damp, uninsulated space.

He really needs to do the job properly and upgrade the room to insulate it, and add some proper heating, perhaps a radiator from the existing central heating of the house.

Check with your local council to see if, in view of his disability, if there are any grants available to properly refurbish this room.

Otherwise a 2KW fan heater on the wall would be better. Turn it on when he goes in, and at least he will be blasted with warm air to make the experience more comfortable, and turn it off when he leaves so the running cost will be low.

 

[wozz]

I would be thinking along the lines of :

http://www.dimplex.co.uk/products/domestic_heating/miscellaneous_heating/mph/index.htm

http://www.dimplex.co.uk/products/domestic_heating/kitchens_bathrooms/downflow_fan_heaters/fx20_fx20ve/index.htm

 

[pickleye]

Thanks, prodave and wozz, that was what I was afraid of.

I hadn't though of using a fan heater like that, only continuously running up a huge bill. That might be the way to go.

Don't think there's any mileage in the council as private house and we've had to fight them for a chair to use the shower. Likely they'll argue facilities upstairs are fine, a stair lift might be a better option, but, mother in law wont have one put in. Catch 22 headbang

 

[NozSpark]

Don't think that just because it's a provate house that there aren't organisations that will help you... there are criteria that you have to meet, but this isn't one.

I do a fair bit of work subbing for a "care & repair" contractor in my area, most (if not all) the houses I've worked in are privately owned. The main reason for the works are to ensure that the home is safe and easy for the "person" to return to after hospital care and some is just for modifications to the house to make life easier...

Get your fathers Occupational Therapist involved, they know what's available and where to get it from,, the Stroke Association is also very good.

Hope your father gets the help he needs.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

Prodave has saved me from typing exactly the same. I think wall mounted fan heater with pull cord. They normally have an internal switch for 1 or 2 kw.

 

[Evans Electric]

Electric Panel type radiator with a stat, perhaps 1KW , may help to dry out the room.

 

[cadspark]

There is the option of the old fashioned heat/light unit. Quick and easy to install with no additional wiring.

http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/HES451.html

 

[sellers]

Electric Panel type radiator with a stat, perhaps 1KW , may help to dry out the room.

my thoughts, with a timer

 

[Apache]

You don't need too much heat guys. If the room was 2 metres high we are looking at 3.2 cubic meters of space. A small tube heater would take the chill off. The cheap and cheerful light/heater would be my choice if the lighting circuit could take it. Nice and cheap and only in use when needed. Wouldn't take long to heat the space and stops costing when you switch the light off and leave.

 

[pickleye]

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

Currently they've gone for a calor gas heater running in the link giving a little heat in the toilet. I think it'll be dearer to run, but, they have a friend who can do big discount on gas refills. Ill bring up options with them if the weather takes a cold turn again.

 

[ProDave]

A Calor gas heater will just pump lots of water vapour into the air adding to the damp problem. Not to mention carbon monoxide etc when used in a confined space.

A very BAD solution, and probably more expensive than just using an electric heater.

People have this mentality that Electricity = expensive and gas = cheap. That might apply to mains gas, but certainly not to bottled gas bought in small size cylinders.

I use bottled gas for cooking (no mains gas here) and even buying 47Kg cylinders at the discounted "home heat" rate, it is expensive, but thankfully cooking alone does not use much.

In the past I used bottled gas for central heating, and that was expensive.