How to distinguish real infrared heating panels from other panel heaters

Indoor infrared heating panels are a trending heating product in Europe right now. However, as with any trending niche, there are copycats in the industry that sell electrical heaters that look like infrared panel heaters but are in fact not real infrared heaters. So, how how can you distinguish real infrared heating panels from other types of panel heaters?

Wattage density

A real infrared heating panel will be around 1000-1200W per square meter of the heater surface. There are quite a few heating panels in the market which are being advertised as infrared heaters but are actually hybrid heaters. For example a heater with a size of 40*100cm and a consumption of around 1000W has almost double the wattage density of a real infrared heater. In reality this is a hybrid heater with about half infrared radiation and half convection. Some electrical panel heaters have an even higher wattage density. At a size of 20*100cm and 2000W consumption it should not be labelled as infrared but as convection heater.

Surface temperature

An infrared panel heater should have a surface temperate of at least 80-90degrees so that it can be effective. If the surface temperature is only 40-50degrees, it’s probably not a real infrared heater.

Insulation level

If you go to the DIY market you can easily find a cheap carbon fibre panel at size of 60*60cm, the power will be roughly around 400-500W, so wattage density seems to be within the range but they are not real infrared heaters. Those panels have around 70degree surface temperature but due to the lack of insulation, those panels have almost the same backside temperature as they have on the front surface. A lot of the energy emitted on the backside is being wasted by warming the wall and not the room.

Thickness

Infrared panel heaters normally have a thickness of around 2cm. Together with the mounting bracket, the distance from the heater to the wall will be around 4-5cm. While most other types of panel heaters have a distance of 10cm because they need an air gap on the backside for air circulation.

At Sundirect we offer a wide range of infrared panel heaters for different applications, from bedroom heaters to bathroom heaters, from residential to commercial applications, you can always find the right one for your needs. Explore the whole Sundirect infrared heating range .