Heater Help

Kaz Honeywell SureSet Heater Compact Key FeaturesType CompactPower Source ElectricHeating Levels 2 LevelsFeatures Thermostat ...

Honeywell SureSet HZ-339BW Ceramic Compact Heater Product HZ339BW Key FeaturesType CompactPower Source ElectricHeating Element Ceram...

All across America, people go to work every day to offices that have their thermostats set to “Freezer at Dairy Queen” levels. I work in one such place. I’m cold in the Winter. I’m cold in the Fall. I’m cold in the Spring. I’m even cold in the Summer, save for the few days a year that the air conditioning inexplicably dies. And for those who think I’m being a sissy, I’m usually so cold that my fingernails turn purplish-blue. Yeah. That’s cold.

Most days I can feel the cold air wooshing out of a vent overhead. It does absolutely no good to complain about it, my co-workers and I have tried with little success besides making the janitors ticked off at us.

The easiest solution, of course, would be to invest in a space heater!

My first space heater was a wonderfully industrious piece of metal that kept me warm for over two and a half years, until one day when I turned it on and it refused to heat up.

Left without a spaceheater at the end of winter, I set about to find a new one. Luckily, Target had theirs on clearance. I picked up the Honeywell SureSet Ceramic Compact Heater for $24.98 (originally $49.99).

What Honeywell claims:

Large, easy-to-ready SureSet digital display

Adjustable thermostat can be set in 1 degree increments

Programmable timer for 1-10 hour automatic shut off

2 heat settings

Oscillates for wide heating

SafeGuard alert badge warns if the grille is hot

Flame-resistant plastic and overheat protection

What I found:

The Honeywell SureSet is a compact heater that is taller than it is wide. The casing on the backside is black, along with the stand. The front casing is a brushed silver color (I believe the one that Epinions has pictured is a faux wood effect, but they are the same model number). It definitely is a step up looks-wise from my old yellowish metal space heater.

I plug my spaceheaters into an electrical strip that is built into the cubicle around my desk. The cord features a 3-prong and is a descent length, especially since I just plug it in and leave it right in that spot. I want my heaters to be able to heat my feet when the temperature dips to “Arctic”.

Continuous Running:

The front of the heater features a large digital display and six buttons. The top left button is the “Power” button. Pressed once, the heater will run continuously at “High Power” (1500 watts, 12.5 amps) until the heater is manually turned off. Pressed twice, it will run continuously at “Low Power” (900 watts, 7.5 amps) until manually turned off. These are the two functions I use the most.

Setting a temperature:

The middle button on the left, below the “Power” button, is the “Temp/Timer button”. When pressed, it will cause the display to show the current room temperature. You can then use the “Up and Down arrow” (on the right side of the display) to set the desired temperature you would like for the room. Once you stop pressing the buttons, the current room temperature will reappear. It blinks if it’s over what the desired temperature is (and the heater isn’t running), and stops blinking when under the desired temperature (and the heater is running again). The heater will cycle on and off to keep the room at a certain temperature.

I tend to not like using this setting, only because the air conditioning at work seems to run at random spurts and the heater has a hard time keeping up since it’s under my desk. I’d rather have the control to turn it on and off when I feel like it.

Setting the timer:

There is also a “Set Timer” function. Pressing the middle button on the left twice (this is the same button pressed to set the temperature) causes the “Timer” icon to blink. You can then use the Up and Down arrows once again to set the heater operation time between 1 and 10 hours. Once it’s set, the hour set will remain displayed until the timer runs out.

Once again, I’ve never used this function. There just really isn’t a need.

Oscillation

The last button on the left is the “Oscillation” button. When pressed, the heater begins moving back and forth. Pressed again, and the heater will stop.

Fahrenheit/Celsius Function:

The last button on the right, below the “Up and Down arrows”, is the “Fahrenheit/Celsius Function”. Pressing this button allows the user to go between Fahrenheit and Celsius.

Daily Use:

I mostly just press the “Power” button when I want the heater on and off. I usually run it on the “Low” setting (pressing the Power button twice) because I feel like the “High” setting heats up my little space way too fast.

The heater features a badge on the front of it that glows red with an exclamation point when the front is hot. When running on the “Low” setting, this badge rarely appears.

I feel safe using my heater at work because it has a high temperature safety control that prevents it from overheating. However, this heater does NOT have a tip-over switch that would disable the heater if accidentally tipped over. That’s a little scary to me.

However, after two months of use…

I’ve had my Honeywell SureSet Ceramic Heater for about two months, and the fan is already making a really loud grinding noise. When I first turn it on, it makes a low whirring noise, like normal, then suddenly begins to make the loud grinding noise. It’s an awful racket. The heater and all the controls still work just like normal. However, I work in a quiet environment (study lab/library) and so it’s difficult for me to run the heater when students are around since it could be a distraction. The heater has a limited 5 year warranty, which covers all defects in material or workmanship. It would require me to send it to Honeywell, along with proof of purchase and $10 for shipping and handling. I’m still debating if this would be worth it, or if just buying a different space heater would be better.

Keep in mind, this is a result of me running the heater maybe 45 minutes total five days a week, just in the mornings when it’s chilly.

The Bottom line:

The Honeywell SureSet Ceramic Compact Heater has a lot of bells and whistles as far as features, but is already experiencing defects after just two months of use. I will probably by a different space heater, and probably not a Honeywell.

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