Fan heaters, heat pumps, natural gas and oil: a comparison of heating costs

The coming winter will be a great challenge for Germany. The dependency on Russian gas is huge, so many people are afraid of freezing in winter. This ensures that fan heaters are experiencing a real boom. A comparison with other types of heating such as gas, oil or heat pumps shows why the use of fan heaters is not a good solution.

Heating with a fan heater is extremely expensive

Energy prices in Germany have already risen sharply and will rise again sharply in October 2022. If you make the wrong decision, you can fall into a cost trap. Such a cost trap is a fan heater. What initially sounds like a simple and inexpensive method of heating rooms in winter is not only a risk for the German power grid, but also for the wallet, as Statista clearly shows. Heating with a fan heater costs more than twice as much as with natural gas or heating oil:

As the price of both electricity and gas increases, the difference will remain about the same. Heating oil and pellets are also becoming more expensive. District heating could remain at a level, although not many households in Germany are connected. Most households heat with gas or oil. the Although heat pumps also run on electricity, they are very efficient. But if you are not building a new house, you will probably hardly have the opportunity to install a heat pump. Especially not in an apartment.

If you have the opportunity to mount a balcony power plant, you should definitely do it:

So what should you do?

I also heat my house with gas. It has always been important to me to avoid unnecessary expenses, so I have optimized my apartment for low energy requirements. This is actually quite simple:

• For example, you only have to check the doors and windows to see if they pull and seal them.
• Let’s take a look at the gas heater too. I only changed my heating curve slightly and saved 25 percent on gas compared to last year without freezing.
• In general, you should keep an eye on your consumption. Take a quick shower instead of a bath. Hands can also be washed with cold water, otherwise the heater has to start every time and a lot of gas is used.
• It is better to put on a sweater in the house or apartment and lower the temperature a little. For every degree less, you save a few percent of energy and reduce costs.
• Smart thermostats also help. They help you to heat much more precisely and you can also turn off the heating remotely if you forgot.

Either way, we will all have to pay more money for energy. To a certain extent, we have it in our own hands as to how much more it really will be. There is potential for savings in every household without anyone having to freeze. Heaters are tuned for comfort, not efficiency. If you change that, you can keep the additional costs under control. A fan heater is no solution.