Heating is more expensive. Is it worth purchasing electric radiators as an alternative to gas heating?
As gas prices continue to rise, Germans are also considering fan heaters and other electric radiators for the winter. In fact, consumer protection warns against carelessly switching to electric heating.
Electricity costs for electronic radiators higher than gas costs
Electric heating generates significantly higher costs than gas heating. thermondo calculates: If you run a single fan heater for five hours a day at maximum power, you need 10 kWh per day. If the electricity price is 30 cents per kWh, this would amount to around 90 euros per month – for just one fan heater in just one room, which doesn’t run all day. And that with an unrealistic electricity price because in the first half of 2023, Germans paid an average electricity price of 42.29 cents per kWh. However, one kWh of gas only costs an average of 12.26 cents, as the Federal Statistical Office announced.
Fan heaters etc. could cause power outages
But there is a second reason why experts advise against using fan heaters and other electric heaters as an alternative to gas heating: As Ramona Pop, chairwoman of the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations, explains to the mdr, increased use of electrical heat sources can overload the power distribution networks. This must be avoided in any case, as power outages can have far-reaching consequences.
The Federal Network Agency therefore recommends that households continue to heat with gas, but keep the room temperature lower than in previous winters. Even just a few degrees could pay off financially. And a spokeswoman for the Federal Association of the Energy and Water Industry told the news channel: “In almost every household and public building there are still ways to save energy – for example avoiding the bathtub, taking shorter showers or having a professional heating check.”
Conclusion: fan heater for emergencies or selective use
If you can’t afford a professional heating check or feel like you can’t save any more kWh of gas without an electric heater, you can use a fan heater in rooms that are rarely used, for example. An example would be using such a device in the bathroom in the morning – this means that the gas heater in this room does not even have to be turned on and you can press the off button on the fan heater again after about half an hour.
And: In general, it’s not a bad thing to have a fan heater in the house, says Reinhard Loch from the North Rhine-Westphalia consumer advice center, according to the Augsburger Allgemeine. This way you won’t be left empty-handed in the event of a complete gas failure.
Editorial team finanzen.net