"Miracle" heater teardown - with schematics

This seems appropriate, since there's a current surge in unscrupulous marketers cashing in on the current "fuel crisis" by claiming that this style of heater will heat your whole house for pennies.
In reality, a watt is a watt and a 500W heater like this will take four times longer to heat a room than a traditional 2kW heater.
Electric heaters are 100% efficient in converting electricity to heat, but the cost of electricity makes them less economical to run than some other heat sources. However, if you don't use a lot of heat then you also have to factor in the other costs of things like oil and gas heating, like annual inspections and servicing. I do use an electric heater for a heat boost at times during the winter, but generally have a cool house and use dehumidifiers to keep it dry.
If you do wish to reduce your heating costs than a good compromise is to reduce the temperature in your home to a level that protects pipework, and wear warmer clothing. If you live alone then one of the best things for winter is a quilted/padded boilersuit/coverall, as it's basically a wearable duvet. That's why so many farmers wear them in winter.
An alternative is to heat your home at low level and then use local heating in a single room for extra warmth.
With current fuel costs (due to greed and politics) it may also be worth looking for areas of heat loss like uninsulated attics and bad door and window seals.
In rural areas it's also worth rediscovering solid fuel burners like log stoves for converting an abundance of fallen tree branches into free, and very toasty heat.
Supporting the channel with a dollar or two on Patreon helps keep it independent of KZbin's quirks, avoids intrusive mid-video adverts, gives early access, bonus footage and regular quiet Patreon live streams.
/ bigclive
#ElectronicsCreators

[@sicks6six]

could you edit your videos down to 2 or 3 minutes please, as they are it's like watching paint dry, waiting for the grass to grow or waiting for the polish to fade, tiresome, tedious and boring, also if your image is in the viewfinder, please wear clean clothing and appear to be well kempt with shaven face and neat and tidy hair, sweaty T-shirts that double up as bed wear and food crumbs in beards is not acceptable modern times, also what you say, is it based on scientific fact that stands up to scrutinizing as you are dealing with potentially dangerous issues. . many thanks K.S.

[@bigclivedotcom]

Sorry. These videos are aimed at technical people who want more data than a Tik Tok video gives. Thanks for the fashion tips. When I do live streams I look exactly how I want to look. Everything technical that I say is based on fact and presented in a way suitable for the technically inclined viewership.

[@thefakemaker]

Thank god he’s not seen my vids. I live-streamed recapping an Amiga power supply and most of the time my head was in the way looking to make sure I got the polarity right.

[@MetalheadAndNerd]

How did you see Clive's beard an t-shirt? Are you stalking him and watched him through the window making this video?

[@zogvog119]

and wear a suit and tie instead of looking like A reject from ZZZ TOP

[@simonhopkins3867]

Karen is that you?

[@obsoleteprofessor2034]

My dad sold Philco refrigerators in the 60's. We had a defective one that would not cool. The service people first changed the compressor and the problem. The factory gave the customer a new fridge and the defective one was abandoned at the service center. Somebody decided to look at the fridge again, installed some temp probes and ran the fridge. He saw that the temps came down quickly, but temps rose rapidly once the compressor shut down. Turned out the door switch was defective and the 40 watt inside light was heating up the inside. Now...these little heaters just might warm up a room...if said room was insulated like a fridge.

[@screwthishi5thing]

That's a funny story, I've had a defective fridge door switch myself that caused mysterious burnt plastic smells inside the fridge for a week

[@josephking6515]

So the light really *doesn''t* go off when the door is closed. That mystery has finally been solved. 🥳🥳🥳

[@dobythedog]

You can hack a fridge freezer which is stored outside which would normally switch off the compressor once the external temp drops below freezing. All you need to do is link out the door switch to keep the interior fridge light on and the warmth will keep the appliance operating properly as the fridge temp won't drop below freezing.

[@tommyq374]

@@dobythedog the fridge light doesnt have any affect on the compressor etc besides the light giving additional load inside the fridge, the external components would still be exposed to below freezing outside

[@IceBergGeo]

@@tommyq374 when it's below freezing outside, the compressor doesn't warm up the fridge portion. That being the case, the whole fridge would become a freezer, which is undesirable.

[@theonlywoody2shoes]

When it comes to heating your home I recall the wise words of my Grandfather: “If you are cold, sit around a candle. If you are really cold, light the candle”. Another great video, two for one no less. 👍

[@alexatkin]

I'm hoarding PCs and when I want to take the edge off the room temperature I just run Folding@Home. Curing diseases/viruses and heating at the same time, warms your body and soul at the same time. Also seeing the next electricity bill should do a good job of warming me up too.

[@Nightykk]

That's how I keep warm at winter, yep. Though with the increasing electricity prices.. am starting to worry that I might have to turn on the actual heat this year :/

[@cliveso]

Do you remember Microsoft's Data Furnace concept some years back? It's a shame it never really materialised.

[@jabezhane]

I've actually under-clocked all my PC's. Mine was running at 4GHz now its at 2.5GHz and minimum CPU voltage. Shave nearly 100W off the idle.

[@DigBipper188]

Same trick I use - Plus a dell R620 running 24/7 because I have a couple high availability storage arrays that I use constantly.

[@andysim232]

Used to run Seti@home. My Laptop would go like the surface of the 🌞.

[@antibrevity]

Thanks for the video. I've spent an unreasonable number of hours of my life trying to politely inform people that there's no such thing as a more efficient "electric heater" only to have friends and family continue to fall for this stuff. No one pays for ads in order to tell the truth. I'll never understand why people continue to believe the ads that they see once they're beyond the gullibility of childhood. I like "ceramic" (PTC) heaters and have one pointed at my feet at this moment, but they'd gotten smaller and more expensive even before 2020, so now it's even harder to find decent ones. I recently took the heater core out of a new junky one and installed into a 90's model that includes a washable filter as keeping dust out is key to the longevity of these. At some point companies realized that they had no incentive to include the dust filter as removing it made everything less expensive while also hastening the death and replacement of the products. And to further incentivize this behavior, today's customers no longer even realize that these once came with filters, so they simply think it's normal for PTC heaters to fail rapidly. That's how you slowly, but surely, push the consumer market towards lower and lower quality and value. This is a bit like taking the spare tires out of our cars; eventually you've brainwashed the entire population to accept that they need AAA to fix a flat when their parents simply swapped one out with a spare and kept driving. Many consumers will even call this "Progress".

[@samuelfellows6923]

😠

[@alexmarshall4331]

We only have one with 2 A's...The AA (And it is nuffink to do with America's most successful export>AA) 👉🤔👈👉💎👈👉❗❗❗

[@zenbudhism]

Heat pumps are three times more efficient but expensive

[@lawrencerubanka7087]

Don't apologise for the longer video. Your thorough reverse engineering and explanation of the design teach me more than I learned in school. You run rings around my EE professors. Thanks for another excellent video!

[@tommyq374]

I enjoy the longer videos more anyways whose with me?

[@idjtoal]

@@tommyq374 Same, more "George's Square" -style rambles would be great.

[@bobroberts2371]

4:11 'Scuse me while I whip this out. . .

[@SilveniumTheDrifter]

I'd love to know if there are more guys that go into the guts of things like Clive does, actually. I love long form videos.

[@TomCee53]

@@SilveniumTheDrifter kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZypd6dpq76ab7csi=3e93ArqK0yqeisik kzbin.info/www/bejne/m6LYmmmbe82bfM0si=_Ru3Rwp6Y_Wnp785

[@Fishbait075]

The MIRACLE heater unit designed the the kid to warm up the freezing classroom where all his fellow students were studying for the exams in polar temperatures! Clive, I love you man! Not all teardown mechanics where capes!

[@voidremoved]

🤣 First thing I thought when I saw the commercial, its probably just a ceramic heater... Then I had to click this video when I saw it. Sure enough its just a ceramic heater. I love when they take some old crap and act like its a new miracle.

[@CyberBeep_kenshi]

Ye i saw it and it was sooooo cringe. As if someone wouldn't say yes to a few million..... and as if he got thrown from school because of that..... It smells like a scam and apparently these things smell, and keep on smelling when you use them. No thanks

[@srfurley]

the older inventor was a jet engineer from the North. They claim that it will save you thousands of pounds but show American Dollar bills being counted out. Why was he expelled three days later for refusing the funding and going down in history? If he’s at school why does he have a professor? Aren’t they normally found in universities? He reverse engineered technology used in all heating systems; so what did he invent them. It raised the temperature of the classroom significantly in just a couple of minutes. To raise the temperature of anything by a certain amount you have to put a certain amount of energy into it, which will cost a certain amount. How can you heat a large room in a couple of minutes without it costing a lot of money in theese days of high energy costs? The same student invented the opposite device to cool his classrom in the Summer at virtually no cost compared to conventional air conditioning the cold air, while the heater recycles the hot air. He was also expelled for the cooling device, so he was expelled twice? Why would the school expel him for saving them large amounts of money? The heater may have some merits for heating small areas, but why have these adverts not been banned?

[@Robothut]

When Clive says his finger do get cold, you know a glass of water on the bench is probably turned to ice. Thank you for the tear down and explanation of these heating devices.

[@IanFarquharson2]

Only halfway thru, and it’s good to see something not crappy torn down and explained.

[@TheKnobCalledTone.]

If you need a bit of extra heat and are spending an extended period in one spot (e.g. watching TV or working at a desk), an electric throw blanket is worth considering. They use little energy compared to a space heater (100W-300W) and they're surprisingly effective when draped over one's lap. They're also quite inexpensive to buy, many are machine washable and they feel nice.

[@marklittler784]

They sell battery gloves but electric pajamas or dressing gown might be an idea, four poster beds with curtains were forgotten about years ago but made sense. Clear polycarbonate sheets pre cut to size fitted to interior window frames with magnetic strips is an insulating idea plastic being good insulator.

[@mlee6050]

I often just use duvet

[@alilonghair7792]

Sitting in a sleeping bag is even better value on cutting the electrickery bill!

[@CrazyInWeston]

My layout is top duvet, middle sleeping bag, bottom electric underblanket heater.... meaning if the duvet and the sleeping bag doesnt keep me warm, just turn on the underblanket, of which has heat 3 settings, and I start at number 1. It really is so much cheaper in these cost of living crisis to stay warm vs central heating or space heaters. Its almost November now and I've yet to even turn on the blanket. It is currently 18c in my flat, but its only October, lets imagine January and February which are the months you'd really need the heat. Well, watch Netflix/Prime video etc or whatever on a tablet laying in yer bed with a duvet, sleeping bag and an underblankie with 3 heat settings instead of wasting your leccy on heating the room. Get yourself warm, not the entire room.

[@MsLancer99]

I've seen these plug-in heaters in mail order catalogue, and it can heat your house with this one heater. Yes, if it's a very small house and someone like me will forget to turn it off

[@FixerUK]

The black button near the plug pins is for allowing it to rotate 90 degrees to fit some sockets more conveniently and not for changing to different plugs for other regions.

[@RichardT2112]

11pm, in a cabin with limited internet, yet this made my week! Thanks Clive! Cheers!!

[@Pentti_Hilkuri]

The miracle is that it costs $6 on wholesale and still works.

[@ETJAKEOC12]

I absolutely love the nonchalant pokes and prods "I cut the insulation off to allow it to reach things that screwdrivers are supposed to reach" 😂👍

[@LoneWolf0648]

A couple years ago our furnace died mid winter and in a pinch to try and keep some heat in a 2200 sq foot home we had a couple 1500 watt heaters and 4 of the $20 units from this vid in bathrooms/laundry room (any room that had water pipes) and the house stayed comfortable even while outside was below freezing... these little heaters are good for small rooms and on occasion they still get used, they are surprisingly good for small spaces.

[@skylined5534]

I've seen these touted as the new sliced bread, they're anything but! That said they'd be great for heating a small space, say at a work bench in a garage, greenhouse, shed etc! Another very enjoyable tear down video, thanks Clive 😊

[@johnkelly1083]

I've seen the marketing on KZbin ads. It's the typical "an orphan turned nuclear scientist invented this world changing device" bullshit. At least this device serves some useful purpose, unlike the other blatant scams.

[@janami-dharmam]

they will be best to keep near the feet; the hot air can climb inside the trousers and keep the legs warm. that is mostly enough to keep you in good spirit.

[@algiefeatherstonehaugh1091]

I have one of those white heaters switched on under my own computer desk here as I type. It was so cheap to buy that I was a bit afraid that it may have been a deathtrap as so much of what Clive dissects turns out to be, so thank you for the reassurance!

[@tonyweavers4292]

An internal fuse? This must be the top of the range model.

[@SeanBZA]

@@riley5114 They use PCB tracks and the wiring as a fuse. After all, if your wire is only 5 strands of something that might be some copper or aluminium alloy, it is as good as fuse wire, and is a lot cheaper as well, no extra part needed.

[@RamsesYT]

Thank you, Clive, for bringing these extremely educational and fun videos. I learn a lot from them (and you) about electronics and repairing or hacking all kinds of devices around the house! I find myself looking forward to your next video quite often. 😊 cheers from Amsterdam!

[@manuellongo4365]

Interesting and informative. I like watching Clive's videos. He pulls apart all sorts of stuff and follows with an electrical/electronic explanation of how it works. I loved pulling things apart but I was nowhere as good to understand how they work !

[@d2factotum]

If you ignore the overblown claims for what they can do these actually seem like useful little heaters, and surprisingly well put together! I could see using one to heat a small room so I don't have to heat the entire house.

[@oscars4107]

I don't like a lot of heat. I have a similar heater to the first one and it is great for taking the chill out of a small room without making it a flaming hothouse, so I love mine running at a lower setting 👍

[@PotatoPirate123]

One of these 500w heaters will cost about 17p an hour to run in the current climate. Makes me wonder how much a gas radiator would cost for the same amount of time if you switched the heaters off everywhere but in the room you're using.

[@tgheretford]

I know there are consumer champions advocating for the concept of heating the person, not the home. Have they taken into account heat loss from the one room you are heating through partition walls to much colder rooms you're not using in their advice advocacy?

[@PotatoPirate123]

@@tgheretford there will be an element of this as some cold air will transfer to the warm room - especially if you keep the door open - but it’s undeniably much cheaper to heat one room with gas central heating at least. I’ve tested it myself with my smart meter and various combinations.

[@CampGareth]

@@PotatoPirate123 I'd have to know how efficient my gas central heating is, but it definitely has additional losses vs electric heating with boiler efficiency, heat loss from the pipes, pump power, possibly short cycling if you only need 500W. That said in most situations gas would be cheaper but I'm an enviro nut that doesn't like burning stuff so will always prefer electricity.

[@rockstarpeteuk]

I’ve recently discovered your Chanel and I’m absolutely loving your content. As an avid DIYer that loves to have a go at fixing things I’ve always had a fascination with electronics. As a layman I get completely lost with your in depth analysis of the circuits, and yet with your delivery I’m completely invested in them 😂 Carry on the great work.

[@jenningscampbell3475]

Probably the best description of these heaters ive ever seen

[@Galaxyofbrian]

Brilliant Clive. I was only wondering about these just last week. Thanks for opening these bad boys up and showing us how they work.

[@Kori-nya-music]

Just putting this out there, I have not much interest in these cheap electronic stuffs but your videos really get me interested in em, and also serve as a good time killer. Seeing how these things work and you explaining the circuits and why something is bad or good makes me wonder more about everything. So thanks for the content. And thanks for making me interested in these cheap little electronic things that I find way more interesting than if I was the everyday common user. Never stop making these videos, they are amazing and informative. Also a great distraction for when I need to pass time and have nothing to do.

[@vvillem9]

Hello DamianChief, thank you for putting this out there. Could you also put that out here for the others

[@devttyUSB0]

I've been working with some of these 'spot' heaters due to the insane energy prices. The first one looks to be a good candidate for heating the work desk!

[@Zlodej5]

That is unlikely to help you. What people fail to understand is that if you manufacture major amount of electricity from gas, lose most of it in a power lines and then create heat from that, It would mean that heat consumed several times the gas or would consume if you had used boiler in a first place... Adding upkeep to power plants, transformer stations and all of those companies making profit, what you did was to heat your legs for more then the a grade A,B or even C boiler would take to heat hole room... If you want to save money get trv. Might make mine second KZbin attempt on that

[@stephen1r2]

@@Zlodej5 It all depends on your electricity prices vs heating fuel. A modern heat pump system seems to be the best idea but may have pricey initial cost + installation. look at _Technology connections_ video on Heat pumps

[@Zlodej5]

@@stephen1r2 I agree on that in regards to heatpump, but as explained, as long as electricity is made from gas it wont be cheaper to heat by "burning" electricity then gas (electric heaters). Although if you get 100Amp supply for a standard UK house, P=UxI P=100x240=24000=24KW which is interestingly amount of energy 28KW boiler is capable of putting just into your watter. (difference caused mostly inside secondary heat exchanger). Although people dont realize how much more power has to be made then its actualy used. This is related to why gas suppliers give you caloric values in such confusing ways. To let you realize how much power is inside Gas. Heatpumps do not get heat from electricity only use electricity to get heat from thermal differencial.

[@janami-dharmam]

@@Zlodej5 your calculations are correct but the prices are manipulated. Heating based on gas or oil is 100% efficient (if you ignore the flue gases) but the prices won't match ...

[@Zlodej5]

@@janami-dharmam I really don't have time to do the calculations themselves, (converting m^3 to kw. but we have done a shower test. Few years ago to prove this point to a friend. First we have told Iranian tenant (worker) during week in October that boiler shower was broken(we have just closed the valve), next week we have disconnected electric shower. As the second week was colder, gas usage increased by less then 10 pounds. Electricity bill decreased by 20 pounds The gas bill both weeks was less then 20 pounds. Doesn't matter how efficient the last stage is, If manufacturing and even more importantly transfer of the power to you is inefficient, then the home think it's inefficient as a hole. Tenant was told afterwards and I had to get him a lager for inconvenience...

[@mallow173]

Man I love these teardowns!!! So educational and particularly for a fire investigator!! I wish we could hire you to analyze equipment!!

[@Clodhopping]

So pleased you tackled this one - the ads are popping up everywhere for this winter. 👍♥️

[@TheRedneckAtheist]

I have two of these, one under my desk to keep my feet warm and one in the utility room in my basement, it keeps that fairly small room around 50f/10c(on low) during the ridiculously cold winter months we have and saved me a massive plumbing bill when the furnace pilot light went out and I was gone for a week.

[@TinkerbatTech]

I use one of the first ones in my bathroom to help take the edge off of colder times. It's the 120V version, think it's 350W or so(?) Does the job, quiet during heat, louder on cooldown but that's fine. I like a cooldown! I started using this thing when I had to disconnect the heat element in the ceiling heat/light/fan unit so I could run the light and fan from the lighting circuit, which is attached to the critical circuits UPS which is only 400W. (the little heater's plugged into the non UPS wall outlet. No heat on battery system except the electric blanket..:) I've been quite happy with the little heater, except the horribly dim display. (Which yours has as well, I see. Usually blue leds are quite bright, even with a fair resistance.) Thanks for the teardown, good to know what's inside the beastie. Not bad, really. Keep on prying things apart!!

[@GreatSageSunWukong]

Thank you after seeing these advertised all over the place I was waiting for a good review/teardown

[@dallasdorrington7449]

Thank you Clive for a very enjoyable video. I always look forward to these videos as I love this type of video content. The naughty stuff you do is why we watch you. Cheers from Perth WA. Down under.

[@PP-360]

Biggest issue i have seen with these portable heaters is that they collect dust and animal hairs into the fans and heating elements so you need to keep in eye for that and sometimes clean it because when i teared down my own heater it looked really fire hazard

[@bostedtap8399]

Very interesting product, quite well designed and manufactured, pcb images were fantastic, looked in 3D. I have a dehumidifier ( Meaco Dessicant type), drying the air improves effective heating, plus heat from the dehumidifier. I grew up with paraffin heaters in the house, mini sauna anyone. Great job on the reverse engineering and video. Thanks for sharing.

[@janami-dharmam]

if you heat the room air, it automatically gets dehumidified. It is a problem only in the summer when you use air conditioning to cool the air.

[@BDGR_RGDB]

I look for the longer Clive vids. I've been watching for years, and (although I am technically inclined, I am not electrically inclined) I have learned a lot through passive listening, a lot of 'whelp, that was unexpected', and general goofiness. Keep up the great work, Clive!

[@mookiemorjax]

"it's dark now." I'm so glad I have Clive to walk me through all the steps ☺️

[@crazygeorgelincoln]

The jml handy heater is interesting, has a tilt switch also. I made the fan speed more variable, so it would run a little less noisy. Added feet and adapted a deathdapter into a extension so it didn't have to be positioned where the socket is( many of mine are mounted at 90 degrees so the tilt switch would do it's thing. )

[@AndrewFremantle]

Wow. A $20 electric heater here in Canada is a mechanical thermostat that doubles as a power switch, a safety cutoff on the bottom (if the heater isn't upright it'll cut off), an indicator neon (presumably with a resistor, I haven't taken it apart), plus a fixed-power fan and heating element. This thing seems absurdly overbuilt.

[@gloomyblackfur399]

Right? It's got an isolated power supply in a box that must be sealed to avoid contact with the non-isolated PTC elements.

[@shardlake]

You can buy them unbranded for $5

[@Zlodej5]

@@gloomyblackfur399 that would make it less efficient. Ok NTC is not 100% efficient, no heater is,(Sorry Clive for bit picking) wasting on chemical self damage and light (not all of it within visible spectrum) but compared to power supplies they are far more efficient in how much energy you get in a target form.

[@danielbecker6695]

@@Zlodej5 What do you think that your hypothetical visible light converts to? Why heat, of course! You seem to need to go back and crack open your physics books,friend.

[@3rdalbum]

About 15 years ago I spent about $50 on what you just described, except no safety cutout (it's a ceramic element anyway).

[@ASKARIwest]

i find the photos of the circuit boards very pleasing, looks like art.

[@johnpipe362]

Thank you for you detailed description.

[@a1white]

Good to hear it’s well made and safe at least. The problem with these heaters with a built in plug, is that you can’t position the heater away from the socket (to where you might actually want the heat). Plus, as you say it’s a slow way of heating up any reasonable sized rooms.

[@ats-3693]

Extension lead 👍

[@Zlodej5]

@@ats-3693 Definitely a bad idea.Most extension leads are only designed for short uses on greater power (above 5 Amp) for short time. This is mainly to reduce cable diameter and increase earnings of the shop selling it. This means that if you use one of them on a chainstore extension (tested on a Tesco lead) The extension leads develops additional heating feature:-)

[@NBSV1]

@@ats-3693 At least with the 2 shown they wouldn’t stand up well on their own plugged into an extension. Might as well get a regular space heater and just run it on a low setting.

[@dazednconfused31337]

We don't have many sockets exposed, so it'd be behind curtains or a wardrobe. A downside with using these with an extension lead is there's no tip over sensor? I've been ok using a 750/1500w fan heater with a daisy chained extension. But my sister recently had a failed socket, so used one for a tumble dryer and that socket(?) melted.

[@Zlodej5]

@@dazednconfused31337 I hope that was a joke, Just came from a night-run in a forest and got to read your reaction, Definitely dont put them behind the curtains or a wardrobe. melting extension lead is far less dangerous. tip ower not pointless when you are heating a curtain. all that is left to make it more dangerous is to operate it while having a bath...

[@Franktek12]

Semiconductors and electrolytics inside a Heater? Yeah, that's going to last a long time.

[@jennyjansen754]

PTCs run up to 75c. The rest of the electronics should be fine with that.

[@janami-dharmam]

if you can touch the box, the temp is cool enough for all the modern semiconductors. If you cannot touch the box and it is still on, something is wrong with the electronics.

[@Niels_Dn]

If designed properly that is no problem. For the electrolytes, think polymer hybrid.

[@Knaeckebrotsaege]

I'd be more worried about the no doubt sleeve bearing junk fan seizing than semiconductors failing due to heat. And anyone not changing caps in generic chinese devices they actually intend to use with name brand ones is just asking for failure anyway. the chongx chengx changx whatever name they print on them nonsense always needs to go

[@franktuckwell196]

Very useful, to learn whether whatever you are looking at, either actually work or are safe or likely to blow up. I have been ripped off by a couple of these mege advertising, hype type products and i use you and your wonderful comments to learn a lot. Thanks.

[@brucereichert6509]

Your videos are never long, since I watch all your videos at one and half times speed. When I forget to do that it seems like you're taking in slow mode. 🙂 love the videos, they keep my mind and skills sharp.

[@TheScytheMoron]

Yeah those have been around for a while. I love the claim "as efficient as a regular 2kW heater" ... YEAH ... that is not even a lie! Or "power saving 380W" ... yeah ... also kinda true. ^^ Really why are people sooo uneducated in the BASIC things ... I had a conversation lately with a friend who has a power consumption of about 20000kWh a year and was seeking for a way to reduce that because of the horrendous electricity prices right now. "But how about infrared heating?" (which would make her thermally desastrous house rot away) or even better "Electric heaters with less power consumption." ... I really had to explain it to her in detail, that less power consumption means less heat ...

[@mute1085]

I mean, heat pumps can easily provide more heat for less power. But they cost way more.

[@Stoner916sac]

LOL the fan speed is also the heat setting. How it works is if the fan is running at a slower speed its pushing less air through the ptc element but if its runner faster its pushing more air through either keeping it cooler or warmer and thus the power is regulated

[@KevinT3141]

Yeah, I was thinking that too, the PTC should self regulate the power down if the fan isn't pushing all the heat energy out quickly enough. Saves on split element wiring and an extra relay to adjust the power level. I'd love to have seen the Hoppi measurement of the low setting as verification of that thought.

[@Stoner916sac]

@@KevinT3141 Yep. This is how they work. The only ones that have split element wiring are the ones without fans and multiple heat settings. It's been this way since they put fans in them

[@Aco747lyte]

For years I've had a 500W heater under my desk in my small office, and its thermostat is effective and the heater also. That first "miracle" heater is rubbish and I'm glad that you did a did a good teardown because so many are being conned, Clive. Thank you!

[@PowerScissor]

@2:02 is the first time I've seen that meter not flashing. It's Beautiful!

[@Narinjas]

I would be interested in a more premium version of this heater that has a silent Noctua fan , and a small battery for the cool down cycle in case power fails unexpectedly (with the more common power outages because power companies actually started to maintain the power grid to not have leakage because the cost for power has risen so much) amd maybe a separate and replaceable room thermometer for the more accurate room temperature maintaining, and a more needed heat resistant heating element holder that can save you in case the battery is empty and the power fails, in case over night the powers flickers on and starts the heater then before charging the battery enough the power will go out again and the cooling cycle stops in a few seconds. (And finally, a floor stand and a small plug extension cable , also a wall mounting option)

[@Duragizer]

i have that black one it is straight out dangerous, if you turn it of with software buttons it will turn on if power is turned off and on. I had mine connected turned off and had stuff in front of it and we had a power outage and when power came back it turned on, luckily i was in the room and was able to react. Also that power button seem wrong since if you turn it off with controller it has a cool down period with fan while switch just turns it off.

[@stonebranson3364]

Verry well presented and explained as you do thank you. 👌👌👌👌

[@interactii]

Great breakdown on these.

[@KeritechElectronics]

Freezing cold nights? Let's fire up a tube amp and make some racket... :) Good tips for staying warm, and I have to add one more: layers, layers, LAYERS. You can never overstate this. What keeps us warm is heat insulation from air trapped in the materials - the more of it, the better, so two blankets will work way better than a single but thicker one. Air is also why animals (and people) use fur for staying warm, and why styrofoam works as an insulating material. Nice PCB design there, but with such a small power, I agree these heaters are rubbish. May be good for drying but not much besides that.

[@jeremywilliams5107]

Reminds me as a poor student hanging the washing indoors and fixing a hairdryer on Low to dry it out. Might be worth a try instead of the clothes dryer!

[@CanizaM]

Test how safe it is by bypassing the bimetallic cutout and connecting it directly to mains without the fan installed to see if it reaches some temperature and stays there, or just keeps getting hotter until flames appear. I've heard that some of these might've been mistakenly made using NTC ceramic instead of PTC. Video n6U_BfM8h24 has a great demonstration of what a real PTC heater should do.

[@BobBeatski71]

Good link that extra video. 👍

[@BobBeatski71]

Well that was crap English ! I mean, that was a good link to the extra video. Well worth watching.

[@scoobydont5299]

I have got absolutely no clue what you are talking about but I love it🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿😀

[@weerobot]

Another Great Analysis....

[@captiveimage]

I wondered if you would be pulling one of these apart given the hype. Interesting to see inside one, that's for sure. 😁

[@Strider9655]

There is no hype, it's just the clickbait media at it again, suspect there's either an advertising deal or they're linked to the companies selling them.

[@donotatme]

@@Strider9655 it's forced hype by the dropshipping scammers. In summer it's those fake AC cube things

[@MultiVogon]

I'd been thinking about getting one of these for a while to potentially use in the car when camping, so made a special trip to B&M to get the 'blaupunkt' branded version of this. I think it will work very well for that intended use, and possibly would heat a small room too. Bear in mind small fans are always noisy, so even on low speed mode you might find the noise annoying if you're trying to work for example. Also the little tab under the plug is not for swapping to other fittings, it actually allows the unit to be rotated 90deg - useful if the intended plug is too close to the floor for the unit to fit in. Also: Clive I am DEEPLY offended by your appearance in live streams. A technical person should only ever wear clothes with burn holes, spattered with unidentifiable stains. Teeth should be brown from a lifetime of slurping tea whilst trying to decide how to fix whatever it is you've just accidentally broken after dismantling it with extreme prejudice... Your clean and tidy beard, and regular person clothes are just not acceptable in these modern times. I sentence you to 3 sanitizations, 2 jaegermunions and a whoofle.

[@MultiVogon]

Fair enough I've not actually tried it there yet. A heated fleecy blanket did the job back in February ;-)

[@jimosullivan1389]

@@tabularasa7775 I have the 500 watt one for just taking chill off my study before the heating kicks in when the Lady of the house deems the ambient temp suitable to descend from the master bedroom !

[@Leahi84]

Yay! A long video! Definitely want longer videos from you if possible.

[@paulravitsky2898]

I have the US of A {120v} version of this heater. That "button" on the back allows the plug to rotate so the heater can be used on horizontal outlets. Thanks for showing us what's inside!

[@ZaphodHarkonnen]

I’ve got a freestanding 2kW version of this. It’s good for a quick bit of warmth. Heat pumps are superior for overall house temp control though. Don’t have one in my office yet. 😛

[@DigitalIP]

Heat Pumps AND Decent Insulation.

[@ZaphodHarkonnen]

@@DigitalIP living in NZ you’re lucky to get one.

[@MattyEngland]

Heat pumps are next to useless unless you live in an airtight box.

[@britsfabrication]

I have a heat pump in five years we have had it fail twice so we are on our third it costs a ton to run and bearly gets the house up to 20c in the winter and I'm in the east of England so it doesn't get that cold here

[@ZaphodHarkonnen]

@@MattyEngland living in NZ housing for much of my life? I can assure you that’s largely BS. Heat pumps work amazing unless you literally have all the doors and windows open.

[@piconano]

My PC consumes 230W just idling. Jumps to 500W when gaming. You could say it has a heater built-in!

[@johnpossum556]

Wait until you add a projector!

[@johnpossum556]

@@just_saw_dust 🤣

[@Alexis_du_60]

I don't know how much mine draws but I know for a fact that given the components I use and the case it's housed in has a lot of vents on the front, it exhausts a lot of warm air, to the point I don't even need to turn the heating in my room anymore ^^

[@SOLARSHED13]

Hi Clive me again 🤣, I have heating in my shed in the way of two 500w electric heaters which came from a friend's flat that he no longer wanted. Which when I tried them first before I installed them in the shed discovered that the internal thermostats were knackered so I have put them on a separate thermostat and all is good. The heater that you have reviewed I also have, which I bought from the shop called the range for £19 I have angled it down towards my feet as a foot warmer while I'm sat in the shed and it's absolutely fine. I have had it now for about 2 years without any issues my feet are well toasty 🤣

[@sbcinema]

It's great that you made this video, I will link it under the one I made about the things that are all wrong in advertising

[@ats89117]

It's a lot more efficient to use a directional IR heater to heat just yourself if you are stationary, rather than heating the whole room. You get toasted more on one side, but nothing is perfect...

[@jaxboet]

@ats88117. I rent a 2 bedroom drafty house with 3 ancient storage heaters that would simply bankrupt me this winter even with economy 7 should I use them. I've gone the route of infrared too. I've got two 150w Phillips Infraphil bulbs suspended from the ceiling shining down over the sofa and it's glorious. Also have two vintage Phillips Infraphil lamps to shine at my feet if needed later . I've got to keep my heating consumption to a budget of +-500w . Also added king size heated underblanket on sofa which is often more than enough heat comfort and only consumes 80watts on setting 2. Have seen Far Infrared panels of 600w and up and wondering if anybody has experience with these. Are panels worth it?

[@ats89117]

@@jaxboet As an added benefit, there have been a few recent clinical studies that claim health benefits from exposure to infrared which stimulates tissues below the skin...

[@Buugipopuu]

Remember to report ads for this to KZbin for policy violations every time you see them. These things definitely violate KZbin's ToS.

[@damianeadie510]

Absolutely- I report as a scam every time. Illegal advertising in the UK

[@binarybox.binarybox]

Another well researched article , Clive , with the pix and reverse engineering. The heaters look nicely made and probably ok for a small room but there are are plenty of small, cheap heaters on the market atm.

[@imqqmi]

Better to switch to infra red heater bulbs used for small pets/animals, dark beamer. At 250W it's about a third of the power usage and it is quiet. At 13⁰C room temp. it gives the comfort of a 20⁰C heated space at a fraction of the cost as it doesn't heat the space, just the area you're sitting.

[@tactileslut]

I have one of those over my computer and two, in series, on the well pressure tank.

[@MrDuncl]

The house we moved into in the late 1960s had a light in the bathroom with two spot type bulbs. One for light the other optimised for heat.

[@jhonsiders6077]

Saw last winter president Biden wants to ban those heat bulbs !! they fall under the indicasent light bulb rule banning the sale of anything over like 40 watts !!

[@matthewwakeham2206]

CPC have these for about £15 and I see Argos does the higher power one for about £25. I actually like the idea of these if they are not to loud and the digital thermostats are accurate. I have a normal 2kw version and it's very noisy and takes forever to switch back on due to heat retained in the unit. If the thermostats work properly they should save money by virtue of the fact you don't heat past the set point.

[@CampGareth]

CPC seem out of stock. Product code goes nowhere and you can't add to basket. Any other places with stock?

[@FixerUK]

@@CampGareth Home Bargains in UK sell a version.

[@ChrisCooper312]

B&M have these too. I bought one nearly 4 years ago for my small computer room, and it's still going strong. It's ideal as the small box room only has wall space where the socket is, so a normal electric heater would get in the way.

[@wavereader8847]

If they made the fan quieter then I would say that it is usable but it's still too loud, it's a little quieter than a hair dryer. It does seem to be well built enough, you can even turn the plug, but it's too small to be worth using and it's stuck to the wall instead of being able to be placed where you need it to. Several years back, a co-worker of mine bought a small heater to the office and it was designed where if it fell over the thing would shut off. I thought it was a neat feature. This one would need to have the miracle efficiency that it was advertise to be usable for me.

[@donwright3427]

Sitting watching this in a really cold room

[@markhonea2461]

I never had any ill conceived notion regarding these miracle money making devices. You could just as well heat your house or room with a hand held blow-dryer, or your toaster with a fan blowing acrossed it. Same cost. I use a heat pump which is roughly 3 times as efficient as an electric heater. What I am really here for is about is zeolite. I recently discovered this exotic substance on a different very interesting presentation from Big Clive regarding the breakdown of a dehumidifier. Now I have discovered a video where they are using a form of zeolite for carbon capture on semi-trucks. Still in development.. Veeery interesting. Thanks B.C. !! 👍🤓

[@johncribbins5124]

The biggest draw back for me is i have used two of these. Both have damaged the wall socket due to the weight so when i finally plugged something else in it was a loose connection. I had to change both outlets. Sadly these are too heavy

[@jennyjansen754]

Was that in the UK? Seems like an even worse idea in countries with less robust plugs.

[@johncribbins5124]

@@jennyjansen754 it was in the uk. At the end of the day an outlet was designed for the weight of a plug not a heater

[@ArlenMoulton2]

Just a hint for anyone that has a standard 2kw fan heater and wants to reduce it to a 500/1000w heater, or even further to a 500/250w heater: 500/1000w: Swap the "position 2" connection and neutral around on the element, this'll run the two elements in series for the low power setting, and run a single 1kw element for the high power setting. 250/500w: Move the neutral to the "position 1" connection on the element, this'll run the elements in series to create the high setting of 500w. Put a 3A diode in series with the "position 1" output of the power switch and also connect this to the "position 2" connection on the element. The diode will run the element half-wave which averages out at using 1/2 the usual power, creating the 250w setting.

[@gaborb6577]

or simply operate in Pwm control to reach the desired temperature

[@ArlenMoulton2]

@@gaborb6577 That's the fancy way, not the "10 minutes and it's done" way

[@NiHaoMike64]

@@ArlenMoulton2 Fit a high current light dimmer in series, now it's adjustable from zero to almost the full rating.

[@ArlenMoulton2]

@@NiHaoMike64 maybe one of those motor speed controllers Clive has featured previously

[@p4tmchef]

I used/use a similar unit to keep my weed growing tent warm during lights out in the winter. Worked great.

[@AiOinc1]

Lovely to see a well engineered circuit once in a while, it doesn't look as cost reduced as we've seen it definitely could have been. Almost like they paid someone to actually try this time!

[@Graham_Langley]

Agreed - surprisingly well-made

[@trueriver1950]

10:15 the disadvantage of your redesign is that if one LED fails open circuit then both stay dark. My guess is that their design is to ensure that the indicator continues to light up even if one or other LED fails. They each have their own resistor so that if one fails short circuit it doesn't steal all the current from the other one.

[@Lumibear.]

I pondered if it might be something like that, as the rest of it seems overly safety conscious for possible unpredicted mechanical failures, it makes some sense.

[@userPrehistoricman]

Have you ever seen a dead indicator LED that wasn't overdriven? They seem to live indefinitely.

[@brianfretwell3886]

I find it amazing that (according to You Tube adverts) these things have been invented simultaneously in three different countries by different people of different technical backgrounds.

[@GoldenCroc]

Just three? All kidding aside, they probably do a localised ad for just about every country on earth. My little country got tons of "local miracle inventions" scam ads... made of the finest chinesium and using 100٪ stock footage. Apperently there is no vetting for fraudulent claim in ads featured on any of the big social media platforms such as youtube, facebook. I wonder a bit about the legality of it all, in my country it would be blatantly illegal to feature such ads, but when they are served by for example facebook, its fine?

[@downtheshedwithjason]

I'VE got a silvercrest like the white one, very similar, bought in lidl i think. excellent little heater. warms the shed nicely. never on for more than half an hour or so

[@hermannschaefer4777]

The MC is a MC94F1202A made by ABOV, an 8-Bit controller with 12-bit ADC. I found one in a cheapo rice cooker recently. It's a 8051-type MC.

[@RetroGamesCollector]

Great teardown. Was looking at getting one of these little heaters for my mancave. I'll avoid the round black one I think!

[@himynameisben95]

Hey, I had one of those black heaters in my flat. I had it running constantly for months and eventually the fan stopped working and it melted. I loved it while it worked, though, and I was definitely overusing it.

[@GwenShep]

I literally just got an ad for this weird thing on here, I was kind of confused as I'm certain I'd seen these sold rather cheap for a long time now but they made it out to be some new miracle device

[@UpLateGeek]

After just coming out of a winter where the state government had to suspend the electricity market to prevent the kind of blackouts they're threatening in the UK, I can say that you really can save money by making some minor changes to your heating habits. I simply rugged up a little more, turned the thermostat on my heater down a little, and switched it off when it's not needed rather than just leaving the timer to switch it off at the regular time. With just those basic changes, my winter bill was 10% less compared to last winter, despite the fact that the energy price has gone up by about 10%.

[@billbimson2408]

On the comment right at the end of your video about your hands getting cold, I saw a video today of a guy who was using a 7W flat vivarium heater, which he rested his wrists on while he was typing to keep his hands warm. I've just ordered one today in the interest of some comfort while keeping power costs down. They're on e-bay for about 11 quid.

[@jannejohansson3383]

6:50 Those HUGE pcb:s look so nice and realistic. If you look too late this, it's giving "woow" feeling and thinking "time to 😴💤"

[@AMDRADEONRUBY]

Nice Clive video I missed that's one but yeah love your stuff

[@BedsitBob]

I've got a couple of these heaters. I've got them primarily as emergency heaters, in the event of a boiler failure, etc.

[@IN_THIS_DAY_AND_AGE]

I have a 250w Belling Handy Heater under my desk. It's been in my family for at least 50 years and is still going strong.

[@MrDuncl]

I had to look what that was. In winter my Father used to put one of those under the bonnet of his car overnight (which was kept in a detached garage) so it was easier to start in the morning.

[@KmanAuto]

I have a little 200 watt heater in my kids room. when the temps drop below freezing it can get a tiny bit chilly. It has three settings, fan, 75 watt heat and 200 watt heat. I turn it on at bed time and it keeps it comfortable overnight. I have another in our teardrop camper. the 209 watt setting will make you sweat in that !

[@BlazeFox89]

If you can afford the huge outlay for a split system they are definitely the cheapest way to warm a room, you can get 3kw of heating with less than 600w input. If you are running the heating daily it will quickly pay itself off over a year or two.

[@Slikx666]

And down at my friends flat we just don't bother with heating, just blankets. 🙂

[@hugoboyce9648]

Great video! It kinda makes me want to get the first one...

[@dynorat12]

ha ha the hoppy stop flashing when you turn the lights off great video

[@paullewis252]

The main trouble with this kind of crap, is that it's target market is the people who are not necessarily well versed in electrical items and purchase them, hoping out of desperation to save on their electricity bill and to keep warm. Not only are they purchasing inefficient crap, but a potential fire hazard. In this day and age where we all supposed to be saving the planet, surely the powers to be should have some sort of legislation preventing the sale of crap like these..... Anyway keep up the great videos ! I like them.

[@andrewwilson6240]

More going on with this than I expected!

[@TechyBen]

I have a Daewoo branded one of these to keep the air and some warmth moving around my boat to help keep moisture off in the winter. But as you say, it's just a normal tiny heater.

[@napalmholocaust9093]

I've had too many fires to ever buy a plastic heater. Don't trust unattended candles either. And lock/latch your fireplace doors so logs can't roll out at night.

[@patelk464]

There are ads for these type of plug-in heaters that make ridiculous claims and follow typical scam product script. So good to see that they do work, at least work for a small room.

[@runed0s86]

I used one of those white ones to keep a house from freezing. It worked as I expected it to. It kept the house above 40.