How To Buy Outdoor Patio Heaters

Add weeks or even months to your outdoor season with a patio heater. Simple to install, energy efficient, and easy to operate, outdoor patio heaters bring the comfort of indoor entertaining to your outdoor patio all year long.

Make the great outdoors your living room

When the weather turns cold and the breeze gets chilly, most of us decide its time to pack up our outdoor furniture and move in. An outdoor patio heater can keep the party going late into the night or even into fall and winter. To keep yourself and your guests perfectly comfortable no matter the temperature or season, outdoor patio heaters come in a variety of shapes and sizes, all of which feature a number of climate control options. Consider these steps when deciding what heater to buy:

1. Work with what you've got. If your patio features gas grill equipment, capitalize on existing infrastructure by choosing a gas heater. If you're patio doesn't have such a system installed, devices that operate using canisters offer flexibility of placement. Outdoor patio heaters can operate on kerosene, butane or propane as well as natural gas. Make sure to choose an outdoor patio heater that uses the most economical bottled fuel within your area.

2. Size matters. The average outdoor heater can provide heat within a radius of 15 to 25 feet. Whatever bells and whistles you chose, make sure you get a big enough heater for your space.

3. Form and Function. Since they come in a number of shapes and styles, you can get a heater that looks nice and works well. Don't settle for an ugly piece or get something cute that doesn't get the job done. Heaters come in different styles, (portable, post-mounted, table top, fire pit, Olympic torch, tiki torch, chimney, or ceiling mounted). Portable heaters might be a good fit for people who camp, while designs with wheeled bases might be a good match for people with large patios that might like to move the heat source around periodically. Get something that looks great on your patio and works when and where you need it.

4. Safety first. Look for industry certification, tilt switches, sealed burners, flame controls, electronic ignitions and emergency cut-off valves. Don't put the heater in a place that creates a fire hazard. Controls should be fully enclosed in a protected compartment insider the outdoor patio heater.