Where the Sun Doesn't Shine--This Honeywell Does!

Here it is winter. A very cold winter and we found ourselves moving into a very old house. This house has little--if any, it seems--insulation. Well we have forced air heat in the majority of this house but here is the kicker. This house is wired screwy. The entire kitchen and a third bedroom is on one end of this home. The heat is non-existent on this side.

We are having a very chilly winter. As long as the sun is up, the house is nice and cozy. The sun beams down into our kitchen and we don't think twice. It is when that darling sun goes into hiding and my oldest son goes to bed that we find, ...brrr. It is freezing in here.

This left us trying to figure out what to buy that would heat this side of our home. We didn't need anything overbearing but something that would warm the kitchen and bedroom enough where we were comfortable. Off we went to Ames to look for a heater. After over 45 minutes of looking over the minimal choices, we found the Honeywell Heat Giant. (This is the Honeywell Utility Heater HZ2110) I liked the looks of this heater and was drawn to it for a few reasons. I kept going to it, and we finally decided to pick it up.

It was $39.99 and I thought at the time that seemed a bit high but I wanted this heater. We brought it home and used it that night. It did the trick, it warmed the kitchen and bedroom quite quickly although not instantly, and we knew we had a keeper. A great thing about this heater--it doesn't seem to be in the way!

Now the next day, we decided to go to Lowes to look for some activated charcoal to put in our attic to keep the moisture down. This brought us past the heaters and what do we see? The Honeywell Heat Giant was at a regular price of $29.99. My husband works here and we wound up getting a discount and brought this one home for $26. The higher priced Ames version went right back to the store..."No thank you!"

What this heater offers:

First, it is all metal with the color of a light charcoal gray. It is nice and durable. With three active children and three dogs that think the kitchen is their playground, I knew it was going to get bumped and knocked constantly. It may have a few dents but nothing to damage it. This heater has a handle on top that moves so that it isn't in the way--it sports the Honeywell name--, and when you need to; you just pick it up and take it to the next area of your choice. It says it handles well for "home, workshop or basement."

I love that it is lightweight. For a heater that does its job of heating the kitchen-- (big kitchen--bad insulation) and bedroom, I would have thought this heater would be heavier.

The Honeywell Heat Giant has an adjustable thermostat. I change this constantly. Like I said, as long as the sun is up, the kitchen is nice and cozy. However, once it disappears, the kitchen gets very chilly and the thermostat keeps the kitchen/bedroom at a nice temperature. The dial for this thermostat is very colorful, and is right on the finish of the heater. There aren't any decals to peel off and leave you wondering a few months down the road. The dial is a heavy plastic that turns easily and seems sturdy and reliable.

It has three heat settings. Low, medium and high. I normally turn this to high to heat quicker. I am impatient. Once the temperature gets to where I want it, I turn the thermostat down. I have used it on low a few times when my son wasn't feeling well and I put it directly in his room to warm him up a bit but didn't want to overheat him. This heater also offers the option of fan only. I have not used this feature. It is nice to have it though.

The Honeywell Heat Giant has a wonderful feature on the heat settings. To turn it on, off or change the settings, you must push in the knob to do so. This makes it great with my children. They love to turn buttons and this deters them perfectly. They now leave this heater alone, as they are told. Again, the words and colors are right in the finish, and no decals to worry about.

The heater has a few safety features, which helped me make my choice. They are called the "Safety 6 System." I have a really hard time trusting electric heaters. I hear so many things about them overheating and causing fires. This one has "tip over switch protection." If it tips over, it will immediately turn off. It also has an overheating warning button. The light will turn on if the heater overheats. It will start again once the heater cools off to a reasonable temperature. Of course if this situation arises, the box boasts a "high temperature circuit breaker with backup". This hasn't happened to me yet, thank goodness, but I am sure that eventually it will.

The bottom has a semi-flared base. They call this a "wide, stable base." It is stable while on a hard wood floor but on the rug, it could be more stable in my opinion. It won't fall over with a minor bump but it could still fall over with less than it would take to make it fall while on solid ground.

The Honeywell Heat Giant has a 3 prong grounded plug and while running, the heater, if touched has a "cool to the touch exterior." This is a good feature for those curious hands roaming around in my house.

Since bringing this heater home, I have been very happy with it. It does its job nicely. It doesn't get too hot, and of course, if it does, I can turn it down and get instant relief. It really isn't loud, and provides sort of a white noise. It is comforting. I am also relieved to know I won't freeze if we run of out gas to heat the rest of our home. This will be a good stand-by if/when this happens. We may all have to huddle in one end of the house but we won't freeze:)

The Honeywell Heat Giant comes with a 5 year limited warranty. Honeywell offers a web site to check out if you require more information--www.Honeywell.com/yourhome. Not only can you find support at the site, but some helpful information on the product you are searching for or you are curious about. If you are still wondering about your heater, Honeywell offers this toll free hot line for a technical expert. 800-332-1110

A little note off the bottom of the box: This heater is intended for use on tabletops, desktops, and floors. It specifically says not to use in wet or moist locations such as bathrooms and laundry areas. If you must use an extension cord, it must be 14 gauge or larger and rated no less than 1875 watts.

I would have to recommend this heater if you are looking to heat a somewhat large room. It seems to handle the job quite well. My kitchen is pretty large, and has a porch attached with only a door separating the rooms. The bedroom is attached right to the kitchen. A large space for such a compact heater.

When it is nice and warm outside for good, I will wrap the cord around the base of this heater, and tuck it into a corner and forget about it. Unfortunately, the cord won't look glamorous when wound up, a feature I wish they could have figured out since they have the wide base. Oh well, I can't have it all I guess.

I guess I will go dream of those warm days that seem very far away right now. At least while I am dreaming I will have my heater to keep me warm. :)


Happy epinioning!!