How to pick the right infrared heater for your bathroom
When you’re picking out an infrared wall heater, your first instinct might be to just grab the one with the highest wattage. Don’t do that. The secret is matching the heat to the actual size of your room and the materials on your walls. These heaters aren’t meant to warm up the air—they’re designed to warm you and the surfaces around you. It’s a much smarter way to handle heat. Finding the right wattage The wattage basically tells you how fast the unit gets hot and how intense that heat feels. If you’ve got a tiny powder room (under 4m²), a 400W to 600W lamp is plenty. If you go overboard in a space that small, you’ll just overheat the room and trip the safety sensors. Not a great start to your morning. For bigger bathrooms (6m² to 10m²), you’re looking at 800W to 1200W. But here’s a pro tip: instead of one massive, scorching lamp, try two smaller ones. It spreads the warmth around better. You won’t end up with those annoying “hot spots” where you feel like you’re being toasted in one corner while your toes are still freezing in the other. The “instant heat” factor Most of these wall heaters use shortwave infrared. The best part? They hit you instantly. You don’t have to stand around shivering while you wait for the room to warm up. The only catch is that they can be a bit aggressive if they’re too close. To keep things comfortable and avoid any skin irritation, make sure you mount the heater at least 2.1 meters up. The boring (but important) electrical stuff Higher wattage means more power draw. If you’re installing a 1200W system, just double-check your circuit breakers first. And if you’re just replacing an old lamp, make sure the voltage matches exactly. If the voltage is too low for the power supply, you’ll fry the filament in minutes. One last thing: don’t oversize your heater. When a heater is too powerful for the space, the thermostat clicks on and off constantly. It’s annoying, and it wears out the lamp way faster. Stick to the calculated wattage for your room, and your hardware will last much longer.