Radiant heaters - provide heat directly to the room and tend to warm people and objects in the room faster than the air itself. they are therefore most appropriate for rooms that are poorly insulated, drafty or rooms with high ceilings.

Convection heaters - the air is past over an element warm up and then circulated back into the room, either with or without a fan.

Examples of radiant heaters

Oil filled radiators - a popular solution because once the oil has been warmed up the electricity consumption stops and the oil retains the heat for a long time. There is no fan and therefore they are virtually silent and create no dust, they have the same radiant heat benefits of the halogen heater below. A popular solution for the majority of applications.

Halogen Heaters - Provide a warm glow which makes one warm just by looking at it! The heat is a radiant heat similar to the sun which warms up the body faster than other forms of heat, this makes them especially useful in a cold conservatory or workshop. The warm glow should stop children from touching it and a safety cut out turns the units off when and if they are knocked off. The light weight make them popular with the elderly.