space heaters honeywell hz 519 versus

Space Heaters: Honeywell HZ-519 versus DeLonghi HHP 1500

I have an online account with Consumer Reports, which I've been quite

pleased with; it's the first place I look for home appliance

recommendations. The manufacturers of my washer, dryer, wet vac, space

heaters, and lawn mower can all thank Consumer Reports for my

purchase. However, sometimes, by sticking to objective measures, they

get things wrong when problems crop up outside those objective

measures. In my case, I feel their high recommendation of the

Honeywell HZ-519 electric convection space heater was misguided, as

compared to another heater they gave a not quite as high rating, the

DeLonghi HHP 1500.

[HZ519vsHHP1500.png]

Problem 1: Physical Dimensions

You might notice that the HZ-519 is long and thin. Long and thin

objects are delicate and require odd shipping boxes. As I, and at

least one other Amazon reviewer found out, these things are easily

bent in the middle during shipping as it is hard to protect, leaving

me with some ugly and noisy bends in the metal. (The Amazon merchant

did give me $24 back instead of taking the return). Also, while it has

ample cord length, it is mounted at the right side, if your plugin

happens to be to the left, the cord suddenly is no longer so long.

Compare this with the squarish, solid HHP 1500 which fits in a box of

normal dimensions, and whose cord can be used at a fair distance to

the left and right.

Problem 2: Temperature Control

Consumer reports gives the HZ-519 high marks for its digital

temperature control and timer, which are nice for a single use: set

the temperature to maintain by pushing a few buttons, set the time to

heat through a few more button presses. The HHP 1500 on the other hand

has no way to set a temperature, you turn some knobs and it will try

maintain a temperature: what temperature that is it doesn't say. You

will have to futz with it over the course of a couple nights until you

find a setting which is comfortable for you. But, and here is the big

but, once you find a setting you like you are done. When you want to

use the DeLonghi you come in flip the top knob on; with the Honeywell,

you press the power button, press the "Temp/Timer" button to select

temperature, hit a couple arrow keys; if you want automatically turn

off the unit, that's more button presses. Every single session. There

is no memory of the last setting. Yes, you do get a timer, which is

nice, but you try setting the temperature on this thing in a darkened

room, when all you want to do is crawl in bed. (There are versions of

this heater with a display backlight, and with a remote control which

would mitigate this annoyance.)

[HZ519_Controls.png]

[DeLonghi_HHP1500.png]

Problem 3: Being Nice to Your Fuses

The HHP 1500 has two main power settings. One draws about 7Amps when

powering its element, the other around 13 Amps, which spikes at over

15 when turning on causing my Kill-a-Watt to make a warning beep. The

HZ-519 has one mode which draws around 11 Amps. A typical household

circuit is rated at 15Amps. Now imagine having two bedrooms which

share an electrical circuit, each with their own space heater. If you

installed two HHP 1500s, that's fine, just keep both of them at their

7 Amp setting, and it will just take longer to heat the rooms. If you

have two HZ-519s, pop goes the circuit breaker. This assumes the rooms

in question are small enough to be heated adequately at the lower

setting.

[HHP_1500_KillaWatt.png]

Problem 4: Noise

OK, I shouldn't criticize the HZ-519 because mine has a lot of twisted

metal from the shipping incident, but it is quite noisy as it expands

and contracts. The HHP 1500 is dead quiet.

Problem 5: Flexibility of Placement

The HZ-519 is designed to be placed along a wall, while the HHP 1500

can be mounted on a wall or rolled into the middle of a room.

Energy Usage

Not a big problem here, and impossible for me to compare. The HZ-519

in one bedroom has been using about 6kWH (about a dollar) a night

keeping the room at a comfy temp over the chilly temp I keep the rest

of the house, while the HHP 1500 has been draining about the same. I

would be happy with nice thick blankets, but my wife wants the

children warm when they kick off their covers.

Safety

The HZ-519 does have such additional safety features as automatic

switch-off when knocked over. You will have to judge how important

this is for you.

In Conclusion

If you are in the market for an electric convection space heater, get

the DeLonghi. Buy them in the summer when they are cheap, because they

have really gone up in price since the cold weather set in. I paid $80

for a DeLonghi in late November, it's now mid-January and the same

heater is $160.