Honeywell Heater HZ-510E1 Portable Heater
Cost:
Around £50 for the recommended cost can be picked up for £35 if you look around
Background:
The man cave feels just like that in the winter, it’s cold and not very nice to work in. The garage can be the same so a little heat is needed to keep warm. The wife decided that I could do with some heating and for Christmas I got treated to this little number.
What’s In The Box:
The box is quite big and holds the unit in place very well. The unit is wrapped in plastic sleeve the one point eight meter cord is tied up. Down the side there is a plastic sleeve with the manual in twenty odd languages and only three pages of instructions within that. The biggest draw for this product has got to be the three-year warranty that comes with it. Keep the receipt!
Specifications:
L29.5 x W18 x H27 and weighs in at around two & half kilos
PDF spec: click here >>—–> HZ-510E
Construction:
Taking the heater out the first thing you notice is how light it is in comparison to the size. OK the basics of a fan is just that and a heating element that has the air blown over it out the other end. To make something this light is either down to very expensive components or corners cut elsewhere. The thing is I know this unit is made of metal, but it’s a thin metal, not so thin that it moves on its own but it’s easy enough to bend it or if it falls over I expect it would dent. However I like it, the retro looks are different to the rest of the market and its bright red so you can’t miss it. The adjustable legs are via a flimsy looking plastic with geared teeth on the back to a handle on the side that will raise the unit up from horizontal to a maximum of three inches. The handle on the top has a nice feel to it with a comfort rubber grip. The front chrome is nicely polished and complements the dark grill well.
Operation:
There is are two knobs on the top, these are off, first stage and second stage. These have different kilowatt ratings, the first being 1100kw the second is full power at 1800kw. The temperature is controlled by the other knob clockwise for hot or anti clockwise to cooler. The thermostat control is built-in.
Once the unit has been turned on there is an orange light at the front to indicate power to the unit. The safety feature of the unit is visible and internal. The visible part is the centre of the front grill has an oval section which will change colour as the unit gets hotter to the point where the internal safety cut off will shut the unit down. The colour is black for normal, progressively filling more and more of the oval red signifying the overheat potential. Once the safety has triggered you must wait for the glowing red pad to go back to black before operating the unit again, around twenty minutes so the book of words say.
Keeping the rear fan clean and the front grill will make sure that you shouldn’t see the safety cut out come into play. If the pad at the front does start to change colour just turn the heat down a little or turn the unit of to cool, I personally like the centre visual pad. Do not cover the unit or it will overheat. The standard safety feature is the fused plug at the end of the generous cord length.
Winding up of the side handle to increase the height shows where the money and weight has been saved. The legs will hold the unit up but I fear that any pushing down on the top will wind down the ratchet system and potentially damage the mechanism. The rear feet are also plastic and do not move. Three inches elevation on such a short unit is quite a lot and will heat the room into the middle with ease.
Results:
The fan is quite and a single speed, controlled by a dual heat mode with temperature control. Within a few minutes my shed was warming up and the heat could be turned down and held on the lower heat setting and via thermostat. It works well and is easily moved, the large fan intake at the rear should aid in the airflow to the hot elements towards the front. I have not yet seen the heat warning pad yet as I don’t intend to heat the areas to a sauna temperature or leave it on day in day out. If it heats up then its doing it’s job, if the thermostat works then it doing it’s job.
Rating:
The build is good on the outside but I have to mark it down for the flimsy legs mechanism although they work, I suspect that this is the weakness of the unit. The styling is fantastic and the heat is good as well as the quiet fan. The cost at £50 I would say is a little on the step side but at a third less it makes it a good buy. I feel that if there was a variable speed fan for that super boost of heat and I would have given another mark, but too much fan and the elements would cool down. So I guess that has already been thought of.
8 out 10
Conclusion:
Would I but it again? Yes I would on offer not full price.
Would I recommend it? Yes I would.
Metal construction, good fan, visible heat warning, safety cut out, thermostat control, variable heat choice for power consumption and the three-year warranty. The foot mechanism if it breaks will go back simple as that. I can’t I am too worried about it as I can always lift it up with something else!
I like the styling as I have a sixties car and this definitely has the retro look of that era. All in all – a good gift for the man cave or garage.