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Community and Q&A

Replacement for Electric Baseboard Heating Units

jgold723 | Posted in Energy Efficiency and Durability on

In our 1980’s house we have three rooms upstairs which have the classic baseboard electric heat units. Is there a more efficient but similar unit we can replace them with? The rest of the house is heated by forced hot water from an oil burner. We have opted not to extend that system to these rooms because of the cost and because we will eventually be moving to a heat pump when the boiler reaches the end of its lifespan in a few years. And even when we do that, it is likely these rooms will still need a supplemental heat source. Ideally that would be a more efficient baseboard/wall system.

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Replies

  1. jenniferz5 | | #1

    Take a look at Cadet SoftHeat hydronic baseboards (run by electric). These seem to be fairly efficient and cost-effective units, but I'm not sure how they compare with your current heaters.

  2. Trevor_Lambert | | #2

    Any directly* electric powered heat has the exact same efficiency. There's no reason to replace what you have if that is your criterion.

    *where electricity is doing the heating, as opposed to moving heat like with a heat pump

  3. jgold723 | | #3

    OK, good to know, thank you.

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