Electric Heating Baseboard Requirements Guide - How Many Feet of Baseboard Heater & Where to Locate Electric Baseboard Heaters InspectAPedia® -
How to buy, install, inspect and diagnose each type of electric heat in buildings
How to determine the number of feet of electric baseboard needed in a room or home
Electric heat choices, electric heat wiring and installation tips and safety suggestions
How to save on electric heating costs
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Here we discuss how to install and wire electric heating baseboards. This website answers most questions about all types of heating systems and gives important inspection, safety, and repair advice.
Heating safety hazards such as carbon monoxide gas leaks, unsafe furnaces, furnace and boiler recalls are addressed. If you don't know what kind of heat your building uses, see our introduction at BOILERS, HEATING. Sketch at page top courtesy of Carson Dunlop.
How Many Linear Feet of Electric Baseboard Heat do we Need in a Building?
Here are some electric heat rules of thumb that will help you see if the electric baseboard already installed in your building will be sufficient. These guesstimates presume your building is located in a climate where there are real winters, not in southern states.
A larger room or a poorly-insulated building will need more watts of electric heat (and pay higher electrical bills). You need about 5-8 watts of electric heat per square foot of the room being heated.
As Carson Dunlop's sketch shows, you can figure that your electric baseboard is providing about 250 watts of electric heat per foot of baseboard length.
Where Should Electric Heaters be Located for Best Performance in a Building?
As Carson Dunlop's sketch shows, we usually place electric baseboard heaters on an exterior wall.
Electric heat is also widely used to add a local source of heat in a problem area (such as a cold entry foyer) and where it would be more trouble and expense to add warm air or hot water or steam heat for that spot.
We also like to use small electric heat sources in closed crawl spaces and in spots where there is a risk of freezing pipes. (See our article on how to winterize and freeze-protect a building).
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Electric Heating System Inspection & Diagnosis Detailed Articles
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Heating Cost Reduction Advice: How to Save on Home Heating Costs - Book Review & Actual Heating Savings and Energy Savings Tips for homeowners and service technicians
Heating Loss Diagnosis: How to diagnose loss of heat, when the oil burner, boiler, or furnace won't run, or when the system runs but heat is not delivered to the living area
Odors From Heating Systems - a list of articles addressing the sources of odors produced by various types of heating systems - how to find, diagnose, and correct these possibly dangerous conditions.
Thermal Tracking & Stains & Signs of Heat Loss how to recognize thermal tracking or thermal bridging & how to diagnose Stains on Ceilings & Walls, Building Air Leaks & Insulation Defects, as well as other indoor air quality or building concerns
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Our recommended books about building design, inspection, and repair, and about indoor environment testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore.
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Links to our list of additional information on heating system inspection, repair, maintenance
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