How Long Do Oil Filled Heaters Last? [Quick Answer] 

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I have several oil filled radiators here, I use them as the sole heat source both upstairs and in my garage workshop. The one in the garage is from 1982, made by Delonghi, but marked made in USA. Its a 12 fin model. This one has three settings, 600w/900w/1500w. I find that any setting but the lowest is too much, its spent most of its time on the lowest setting with the temp knob set just barely above minimum. I have a Honeywell branded model which I bought in 1995 that I use upstairs. This has two settings, 600w and 900w. I only use the 600w setting on the lowest temp range. These are radiant type heaters, they don't heat the air, they heat the room and everything in it. It don't take much to keep the room warm once its up to temp and since its radiant heat, it recovers quickly. I have a third, slightly newer Delonghi that's only an 8 fin model, it was new in 1989 or so, it quit working after only a few years, upon taking it apart I found that the power wire which connected between the temp sensor and the heating element had lost its insulation and shorted to the steel around it. I replaced that wire and its been working fine ever since. It got retired as a spare when I bought the Honeywell on sale back in '95 though. The Honeywell heater is the most effective for some reason and keeps the most consistent temperature.

I have 2 Dimplex oil filled radiators. They were bought by my parents and have been in use my entire life, and probably prior to my arrival. - In the region of 60 years. The only part of them that has been changed is the mains electrical cable, for a longer length than they came with.

I bought my first and only oil filled radiator in 1994. It's given me 27 years of flawless performance. I bought it for $35. These days, comparable units go for around $80 to $90. It’s been through 8 moves, half of which have been military moves, in two foreign countries, and I’ve accidentally tipped it over several times, twice on hard floors (concrete and tile). One slightly bent edge, but no leaks. If this one ever died, I'd try to fix it, first (switches and thermostats can go bad, but are an easy fix), but if I couldn't, I'd buy another in a microsecond. Nearly all of them have three heat settings: 1500/900/600 W, and nearly all come with a variable, temperature-controlled thermostat. if you need to heat a room quickly, set it to 1500 W and set a fan to blow air through the vertical blades. 1500 W corresponds to 5,115 BTU, so it's not going to heat your entire house, but it's more than enough for your average bedroom. In one apartment my bathroom was always very cold during the winter, so I put it on a plug timer. Cozy in the bathroom, but it would shut off about The only downside is that it’s heavier than other portable heaters, but it’s not that heavy. Mine weighs about 20 lbs. it’s on rollers for easy moving, and the handle allows you to move it while it’s hot on a hard floor, but on carpeting you might want to use a hand towel to grip the hot part.

I have a Delongi from my dad from mid 80’s I run it straight threw winter every year , I was surprised they still sell parts for it . Great heater

Buy two and run at half heat. Place on opposite sides of the room.

very informative thanks. I have a 10 yr old Bionaire, the button console is messed up but it still works and produces good heat. Though I think I might upgrade soon to a Noma since it has a remote control.

Non-Digital Oil-Filled Heater I Used. Very Functional For Very Long Time. Very Energy Efficient.

Wow-never realized these oil heaters lasted that long. I’ll have to try it.

One problem I've found with budget oil heaters is that they simply don't have enough surface area to dissipate the rated heat input. Consequently, they get very hot with the overheat emergency thermostat cutting in and out frequently. Bound to shorten the life of the element. Big budget brand names seem much better in that respect.

this dude has made this a serious topic bros

I have one solid build soviet type which is 30+ years long and still runs great (with occasional use). It is actual classic radiator filled with oil and with heating element. I think the corosion of the plates and leakages can be the worst enemy. Electrically sensitive part is the bi-metal temperature switch, which can be cheaply repaired.

I have an older one with mechanical switches. The main rocker switch went bad. I ordered on inline and it took me about ten minutes to fix. Heats a large room on the low setting. Probably 30 years old!

Another thing to consider - faulty components and planned obsolescence - I currently have 6 heaters that dont work properly

So far 7 years straight every winter

I got one from Kmart a couple years ago, It was great, within an hour my whole apartment was warm, actually a tad too hot and I had to turn it down. Now 2 years later I need to have the damn thing right up against me, between my legs as I'm sitting down. So in 2 years it's deteriorated some way and is now useless.

Is it ok to store it on its side or should I keep it vertical?

Manufacturers know how long these last which is why they put cheap switches in the safety mechanism that disengages the electric if the heater falls over. I have fixed many with this problem

I got one from the cold war.

Great information, thank you! I put my bath towel over my oil heater and thought I left the air vents uncovered but no, is it worth repairing?

I've found setting them at a medium-low setting and being patient & waiting awhile the heating of the room is slower, it does give enough heat and mine has lasted a long time.

Amazon delivery guy brought my havells oil heater upside down yesterday. Should I return it or it's not a problem

i know people who have them for 60 years.

I bought a 13 fins oil filled radiator. Even after ten plus hours of switching on, the room doesn't seem to be heated properly. Is that normal for radiators?

Could you plz provide the solution of repairing too

Eden pure, or a nice oil filled one? I'm looking to get the most for my money spent on electric, thanks

My Delong oil filled radiator smells metal when it runs. What can be the problem? I bought it about 10 years ago. I used it for 2 winters then it was in storage all the rest of time( not in use) .

if the coil is deteriorated.. you can replace it.. 10 dollars.

I think using them at the lower heat settings instead of the highest will help a heater last longer. This is a good overview, although the heating element(s) in oil filled heaters are not coils. Here is a good video clip which I've advanced to him taking the heating element out, and you can see the shorter 600 watt element inside the 900 watt element, and that they are long pencil-thick U-shaped rods. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-5nHhixje6bM.html

I bought two this winter. Within the first week, one of them started leaking oil. I can't figure a way to fix it without draining it, and there is no way to do that without tearing it apart. My electric bill went way up when I was using them, too. They can draw some serious electricity.

What the running costs

I bought a brand new oil heater at W.M. & as soon as I turned it on the switch fell inside the unit. I do not know how to retrieve the switch so it can be fixed. Any suggestions? Thanks. I'm an older woman with not much savvy about switches.

Mine keeps tripping the house circuit breaker, but I'm not using any more devices than I used to. What do you think might be causing it?

mine lasted about a year and started to leak oil

A problem i have with my oil heater is that when i turn it on then in a few minutes its turns off by itself why?

Can a oil heater still be used even if it has a slight leak at the bottom?

So why are these heaters not made with induction technology??????!

those heaters have circuit boards that can burn out in very short time - where as my Dell computer has been working for 10 years - whats that tell you - junk is junk

Got 4 of them 2yrs at best 3 of the 4 not working

PHHHEEEEEEEEEw I never get 3 years out of them

My Heater cycle off time is 3 second runs and 10 second off. Is it normal?

I don't think the life estimate is even close to being on point. These heaters are NOT designed to last that long. It's called built-in obsolescence. They are deliberately design to fail after a year or two so that the consumer will have to repurchase them. This type of built-in obsolescence is widespread across appliances and electronic devices. You have heard of being a customer for life? Meaning you have to continue to rebuy the same items over and over again throughout your lifetime.

I bought mine in 54BC and still working

I bought mine in the world war 2.

our heater fails every year.

Until the knobs melt from the heat