Electric fan heaters: a reliable, economical solution

It’s a safe, quick and easy way to warm people in tents. This equipment does not consume oxygen during operation, and does not release substances that are toxic to humans and animals. There are different categories of fan heaters that heat the air using electricity:

• equipment with PTC ceramic heating elements;
• electric unit heaters
• radiant heaters

Equipment with PTC ceramic heating elements has the advantage of offering more pleasant temperature conditions than the other two. However, it is not advisable to use these devices in dusty environments, to avoid causing a breakdown. To operate these mobile heaters, all you need to do is plug them into an outlet, switch them on and set the temperature to your preferred setting. The number of machines you use depends on the space to be heated and the capacity of the equipment installed. For small areas, you only need one machine. However, if the space you want to heat is large, you’ll need several mobile heaters. You can also opt for an electric unit heater. These fixed units are very powerful, and generate a lot of heat. However, this solution is not always easy to put into practice. They require a substantial electricity supply, which is generally not available on the sites where the tents are installed. What’s more, the electrical loads for these high-capacity heaters can be expensive. For reasons of economy, electric fan heaters are generally used to heat small spaces (2 x 3 meters in length and width). Don’t confuse electric fan heaters with infrared radiant heaters.

Both are mobile electric heating methods, but infrared equipment is not at all recommended for these applications.

Indirect-fired heaters: the ideal method for thermal comfort inside marquees

It’s a safe, reliable method that you can use to heat environments that house people and animals. This equipment is therefore the ideal solution for ensuring comfort inside a tent or structure. There are two types: oil-fired and gas-fired (propane, butane, etc.). These are forced-air devices, which diffuse clean, dry heat into the environment you wish to keep warm. These are very compact pieces of equipment, easy to move around, even through tight spaces. To operate, these machines require electricity and fuel(gas or oil). The hot air used to heat the medium is obtained by burning a fuel inside the machine. To ensure that toxic elements do not diffuse into the medium to be heated, the combustion chamber is well insulated from the airflow outlet. This type of equipment can be installed either inside or outside the environment to be heated. When the unit is installed outside the tent, ducts are used to bring the hot air inside. In this case, the machine draws in cold air, heats it, and then pulses it into the tent after separating it from the residues caused by oxidation of the gas or fuel oil. As a result, the incoming air is warm, dry and clean. When the hot-air cannon is installed inside the environment to be heated, harmful products are expelled to the outside through a chimney. The machine blows hot air directly from the inside. This strategy is not generally used to heat tents. Indirect combustion systems are more economical than fan-forced heaters, which run mainly on electricity. In fact, a high-pressure furnace can heat large spaces and is more cost-effective than electric unit heaters.

It’s true that you’ll have to invest in gas or oil, but these two forms of energy are cheaper than electricity. In fact, the price per kWh of electricity is much higher than that of other energy sources. Low-pressure hot-air cannons are available for small and medium-sized tents. For larger areas, a high-pressure machine is more suitable. However, you can use several low-capacity models if you wish.

Is it possible to install a direct-combustion system to heat tents?

These are highly efficient machines for heating air. They can also be fuelled by oil or gas. What’s more, they offer 100% efficiency. However, they are not recommended for heating rooms with little or no ventilation, or where there is a risk of fire. These machines expel through the same outlet the flow of hot air and the products formed when the fuel is burned. As a result, the air pulsed by this machine does not have to be immediately breathed in by humans and animals. Direct-combustion systems are ideal for heating premises with very good ventilation systems, and covered outdoor spaces. Since tents are totally or partially enclosed, these devices cannot be used indoors. You risk making people and animals inside ill, or causing a fire. However, you can use these machines to heat outdoor spaces, for example, if you want to set up a smoking area on the terrace. This highly cost-effective equipment is well placed to do the job. If your tent is small or medium-sized, you can install a single machine. If it’s a large tent (30 m2 or more), install several to cover the entire area. This way, your guests will be able to go outside and smoke, without getting cold.

Precautions for using direct-fired furnaces

For your own safety, we recommend that you do not use hot-air guns installed indoors to heat tents. These devices are potentially hazardous to your health (leaking pipes), and can easily cause fires when installed inside tents. If you still want to use this type of furnace, make sure the tent is open. Equipment that operates from the outside is better suited to heating a tent. Make sure you position the system so as to spread the hot air over the entire volume. To ensure optimum results, you can ask your rental company to take care of the installation.

How do you determine your calorific needs?

Some platforms offer online heat output calculators to simplify the task. All you have to do is log on and fill in the necessary information, and you’ll have an overview of the heat loads to be covered at your event. You can also do the calculation yourself with a pen, paper and calculator. To find the heat output to be covered, you need to use the following information:

• the expected ambient temperature for the period of your event and the temperature you wish to maintain inside the tent
• total volume of space to be heated
• the average thermal transmittance of the tent material (U-value)

In literal terms, the heat output is the product of the volume of the tent, the value and the difference between the outside and inside temperatures.

Contact us for your heating needs, for sale or rent

Would you like to hire heating equipment for outdoor events? Whether you’re looking for solutions that run on electricity, gas or oil, you’re sure to find what you need when you contact us. The icing on the cake is that you can request a rental quote. All you have to do is tell us what you need, and our customer service team will suggest the models that are right for you and the price you can expect to pay.