Lasko Ceramic Adjustable Thermostat Space Heater 754200

Got 2 of these for my 2 ‘coldest’ rooms so I can lower the thermostat during the day and use these instead.(I would never use any space heater at night when I am unconscious and not able to keep an eye on them).

They are small but powerful with 2 heat settings, a ‘fan only’ function, and a thermostat dial with 11 settings. It has an automatic ‘overheat’ kill switch, shutting the appliance off if it begins to overheat (but I’ve not experienced that to date). While the instructions caution one about the ceramic exterior getting hot, I have not experienced that even though I’ve been watching (and feeling) for it. This unit measures 8.5″ high, 6″ wide and 4.5″ in depth (smaller than 2 boxes of tissues stacked upright)and is pleasing to the eye. Easy to use, one can turn it on and set it to run as long as desired, or use the thermostat setting for it to come on/turn off as the area warms to your settings. Easy to set the thermostat function: turn unit on full blast until the room/area warms to your satisfaction, then slowly turn the thermostat dial down until the unit stops running. After that, it will turn on/off as the room cools/warms per your setting. To reset to a different therm. setting, simply let unit cool completely (unplug for about 10 minutes) and you can reset as before. A small, unobtrusive red ‘on’ light peeks at you from the center front top of the unit so one always knows it is plugged in. They require a 120 outlet and instructions caution NOT to use surge suppresors, power strips or extension cords for its operation.
I’ve used these in the cellar while I’m doing laundry/ironing (unfinished cellar is cold and damp in the winter months), and aside from keeping me from getting chilled, I’ve noticed it helps to dry the clothes on the cellar lines & drying racks also.

It is intended for use on the floor, not on furniture. This may be an issue for those with young children or pets, but it is easily placed behind an open bottomed chair, area table with legs, beneath a coffee table, etc. Right now, one is beneath my kitchen table with the chairs in front of it as the 6 dogs go in/out the back door all day/night long. I no longer have to walk into a freezing kitchen because I’ve had to open the back door so often. This little powerhouse of a unit kicks on as soon as the cold air hits the floor and runs until the kitchen is warm again and it is only on the 2nd setting! There are 9 higher settings from which to choose. While it isn’t completely silent in operation, it isn’t loud either. A normal hum similar to a small fan on very low setting. My stove hood fan on “low” makes more noise than this unit as does a kettle of water almost reaching its boiling point.

I like these so much, I’m back for a few more for my sister. Her 3rd floor apartment is in a historically-old multi-family dwelling with poor insulation. She is always cold, always catching colds and her heating bills are astronomical trying to keep the apartment warm. I think she’s going to love these as well as I do as she can move them to any room she is in at the time without having to raise the heat in the entire apartment.

Can’t go wrong with these, esp. this price!

Edit: Super Bowl Sunday, 2/7/10 – wanted to see if one of these would warm the entranceway as hubby’s guests come in/out during the game today as we leave the beverages outside stuffed in the snow to keep them really, really cold. I didn’t use an extension cord, but for the area I wanted to place the heater, I did try a surge suppressor. Several times. I say ‘several times’ because each time I turned the heater on, the circuit breakers for that entire side of the house triggered. So I thought to myself “Self, maybe it is this particular heater. Try one of the other 2 I have in other rooms…” Ok, so I thought it was a good idea at the time…but it wasn’t. Each heater in succession triggered the circuit breakers. I guess the instructions meant what they said. Use this heater only directly connected to the actual outlet! Whew -glad I found this out BEFORE the game! I’d probably be relegated to the back yard and the dog house had I blown the circuit breakers during the game….:)

I bought one of these heaters to use downstairs in my computer room. That room has no heat at all in it. I spend a lot of time on my computer and in the winter I just about freeze to death down there. I did research here on Amazon and read many reviews before deciding on this one. I really liked the idea that it was thermostat controlled. I put the heater next to my computer desk on the floor and set it to #1 and then turned up the other knob until the heat started running. This heater put out a lot of heat, even on the 1 setting, and my feet began to feel hot. So I got a small step stool I had and put it on that to see if the heat would cover the rest of my body better. This was a big improvement because then my whole body was warm. In fact, it warmed me so well that I had to push the heater further away from me and not point it directly on me because it did get a little too warm after awhile. My computer room is a rather large room, at least 16X24, so the room does not get toasty warm with this heater. But it does take off the chill of the room and makes it comfortable.

I have never had to use the #2 setting on this heater and from what I understand from reading here, the lower the number that you use, the less electricity that you use.

I liked this heater so well I decided to buy another one for a large bathroom that we have–the bathroom is as big as a very small bedroom. I take showers and this bathroom is the only one that has a shower stall in it, but during the winter it feels so cold in there after you get out of the shower. So I ordered another one. Evidently the second heater I ordered did not come from the same seller and later I found out it was a refurbished heater. That would explain why this 2nd heater did not run well. Not only did it not push out the heat, it made a terrible noise. I told my husband that something was wrong with the heater and had him to compare the 2 heaters side by side and even he could tell the difference in how much the heaters put out. I call Amazon and told them the problem. I sent it back to Amazon, free shipping back, and re-ordered another one of these heaters. It was when I decided to send the 2nd heater back that I discovered it was a refurbished heater–and the price for the refurbished heater was a higher price than the band new heat I bought the first time. There was only about 3 months difference between the times I ordered the first and the second heater so there should not have been that much of a rise in price.

The 3rd heater I ordered came and ran just as well as the first one did–and was a cheaper price than the refurbished non working heater I bought the second time. So make sure when you order one of these heaters that you are not ordering a used/refurbished heater or you might run into the same problem I had.

Would I order another one of these heaters again? You bet, because for the money they put out a lot of heat and work very well.