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How to Choose Your Dog Heaters
So which are the best dog heaters out there? At this time of year particularly, a lot of dog owners want to keep their dogs warm, but don’t just buy the first one you see or the cheapest.
This is a common mistake that many people make unfortunately, you really need to understand the implications before you buy. Get this wrong and your inexpensive dog heater will cost you significant amounts of money in increased energy bills every year.
In our opinion you should be asking yourself the question which heater creates the best heat for your dog? Obviously not everyone has the same breed and a kennel needs to be at a lower temp for a long haired dog than a short haired one. Some breeds also feel the cold more, whereas others just love it when its freezing. So you have to use some common sense when making your choice of heaters.
The ideal temperature for a kennel is between 10 -20 degrees so if you can maintain the ideal temperature this has to be your goal. Now some kennels will be better insulated than others so a poorly insulated one would mean the heater is working much harder than it would say in one of our insulated thermal kennels.
Another factor is where the heater is positioned whether wall or ceiling mounted, as heat rises it makes more sense to have the heater ideally on the ceiling. This way it is also up out of the way when you’re cleaning the kennel and it means that dogs can’t chew it.
There are so many different type of heaters out there that it can be a bit of a minefield. Heat lamps are cheap to buy but expensive to run and the red light emitted can damage young dogs and puppies eyes. Also there is always the risk of the glass breaking which is another safety concern.
Tubular heaters can be a successful option but they do get really hot very quickly, so you would need to have a suitable guard for these as a safety precaution. These tend to heat the ambient air so its advisable to buy them with a thermostat so you can have a means to adjust them.
Without a doubt the most effective and efficient way to heat a kennel is to buy a radiant panel heater. These come in a variety of sizes so make sure that you size these correctly. The larger your kennel or room you will either need a larger heater or multiple heaters as they are all designed to heat a specific area.
The way these dog heaters work is that they bounce radiant rays around your kennel and this energy is absorbed by an object like the walls, floor, your dog etc. They produce a very gentle heat so they never get really hot which makes them incredibly safe to use.
If these are fitted with a thermostat/timer they can achieve running costs of around 3p per hour to run. One customer we had recently gave us the feedback that he was saving hundreds of pounds each year in his energy bills and he couldn’t believe how impressively they performed.
These standout dog heaters are what we have been installing in our commercial kennels for many years and therefore they are well proven in a kennel environment. In fact our belief is that they could pay for themselves in less than 3 months, so its best to focus more on energy efficiency rather than the initial purchase price.
Dog Heaters Advice
If you are unsure about which heater to get, or if you want us to recommend a size of heater for your space then please call us on 01785 559555 as we will help you to make the right choice.
