Is a heating element actually 100% efficient, though?

Some of the energy is converted to light.

Which unless it goes out through a window would eventually be turned into heat anyway, right?

Resistive heaters still suck though because Heat pumps give you 200-400% efficiency. So heating wise, “100%” still less than maximally efficient.

(Not a violation of thermodynamics btw. Heat pumps use electricity to move heat energy that already exists, so the electric power in is often significantly smaller than the heat coming out of the device)

It will still lose some energy on the wires.

Resistive heaters still suck though

• Resistive heaters are much more portable and flexible. (edit: and quiet)
• Resistive heaters are a viable backup when heat pumps fail in extremely cold weather.
• Resistive heaters are less money upfront for if you only have to use them occasionally.

One is not directly beneath the other. Both have their place.

100% of the energy is converted to light, its just in the IR spectrum.

Unless u feed the heater with AC power then you are also generating magnetic fields/radio waves....but those are also just photons (light) with a very long wavelengh.....

Yeah, this is why it makes me irate that my oven automatically turns off the light when I open the door. If the oven is on, let me turn off the light if I want it off. The light and the “waste” heat from the light are both useful.

I'm not well-versed on this topic, but doesn't the AC frequency cause alternating fields in the heating element, making it vibrate slightly? If that's correct, then you're losing an incredibly stupidly tiny amount of energy as sound too.

Even sound energy eventually ends up as heat, though!

Fair enough, do we need to extend this heater solidarity to combustibles as well?

I mean technically they’re infinitely electrically efficient if you don’t use electricity to start them lol

For niche cases like when you're on a camping trip and made a campfire

As heat

Did someone say heat pumps?

And that satisfying glow is losses as light, which will do some heating, but not as efficiently

I'm so happy this man nerded out about heat pumps for a few hours.

But now, all I see is inferior heaters.

Probably not heating what you want.

It's the burden of knowledge

This man taught us that heaters are indeed about as efficient as you can get in turning energy into heat through a little thing called resistance.

Those give off light. Still not efficient

You reminded me of a certain video (or videos?) on quantum fields that I watched a few months back. Truly fascinating subject.

And this one is….. 1600 watts. Surely this “large” room heater will be……. Siiiixxxxteen hundred watts.

Yeah it's still thermal radiation, us being able to see it isn't a disqualifier :p

The air around it will expand and move, too.

More fun than the losses from the heat glow… because can argue if that really is a loss or a feature

Unless your heater's cable is ridiculously long, it'll be in the right area. The wires in the wall aren't part of the heater and don't factor into its efficiency.

Space heaters mostly heat by convective heating, where the heat energy is transferred from the element to the air molecules around it. This doesn't involve infrared radiation (though in practice it is involved because any object above 0 K radiates infrared).

.......HOURS???

Odd design choice. My oven turns the light on when the door is opened (in addition to a manual option). Maybe somebody "repaired" your oven at some point and replaced the door switch for the light with the wrong type? I had to be aware of this when I replaced a similar switch connected to a relay that turned a light on in a closet when you opened the door. I don't remember the specific jargon at the moment, but it boiled down to whether or not the switch was open or closed by the action of depressing the switch. I think the language might have been something like normally open or normally closed.

Bro's got multiple, hour+ long, videos about various types of heat pumps.

And somehow im riveted. Doesn't feel like droning on. I wish I could communicate like him.

Hours of videos about dishwashers too

Unless it is visible to the window at which point the light escapes and doesn’t heat your house 100% efficiently

Heat pumps move heat from outside to inside, and they use less energy than the amount that is brought into the insulated area, resulting in efficiency numbers over 100%. (less energy used than the amount brought inside was used to bring the inside energy levels up)

https://www.cnet.com/home/energy-and-utilities/a-heat-pump-is-more-than-100-efficient-yes-really-heres-how/

Only if that light escapes through a window. Otherwise, it is heat.

There's a whole class of electric heater that do this intentionally. Radiant heaters are awesome for outdoor patios and other spaces like uninsulated garages where you care more about heating surfaces than the air itself.

Most of the heating energy would actually be IR, which many types of window glass will be designed to reflect. It probably depends on what kind of coatings are used. Basically all car windows block IR to help keep the inside of the car cool in the sun.

He videoed about dishwashers so hard he's got his own line of dish detergent now.

I should have said it’s on when open, but turns off every time I close it whether the oven is on or not. So if I’m baking and turn on the light when I'm preheating, then I open the door to put the food in and close it to cook it, the light is then turned off automatically. Then I need to turn it back on, so I can keep an eye on things. And if I have to open the door during the baking process—like to flip something—it’s turned back off again when I close the door, and I have to turn it back on again.

I’d have no problem if it’s this when the oven was off. But when it’s on, it’s pointless.

Yep, every electric device is a toaster, some are just super inefficient at it.

I assume they had a typo and said that the light goes off when they open the door, but they meant it goes off when they close the door.

I don’t know why but as much as I’ve read about radiant heaters to try understanding them your random comment I read here is what it took for things to finally click into place for me. I really love those ah ha moments. Just wanted to say thank you.

Who is that? I love heat pumps too and would happily listen to someone talk about them for hours

Name? Favorite link?

Search YouTube or revanced or whatever other free service for Technology connections, also the alt channel Technology Connextras.

They're not 100% either, they make noises and emit light. That's loss

It practically is. An incandescent lightbulb is a slightly inefficient resistance heater since it emits some power as visible light. That probably ends up as heat in the room when it's absorbed anyway.

well considering everything over 0K emits light I guess there really is no 100% efficient electric machine

Gracias

boy are you one of today's lucky 10,000!

I'm so happy he's become an internet phenomenon that warrants reaction images now lol